Learn about Respiration

Like other vertebrates, you rely on a large amount of energy made available through the metabolism of food and oxygen. Humans and many other organisms are called “aerobic” organisms because they need oxygen in order to survive. Read More..

From Earth to the Outer Limits: A Voyage in Images

Can you imagine taking a trip into outer space? Can you envision the incredible sights you’d see peering out the window of the Space Shuttle? For most of us space travel will remain just a dream,
but it’s still fun to dream!

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Why Are We Testing Our Kids To Death?

Just the other day, I needed to pick up one of my sons early from school, but was informed by the school receptionist that he was in the middle of taking a winter assessment.  Our kids had just returned from a 2-week winter break and here they were testing again rather than learning!

I was in a bit of a shock — what on earth could they be testing them for now?  They had already been given a baseline exam at the beginning of the year, and had taken numerous other “little” tests before the winter break. This was all in preparation for our state assessment, which was not scheduled for another few months. With all of these assessments, I wondered how did we ever end up in this vicious testing cycle? Read More..

What does sound travel through?

My kids are fascinated by sound. Maybe it’s because they are very good at making lots of it! But what causes sound?

Sound occurs when an object vibrates. When an object moves back and forth we say it vibrates. When something vibrates (like your voice box) it causes the molecules around it to also vibrate, which then causes a ripple of motion (known as a sound wave) that can travel through air, water, and solid materials such as wood or a piece of string. Read More..

Why does a boat float but a nail sink?

For those of you that know me well, you know that I love to sail. And so do my kids! So when my 9 year old son asked me the other day  “Mom why does a boat float but a nail sink?” I was relieved that I could use science (yet again) to answer the question!!

If you drop a nail into a cup of water it sinks, right?

Why do you think this is the case? Ok I’ll tell you!
The nail sinks because the density of the steel is greater than the density of the water. But ocean liners are made of steel so why do they float, and since they do float, why do they sometimes also sink?

Everyone’s heard of gravity, that mysterious force that pulls everything downward, but did you know there is also an opposing force? Buoyancy is the push to gravity’s pull. Buoyancy is the force that floats your boat. To understand buoyant force, think about what happens when you put an ice cube into your glass of water.

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