High School Freshman visits the Podcast

A Crazy 8 alum (class of 2009) has been kind enough to tell us about her transition from middle school to high school. Olivia is a freshman at Roosevelt this year, and I think she did a great job in the podcast interview. Feel free to leave a comment on this post if you'd like to thank her (or ask any other questions about high school that were not addressed in the podcast).

Weathering and Erosion Posters

I have been extremely impressed by the collective work of the Crazy 8s on a recent poster project. Here are a few of the posters...


and here are all of them..... see if you can find your own!

Finally, here is a "mosaic" of Harney Peak (highest elevation in South Dakota) made with the Crazy 8 posters.

Case Study: The Black Hills

Many of you have been out to the Black Hills. If you haven't (or if you can't remember what it is like), visualize the following scenario:
As you drive west from Rapid City, you notice a jagged stretch of sandstone peaks called the Hogback Ridge. After a short descent from those sandtone peaks, you come to an area comprised of another sedimentary rock, red shale, which makes a "Racetrack" around the Black Hills. If you keep driving west, there is a gradual incline made of limestone. This limestone formed 100-500 million years ago, from the shells of ancient marine animals. (Yes, we are still in the Black Hills of South Dakota.) Keep driving still, past this limestone plateau, and you will see the Central Crystalline Core of the Black Hills. This area is made of schist (a metamorphic rock) and granite (an intrusive igneous rock) that have aged for up to 2.5 billion years. The apparent color of this Central Core and the groves of Ponderosa Pine gave this area its name, the Black Hills. You might want to get out of the car and take a hike up to Harney Peak, the highest peak in between the Rocky Mountains and the Alps of Switzerland.
What are the events that led to the formation of these Black Hills? Why does it look the way it does? Like geologists, we will explore these questions today.
If you were not in class for the presentation (or if you could use it to review), here is a video:

Here is a link to the presentation (without sound): Formation of the Black Hills

1. Write a summary of how the Black Hills formed. What are the events that led to their formation?
2. Would the Badlands exist if weathering/erosion had not taken place? Why/Why not?
3. The major uplift of the Black Hills occurred 70 million years ago. What do you think that area of South Dakota looked like 40 million years ago? What do you think the Black Hills and Badlands will look like in another 40 million years?

Tape a Student Day

This morning we taped Miranda to a pillar in the team area. We did this for enjoyment and, more importantly, to raise money for our school's food drive. Here is a slideshow of pictures from the event.

Rocks

In science, it is our duty to ask "Why?" and "How?" questions about things that are around us (whether those things are common or extraordinary). Like rocks. I have a couple of those questions for you, Crazy 8s:A: This is a picture of an igneous rock. You may construct a paragraph that answers the following questions, or you may answer each question individually.

1. Why does this igneous rock have crystals?


2. Where did this rock form? How do you know?


3. What type of igneous rock is this?
   

B: This is a picture taken in the Badlands of South Dakota (there are other "badlands", too). The rocks that you see are sedimentary rocks, and they have NOT always been there. Use your knowledge of the rock cycle to answer this question: (If you need a refresher, view the rock cycle prezi in the blog post below this one.)

• How did these sedimentary rocks get here? (What are some of the events that could lead to the formation of sedimentary rocks?)
  

Rock Cycle

To review the rock cycle, navigate through this Rock Cycle Prezi, noting the three main types of rock and the processes by which they are formed.

Our Podcasts are on iTunes!

Cool, huh? Now (if you have iTunes) you can search for our podcasts in the iTunes store. Search "Mr. Hoegh's Classroom" or "Hoegh" and you should be able to download and subscribe to our podcasts for free. This will allow you to listen to our podcasts on the computer or on an iPod or MP3 player.

Mr. Hannemann was our guest on the latest podcast. He did a great job talking about what he was like as a student in middle school, and what he feels is important for young people to remember as they progress through middle school, high school, and college.

Here is a form, in which I'd love your input. This is a blog that showcases your scientific knowledge, talents, and work. Let it be your podcast.

Minerals

When you first heard that we would be learning about minerals, here were some of the initial comments:

• "So...... we're gonna learn about rocks....... OK......."
• "Are there really minerals in a bottle of mineral water?"
  
• "Diamonds, gold, and other gemstones are minerals. Can we keep the ones we work with?"
• "Aren't there minerals in the Fruity Pebbles I eat for breakfast?"

In the past few days in science, your view of minerals has likely changed. You've discovered that there are many different classes/types of minerals -- each with a unique set of properties that allows us to identify one mineral from another.
In your comment, completely answer the following questions. If you don't want your comment to be published, that is fine! Just let me know in the comment you leave.

1. Minerals are identified by their properties. What are some of the properties you used to distinguish one mineral from another? Why is it best to use more than just one or two of these properties?
   
2. Did some of the properties "work" better than others? Which ones were the most effective? Which were the least effective? Explain.
   
3. What was the most difficult part of identifying minerals?
   

Science Podcast

Coke vs. Diet Coke Challenge

Crazy 8s: Don't let the title of this post fool you. This is not a taste test (although taste IS a property of minerals). Instead, we will test these objects' densities. Please follow the directions that are given below the slideshow.
Coke vs. Diet Coke Density

• Click on "comments". Like always, this will open up a new window where you may type your blog response.
• Advance to the next slide by clicking on the right portion of the slideshow. You can also click on the left portion if you want to go back to the previous slide.
• In your blog response, answer all questions that appear on the purple-ish slides.
  
• Do not advance to the next slide until you have completely answered the questions that appeared on the purple-ish slides.

Crazy 8 Chemistry Labs

This video is also on YouTube with a higher resolution. Click here to view it.

Recipe for Iron Sulfide

5 grams Iron Filings (Fe)
5 grams Sulfur (S)
HEAT (from Bunsen Burner)

Add iron filings and sulfur together, and place in test tube. Add heat from the Bunsen burner. Simmer for several minutes. Let reaction occur in a fume hood to prevent the aroma from going around the whole school.

Here is a view of what happened as our mixture of Iron and Sulfur became Iron Sulfide:



Some questions for the Crazy 8s:

1. What were some signs that a chemical change took place? (What did you observe as the mixture in the test tube was heated?) Be descriptive!
2. Did the properties of the original components change when the new substance was formed? How? Which ones?
3. The mass of your new substance was less than the mass of the individual components that went into the reaction. However, in a chemical reaction, matter is neither created nor destroyed. What explains the change in mass?
   

Chemistry Labs

Chemistry Jeopardy

Go back to "slide 2" after each question in order to see (and select from) the main game board.

Chemistry Jeopardy

Chemistry VoiceThread

This VoiceThread presentation, brought to you by the some of our Crazy 8 Scientists, describes some of the concepts they have learned about during the chemistry unit.

Bonding and Matter Standard Check tomorrow...

Things to know for the standard check tomorrow:

• Key terms, such as Matter, Element, Compound, and Mixture
• How can the components that make up compounds be separated? What about the components of mixtures?
• How many different types of substances are needed to make elements, compounds, and mixtures?
• What happens to the properties of substances when they form compounds? Do they remain the same, or are they different? What happens to the properties of substances when mixtures are formed?
• Examples of physical properties and chemical properties
• Examples of physical and chemical changes: For more practice on physical and chemical changes go to this site, where there are 20 changes you can identify as being physical or chemical.
• How can you illustrate what occurs in an ionic bond? Here is a video, if you need a refresher....

• How can you illustrate what occurs in a covalent bond? Here is another video. Feel free to view it if you're not sure how to draw covalent bonds.

Let me know if you have any questions on this stuff. As always, I hope that all of you do a great job on the standard check tomorrow. Can you believe that it is the end of the 1st Quarter already?

Human Bohr Model

Here is some video footage from last week's "Battle of Bohr" with the other 8th grade teams. It was a fun day! Sorry if each student/class is not present in the video -- You all did a great job.

Static Electricity

Below is a picture of my daughter from last fall. She briefly turned her soccer goal into a fort/tent with a blanket on top, and (as you can see) some serious static electricity was produced!

After reading the short article AND contemplating some of your own experiences with static electricity, answer the following questions in a comment on this blog post:

1. What causes "Static Electricity"?
2. What does static electricity have to do with chemistry, atoms, and an atom's structure?

Drawing a Neutral Atom

Noah and Jenny show us how it's done!

2009 Chemistry Games

I am challenging all Crazy 8s (and other Earthlings that have access to our blog) to achieve greatness in the 1st-ever Chem Games. Use the following links to earn (as many points possible) and learn (about the individual elements and their chemical symbols, subatomic particles, and placement on the periodic table). These websites can help reinforce your knowledge of atoms and the periodic table, concepts that we have started (and will continue) to learn about during our chemistry unit.

Here are the links:
Element Flash Cards (set up the game so that it tests you on the 33 elements you are supposed to know) Non-Crazy 8 visitors can view this link to find out what those elements are.
Element Math Games
Periodic Table Activities
Setting the Periodic Table
Element Matching Game
Fun Brain Periodic Table

Feel free to share your high scores, along with the game and its conditions, in the comments section of this post. Post your scores with honesty and integrity. As always, these are virtues required of Crazy 8s and others that visit our blog. Gold medals in the 2009 Chem Games are at stake! Good luck!

For the Standard Check tomorrow....

You might want to answer some of these questions. The correct answers will be visible to you when you click on the "comments" link of this post. Good luck to all.

Introduction to Earth Science

This VoiceThread includes a brief description of what the Crazy 8 students have been doing in science so far (At this point, we are three weeks in). I really enjoyed hearing each and every one of the comments that were made and prepared in groups last week. Only one comment per slide was chosen for viewing on this blog. You are invited to turn the volume up on the computer, press play, and listen to what the Crazies have to say.

Our "Labs that Rule" Rules Voicethread

Welcome, Class of 2014

This is your science teacher, Mr. Hoegh (Class of 2000) creating this post. The school year has started. We've had a stellar first few days. I am hopeful that each one of you is enjoying school so far, or at least parts of it (seeing your friends, meeting new people, and SCIENCE CLASS WITH MR. HOEGH all come to mind). For this first post of the school year, I'd like you all to contribute a comment. You can do this after you:

1. Create an OpenID/Google Account (we will do this during class)
2. Click on the "comments" link below this post.

In your comment, include your first name and a number from one to ten that indicates how excited you are to have this blog be a part of science class. Thank you, Crazy 8 Scientists. It is good to have all of you on board.

The next step

Today is the last day of school. For you Crazy 8s out there, this is your last day at Memorial. Has it sunk in yet? Are you excited? Worried? Happy? Sad?

I must say that I am really excited for summer. Not because I'm sick of my students (really.... that's not it!), but because it will be good to change the routine a little bit and move on to new things. I'll get to spend a lot of time with my girls -- going to the pool, playing in the backyard, going to the lake, playing sports, roofing houses, etc.

I think you're all excited for a lot of the same reasons. You are ready for new challenges -- this summer, in high school, and beyond. It's always exciting to learn about new things, and that's what many of you are ready to do. Everyone needs new challenges. For my youngest daughter, she is mastering the art of rolling over and is facing the challenge of learning how to crawl. She works so hard! My oldest girl is talking more and more, and is also challenging herself athletically -- jumping higher, running faster, bridging herself over the couch and coffee table.....

You will all have new challenges that you become interested in. I am looking forward to see what those challenges are for all of you, because you're a very talented group. You might be involved in varsity sports, music, drama, speech, academics, and more, and I am excited to see and follow it all. Feel free to visit. Feel free to leave comments/memories on our blog. Good luck!

Remember This?

Semester Test..... AHHHH!

Hello, fellow Crazy 8 Scientists. This is your teacher, Mr. Hoegh. I am posting this on the eve of the day we take our semester test. It is an important day for all involved. Due to the enormity of the test, I have heard some nay-sayers who believe that none of you have a chance. Some say, "Oh, those Crazy 8s....... they think they're so gifted and smart, but they're going to choke when the going gets tough." Others remark, "Sure they've dominated some standard checks, quizzes, labs, and VoiceThread presentations along the way...... but they will shrink under the pressure and sheer mass of the semester test."

Would you like to know what I have to say to those Nay-Sayers? I say, "Thank you. Thank you for providing the Crazy 8 Scientists with extra motivation to ace this test like no other 8th grade team has done before. Thank you for failing to recognize the diligence and hard work that the team has endured. The Crazy 8s ARE ready. If the "pressure" you speak of is Superman, Crazy 8 Preparation is the Kryptonite. The butterflies in the stomach of each Crazy 8 student are not caused by nerves, but by the anticipation and excitement of dominating the Semester Test. The Crazies don't care that you don't believe in them. They believe in themselves."

Review for Standard Check on Friday

Testing Stuff Out

How about this way

I think I might like this way better.

Ecology Pronghorn Brochure

Publish at Scribd or explore others: School Work Brochures & Catalogs marketing 2008

Link

What does this link look like on the blog. Can students access it?

Pronghorn brochure

Picture of a Young Scientist

What does it look like with both text and a picture in the post?

Just trying to see where this shows up when we go to the actual blog page, and I need to fill some space with text.

Welcome

Still testing some things out. How do you like my template?

Getting things set up here

How do you do? Just need to add some labels for the label cloud widget.