NOVEMBER!

We have been BUSY in my STEM class this past November.
I post most of my pictures and live stories to twitter at https://twitter.com/Mr_JVD

A project that I though would take 3 weeks it taking closer to 6...but it's GREAT!!
Students grades 3-5 are building bridges out of craft sticks and glue.  It's an amazing exercise in engineering, teamwork, and ingenuity.  Some teams are totally ROCKING it while others are struggling.  It's interesting to see how each group interacts with each other and with other groups.  Watch a time-lapse video here: Time-Lapse Bridges

The K-2 students have been busy too!!
We had a great time with 3-D shapes making them out of toothpicks and clay!  Some of the students really surprised me with their engineering skill!!

We also played a mad-dash game of WAR! using playing cards and our addition skills.

We have built towers, bridges, and all kinds of fun things that have challenged our brains.  This week we are learning about reactions.  It' has been a hoot watching each others pupils while we turn the lights on and off.  We then test our reaction time by catching a yard-stick that one of our classmates drops.  Super fun with a lot of brain power getting used!

Another fun thing we did with most of the 4th grade pod and a class of 5th grade is the Mannequin challenge!  We did a "proof of concept" drill with a set of 5th graders then did the whole pod of about 150 students.  SO FUN!!!  Check it out here: Mannequin Challenge

OCTOBER

WOW!
October FLEW by!!
The Freshman Flivver Football team ended up 2-7.  Not as well as we had hoped, but there was A LOT of improvement from game 1 till game 9.  That's what important.  The most important thing is that they are proud to be Flivvers and will (hopefully) fill the weight room this winter and summer and come back for their JV year bigger, faster, stronger, and smarter.

If you want to check out more about Flivver Football, find them on Facebook: Flivver Football on Facebook
Also on Instagram: Flivver Football on Instagram
Next year I would like to set up a Remind mass text messaging like I did for Hornet football.  I'll have to check with the varsity staff first.

School has also been a whirlwind!  We have been doing some awesome projects: Building water towers, bridges, figuring out geometric shapes, making sound waves...all kinds of fun stuff!!

Twitter has become my new favorite outlet.  Check it out here: https://twitter.com/Mr_JVD

I also use Instagram some: https://www.instagram.com/mr_jvdusen/

Check out Twitter for some TRUSS bridge building action over the next 3-4 weeks!

WAVES!

This week K-3 students are working with WAVES!  Cool stuff!!  We are talking about and SEEING how sound and light waves travel with the help of a candy wave machine here: Candy Wave Machine

Also with a double slinky!  We can see the waves, hear the waves, feel the waves...  Pretty fun stuff!  We also get to play around with a wave simulator that lets us change the frequency and amplitude of waves.  It is really neat to see how energy travels. Wave on a String

Check it out!!

Deck-O-Card Math

This week we have been using our BRAINS!!!
Depending on grade level, we have to multiply, add, and subtract in order to reach the magic number of 201! Where do they get the numbers to X, +, and - you ask?  Well easy....a deck of cards!
For the upper elementary, this has been a lot of fun.  A lot of thinking is taking place.  Do we multiply the 10 and 10....or the 7 and 3?  How many more do we need?   If we go to 184 it might be easier than if we are at 197....

For the Kindergarten, we are working on 10 friends.  We find our friends that help us make 10.  We also have some fun with cards on our foreheads!!  At the end of the day, we are learning and having fun...two of my favorite things! :)

Weekend Football

I have some great news for our Freshmen football team....  WE WON!!!  12-7 against the Sault Area Schools!!
As a matter of fact, all three Flivver teams won this weekend!
The Varsity traveled to the Soo on Friday and handed them a 35-14 loss in a DOWNPOUR!!
The Freshman team scored first, then went down 6-7 but found the end-zone again and held off the Soo passing attack for the win.
The JV team won 35-7.

As for other football teams that strike my interest:
U of M won.
MSU (GO GREEN) beat up on ND.
The Lions lost in the 4th quarter....classic them.
The Packers didn't play very well and the Vikings defense played OUT-OF-THEIR-MIND!

Next week my parents get to go to Lambeau for the Lion/Packer game!!!  I'm VERY excited for them!!!   GO! PACK! GO!!!

****If you do not like the packers...you can take the chant, "GO! PACK! GO!" and say it in revers to show your dislike for the Cheesheads.****

Last day of Bridge Building

We have had the BEST TIME building bridges in STEM class!!
I am blown away EVERY DAY at the creativity and ingenuity of these young Flivvers!
I have taken a TON of pictures and short videos that can be found here: mr_jvdusen on instagram
Check them out!!

Switch Gears:  Football

The Varsity Flivvers head to Sault Area Schools tonight to take on the Blue Devils.
The game will be streamed LIVE!
The MHSAA insists that it be password protected....and I'm not able to post the password.
But...you can get it here: Streaming Password Request

Once you have the password....watch the game here: GO FLIVVERS!!

The Freshmen and JV teams head to the Soo Saturday morning to play.
L~O~N~G bus ride....I hope all three teams come out with a WIN!

Building Bridges

More teamwork this week in STEM class!
Students have to build a variety of different bridges using cups, a wooden block, and a meter stick.  in order for the bridge to be proven, a small wooden car with a 10 ounce fishing weight has to be able to "drive" across the structure for 3 seconds.
All classes have been doing GREAT!
It has been interesting to see how the classes work together.  Leaders and followers emerge.
Check out this video of a 5th grade three group bridge.
IT WORKED!!!
https://goo.gl/photos/nodibdKK5v19J1rs6

A few big plays...

Putting on my coaching hat for a second....
The Freshman Flivvers played a tough one yesterday.
Lost to Lakeland JV 12-6

He wasn't the first to say it, but Safety Eric Weddle of the Baltimore Ravens said:

There’s 60-70 snaps, there will be four or five plays – you either make them, and you win the game, or you don’t, and the other team does, and they win. So, we want to be on the right side of that and win a bunch of games.

Nothing could be truer yesterday!!
Just a few key plays away from a win.

The key plays:
1) Run that sprung for 20 yards: We were on a drive.  We were blocking smart and running hard.
2) On that drive: Fumble.  That fumble mentally took it's tole on us.  We were defeated in our mind.  We put them in a 4th down, but couldn't seal the deal to get another chance with the ball.
3) Long pass complete: This was how Lakeland scored their go a ahead touchdown.
4) Long pass incomplete: The defense was spinning in their spikes...man open downfield.  Off his hands....   MAN!  That was close.

A few other incomplete ed passes, missed assignments, etc.  But those were the big four.

Usually, a punt block would be a "big play" but yesterday each team had one.  Depending on the quarter and clock, either one of them could have been bigger than they were.

Either way, I'm very proud of my FLIVVERS.
It's back to work Monday...headed to the Soo next week.

LAVA MATH!

Lava Math is fun! 

After one day I have some pretty interesting observations.

First of all, goups that have more than one "boss" don't do as well!

They are not as quick as some of the other groups and they don't always get the correct answer....

I wonder why?

Groups that work well together generally have one person who is (unofficially) in charge.  They are quick and get the right answer every-time.

Yesterday, the second graders were BY FAR the quickest at getting the correct answer.  They worked well together as teams and had a TON of fun doing it!

First graders also did very well. I was impressed!

Fifth graders struggled more than I thought they would.  I don't think it had anything to do with the math, it was all about who was in their group.  Interesting...

As we head into day 2 of school, I'm very excited! Day 1 went GREAT!  The hardest part for me was transitioning from kindergarten to 5th grade.  I told the 5th graders to let me know if I started treating them like kindergartners!  I had the same talk with Mr. Johnson in 3rd grade this morning.  He said he was sure he talked to high school students (Me) as 1st graders because he worked with them all day.  We had a good laugh over that.
I walked around and met all the classes that I will miss due to the long weekend.  Everyone is very excited to come to STEM.  Next week we will be doing math using plastic cups, rubber bands, and string.  Better bring your teamwork hat!!

Here we go!  In about 45 min. these hallways and pods will fill up with students ready for their first day of school 2016!  Teachers were in yesterday making last minute updates and fixing up their rooms.
I feel like it's my first day too! For me it's my first time in a classroom since December 2012 when I was getting ready to deploy to Afghanistan.  Boy...A lot has changed since then!  I'm excited to be the STEM teacher at Woodland.  Ready for learning and ready for FUN!!

Messy Classroom....4 days until GO TIME!

WOW!  My classroom is a MESS!  It was very clean for a little while, but then I found out there was some science stuff all around the building.  I was able to find it and I'm bringing it to my room so it's close!

It's exciting moving into a new room in a new school.  I'm excited to start working with everyone!

There are TWO things in this picture that are out of the ordinary....can you see what they are?  Post in the comments if you figure it out!