Environmental Impact of Printing

What do you think is the impact of printing our information books?

Positive:

-Good feedback will move us improve as authors
-Sense of accomplishment
-Sharing useful information
-We could save lives
-Share our learning with others

Negative:
-Uses paper which causes trees to get cut down
--> Animal habitats may be destroyed
-Uses energy: computers, printer --> energy comes from burning coal, water dams
-Uses ink: color uses up more ink than we need

Other thoughts:
-Gifs need to be screenshot-ed

We need to be aware of the negative impacts and try to lessen them.

From Get Dimples

You ever stop to think about the impact you make on the environment when you hit the print button?  Most folks focus on the amount of paper used in printing, but few stop to think about what goes into the ink and toner cartridges in their printer.

To find out, I’ve researched the environmental impact of printing and what I’ve found is quite shocking.  Here are some facts about the shadier side of ink and toner:

• Each year, more than 350 million ink and toner cartridges are thrown out in the United States alone (and this number increases every year!)

• Ink cartridges in landfills can take up to a millennium to decompose, as they contain resin

• Toner cartridges contain toxic ingredients such as volatile organic compounds in the form of solvents

• It takes almost a gallon of oil to make a single laser ink cartridge

• Manufacturing a single toner cartridge releases 4.8 Kilograms of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere
• 
  

What can we do?

1) Minimize the amount of color in our books 

 - backgrounds need to be white, text needs to be black

2) Minimize the amount of printing

 - two-sided

 - ask myself do I really need to print this?

3) Choose not to print, create a PDF and post to our blogs

4) Eliminate unnecessary slides

Measurement Unit Tuning In

Today we tuned into our Measurement unit today. Our first step was to record everything we knew about our central idea:

The metric system aligns with our base ten number system

Thoughts

Kilometres, decametres, metres, centimetres and millimetres are all in the metric system.

The metric system and base ten number system connect with x10.

ex. metre x 10 = 10 metres

10 metres x 10 = 100 metres

100 metres x 10 = 1,000 metres

1,000 metres = 1 kilometre

Metric system has something to do with base ten because the examples have 10 or 100 or 1,000.

Questions

Does it have anything to do with measurement? - Yes!

What is the metric system? - Measurement based on Celsius, degrees, metres, litres, grams

Does the metric system use base ten blocks to find answers?

Does align mean connect? - arrange things, join

Is this about base ten in another way?

How many types of measurement are inside the metric system?

Through the process of reading books about the metric system and interacting with tools (scales, measuring cups, metre sticks), we began our discovery. Our next step is to figure out how the metric system aligns with the base ten number system.

Intercultural Humor

Many times comedy or humor plays on how cultural universals look differently from culture to culture.

Here are the cultural universals we are learning about:

• Food
• Clothing
• Communication
• Celebrations
• Beliefs
• Religion
• Customs and Traditions
• Shelter/Architecture
• Family Structure
• Art/Music/Entertainment/Sports

We are going to watch three videos that show cultural diversity (differences in cultures). Your job is to hunt for the differences in the cultural universals. Hint: It is what makes the videos very funny!




Now you have a quick skit! Come up with a quick skit that shows how cultural universals are different.

Finding our Values

4HR is exploring beliefs, values, cultures, and traditions in our current Social Studies unit. We began by exploring what 4HR values. We found out that we really value:

Understanding     Learning    Respect     Care     Listening     Collaboration     Fun & Enjoyment

Next we looked at ourselves. We arranged these statements in order from most important to least important, and analyzed our responses to determine our individual values.

I try to understand what other people are feeling.

I am as important as everyone else.

Everyone else is equal to me but different from me.

I know what is fair and not fair. I try to do the right thing.

I look after the environment and don’t waste things.

I try to help others and not fight with them.

I have my own ideas but can alter them when I realize they were wrong.

I want to learn more about the world.

I think I can change things in the world.

What would your responses be?

NYC: Where I Lived Impacts How I Lived

When I lived in New York City, the physical and human characteristics impacted how I lived. Firstly, New York City is an island and it impacted my transportation choices. Then, the climate impacted the clothing I had to buy. Lastly, the museums and cultural places impacted the activities I would do in my spare time. Therefore, my time in NYC was different because of these physical and human characteristics.

There were so many physical characteristics that affected the way I lived. First of all, it is an island! I couldn't just walk to neighboring states. I had to take bridges and tunnels, which had expensive tolls. So it wasn't cheap to get to New York City or leave it. On the other hand, we can take ferries as a form of transportation, and really lovely beaches were nearby.

Did you know the winters in NYC are brutally cold? They are ridiculously cold. This would impact how I lived because I would need an arsenal of hats, gloves, scarves, and coats to help me through the winter. My closets were full of sweaters, warm pants, and socks. Bet you didn't know that summers in NYC are as humid as KL? It's true! You sweat all the time when you are walking around NYC. Therefore you need to also have dresses, shorts, and sandals to help you keep cool. Not every apartment has air conditioning, so people love to go to restaurants or cafes to enjoy the cool air con.

In NYC, we have so many museums and places with culture. If it was a rainy day, no need to stay inside your house! You can go see a play or look at art. During the summertime, many cultural events happen outside, so you don't have to miss a second of fresh air or sunshine. I recommend going to concerts in the park and outdoor art exhibitions to anyone visiting New York.

I hope you understand why my life was so different in New York. I had to adapt to living on an island, with seasons, and so many cultural things to do. I miss some things (like the museums), but don't miss others (like the brutal winter winds!). If you ever decide to move to New York, please know it is a unique place to live.

Creating Line Plots

4HR is learning how to to use line plots to organize and display data. Are you curious about line plots? Here is a quick video to teach you more about making line plots.




What did we learn?
Line plots go from the smallest (or least) to the biggest (or most)
Use Xs to show how much or how often
It is similar to a graph (only x axis)
At the bottom, you need to label
At the top, there is a title

Today we will use line plots to interpret data on different athletes. On this site, we will make a line plot and determine the information it is telling us.

Our next step is to use these skills to help us interpret data in the real world! Watch out for our next steps.

Resources to Answer Our Questions

From learning about Earth layers, we have become curious about how the Earth began. We understand that scientists only have theories (no one was around when the Earth began).




Here is a resource about how plate tectonics began.

Potential and Kinetic Energy to Simple Machines

4HR is investigating into How does the transfer of energy impact the motion of an object? In watching this video, we see how objects transfer energy from potential to kinetic energy. What happens as a result?

Later this week we will revisit this video, looking for simple machines. What do you already know about simple machines?

Applying Understanding of Friction

Today we are going to make predictions as to what surface would allow a skateboarder to travel the furthest. Let's play Friction Ramp to determine how friction affects are everyday lives.

Now let's watch Magic School Bus Plays Ball to find out how friction impacts sports.