RUSSEL SHAW
Throughout my career, I have sought to create academic environments where students feel safe to take risks in their learning. I believe that providing enriching lessons and opportunities to participate in real-world experiences is imperative in order for students to be able to achieve the 21st Century Skills.
VIDEOS
Can you stop erosion?
Second Grade students are given the challenge to design and engineer a solution for stopping water from eroding a shoreline and the banks of a river where people are living.
This project is a culmination of their Earth Science unit.
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NGSS: 2-ESS2-1., ETS1.C. Compare multiple solutions designed to slow or prevent wind or water from changing the shape of the land.
5th Grade Balloon Launch
Fifth Grade students built miniature hot air balloons using art tissue paper after learning about matter, density and the effect of temperature on the movement of atoms. They then launched them from our soccer field after heating the air inside using a portable camp stove provided by our principal, Mr. O'Connor.
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NGSS: 5-PS1-1. Develop a model to describe that matter is made of particles too small to be seen. 5-PS1-1. Develop a model to describe that matter is made of particles too small to be seen. 5-PS1-3. Make observations and measurements to identify materials based on their properties.
Grade Level Videos
Dog Sled Project (Grade 5)
During this trans-disciplinary unit on the Iditarod, Fifth Grade students designed and constructed dog sleds in the Design Center. For the finale, a real dog musher brought a team of dogs to our school to test the designers' sleds.
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NGSS: 3-5-ETS1-3. Plan and carry out fair tests in which variables are controlled and failure points are considered to identify aspects of a model or prototype that can be improved. 5-PS1-3. Make observations and measurements to identify materials based on their properties.