Book Giveaway: Candy Experiments 2!

 **This giveaway has ended. Please check back again soon for more giveaways!**

Candy 2 GiveawayIf you loved the awesome post about experimenting with candy or the giveaway for the crazy fun kids book, Candy Experiments, by Loralee Leavitt, you’re in luck! She wrote a second book about candy science and Squarehead Teachers is giving away a brand new copy!!

I flipped through the book, trying to decide which experiment to try first. Tough decision! Should I try the Ghost Lollipop or the Easter Grass Spaghetti?  Or maybe the Shattering Peeps experiment? Or the Marshmallow Bottle Launcher?P1070860

After promising myself we’d do them all eventually, I decided to try the Puffy Pop Rocks experiment first to see what would happen when you bake them.

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As soon as I put them into the oven, I instantly heard popping sounds! Whaaat? They pop when you add heat? I thought it was something to do with contact to spit? Guess not! And then, when I pulled them out, they were smooth like pearls!  Want to know why? You’ll have to read the book! 🙂

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I’ll definitely have to pull this out again and try some more of them. That means I’ll finally have a legitimate excuse for buying classroom candy! Yesss!

So, now to the book giveaway…

The Prize: A copy of Candy Experiments 2 (which will definitely lead to hours of SWEET science!)

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Participating is simple! All you have to do is answer the following question by leaving a comment below. (Scroll all the way down to the very bottom of this post to see the comments section. No sign in required to comment, but if you’re not a WordPress member, please leave your first name and a way to get a hold of you so I can contact you if you win!)

If your class was doing a science fair, which of the following questions would you be most interested to see answered and why:

  1. How can you float a sunken Snickers bar?
  2. Can You turn a red gummy bear blue?
  3. If chocolate doesn’t melt in water, why does it turn pale?
  4. Can you fry a Cadbury Egg?

Psst! All of the above questions are experiments in Candy Experiments 2!

This giveaway ends at midnight (PST) on Saturday, March 14, 2015. Don’t wait!

**This giveaway has ended. Please check back again soon for more giveaways!**

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The Fine Print: Participation is optional. Only one entry per person. No purchase is necessary to participate. Available to US participants only. There will be one winner. The winner will be randomly selected. I will email the winner between Sunday, March, 15 -Tuesday, March 16. The winner will have 72 hours to respond and provide me with contact information so I can get their prize to them.  If the winner does not respond within 72 hours, the winner forfeits the prize and another winner will randomly be selected (in which case the new winner will be notified and the same terms apply).  The winner will be announced on this blog once eligibility has been confirmed. This giveaway is solely sponsored by Squarehead Teachers and Loralee Leavitt. It is not affiliated with WordPress or any other sponsor(s). Void where prohibited. If you have additional questions, please contact me!

 

SeaWorld Perks for Teachers 2015

I’ve got a cool teacher bonus to share with you! SeaWorld has perks for teachers in California (and Arizona), Texas and Florida! Each park has different perks, so click here to check them out! Here’s my favorite perk: “SeaWorld® San Diego is proud to offer a complimentary Teacher Fun Card to all active and credentialed California and Arizona K-12 school teachers. The Fun Card is valid for unlimited admission to SeaWorld San Diego through December 31, 2015.” Awesome! Thank you, Sea World! 🙂

Things Animals Need (Graphic Organizer)

Animals Need preview

Week two blogging over at We Are Teachers? Check! This time, I created a graphic organizer based on the science standard that usually appears in lower grade science standards, identifying basic things that all animals need. So what are you waiting for!? Go check it out!

Click here to view my post and get the free printable!

Cool Halloween Ideas for your Classroom

Being a teacher on/around a holiday can be fun… or not. Here are two FUN ways to bring Halloween into your classroom:

Cool Halloween-themed science experiments!Source: Lemon Lime Adventures

Fingerprint Bat Silhouette Craft

Source: Crafty Morning

And just because I enjoyed this joke (from The Berry):
Fake Noodle

Slow Motion Bubbles (Cool Science Video)

slow mo bubbles videoI recently saw this video and it blew my mind! Such a cool science video. It totally inspired me to see the world around me differently. I’m dying to share this with my class!

Click to view the Slow Motion Popping Bubbles & Balloons video

Free Math Videos

I recently learned about a cool free resource for teaching! It’s called Khan Academy. It provides tons of free educational content-based videos, with topics ranging from math and science to humanities and economics. With a log in, students (or anyone) can complete learn by watching videos and then complete tasks to earn badges. Teachers can track the data for their students and use the materials in lesson plans. You may also want to refer parents to this site if they’re looking for supplemental materials for helping their child. What’s not to love!?!  I wish I had learned about this when I started teaching!

 

Soil as a Helper

Soil As A Helper STICKER

A friend of mine recently requested this printable/foldable. Here’s what she says about it: “This is a graphic organizer that students use to put the uses of soil. Students draw or write in each box a use. The sides fold so it’s similar to a brochure. This type of handout could work well also with vocabulary terms. For example, put the terms on the outside. On the inside, put the definitions.” 

Click here for the free printable PDFs:
Soil As A Helper
Soil As A Helper – with border

Using Memes in the Classroom

PutYourNameOnIt memeI absolutely loved this idea! It might work better with upper grades, since I don’t think younger kids have had enough exposure to memes to get as much out of this activity. This post from Mrs. Orman’s classroom talks about five ways to use memes in the classroom. Here are the five ideas:

  1. Teach about class rules, expectations and or procedures using memes
  2. Have kids create memes as ice-breaker activities
  3. Promote and reinforce your curriculum (such as a meme of George Washington)
  4. Creative activity
  5. Open house or new student orientation

Even if you don’t think using memes in your classroom will work well, her examples are HILARIOUS and totally worth the read!