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Create your Julius Caesar cover

Covers are great because they summarize the theme of the book. What was the theme of this story in your opinion?

One thing we all hate are spoilers! Spoilers give away exciting details in the story. There were many events that were fun to read about in this book! If someone told you what was going to happen before you read, you would not have enjoyed reading as much.

When you create your cover, avoid spoilers!

Challenge:

  1. Write your theme on a piece of paper.
  2. Write an event that you do not want to spoil for the reader.
  3. Draw a cover that expresses that theme.

You can upload one picture with your writing and drawing here.

”Upload

We will post feedback to your account soon afterwards!

If you want to see the rubric, click here.

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Create your The Outsiders cover

Covers are great because they summarize the theme of the book. What was the theme of this story in your opinion?

One thing we all hate are spoilers! Spoilers give away exciting details in the story. There were many events that were fun to read about in this book! If someone told you what was going to happen before you read, you would not have enjoyed reading as much.

When you create your cover, avoid spoilers!

Challenge:

  1. Write your theme on a piece of paper.
  2. Write an event that you do not want to spoil for the reader.
  3. Draw a cover that expresses that theme.

You can upload one picture with your writing and drawing here.

”Upload

We will post feedback to your account soon afterwards!

If you want to see the rubric, click here.

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Create your 1984 cover

Covers are great because they summarize the theme of the book. What was the theme of this story in your opinion?

One thing we all hate are spoilers! Spoilers give away exciting details in the story. There were many events that were fun to read about in this book! If someone told you what was going to happen before you read, you would not have enjoyed reading as much.

When you create your cover, avoid spoilers!

Challenge:

  1. Write your theme on a piece of paper.
  2. Write an event that you do not want to spoil for the reader.
  3. Draw a cover that expresses that theme.

You can upload one picture with your writing and drawing here.

Upload your picture here.

We will post feedback to your account soon afterwards!

If you want to see the rubric, click here.

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Rubric for Theme to Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone

Themes cover the entire book. It’s the message. Authors develop theme through their characters, the characters’ actions, what happens as a result, and even word choice and writing style help make a theme. What was the theme for this book? This rubric shows how you can evaluate your work on describing the theme.

Theme is missing or barely started.The theme is unclear for another reader, or may misinterpret the message within this book.The theme may cover one or two events, but not the whole book. Or, it could need more description so someone else can understand it.The theme addresses events and characters from the entire book. Bonus points if you cite the events that support your theme!
Missing012

Review your work and give yourself a score. Explain why you gave your work this score.

 

To go to the next rubric, click here.

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Catapults

Use your kit to make things fly! We give you a penny to launch, and you can find lots of other things to launch in your catapult.

Directions:

  1. Create a strong base by tying together some sticks.
  1. Add your launch stick.
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  1. Make the base longer.
  1. Make the base stronger.
  1. Launch your catapult and make things fly!!
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The Ocean is an Awesome Wonder

We love TED-Ed and big questions. How can we not love Scott Gass’ “How big is the ocean?”

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Power up your brain!

How much area does the ocean cover?

What is the area of the whole world?

How much of Mauna Kea is underwater?

Trying to understand the BIG scale:

  • How many 0’s are in the area of the ocean (in km<sup>2</sup>)?
  • How many meters are in 1 kilometer?
  • How many 0’s are in the volume of the ocean (in km<sup>2</sup>)?
  • What is the area of the United States (in km<sup>2</sup>)?

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Welcome to the Bridge and Tower fun!

A quick note on materials before we get started. We can provide kits, or you can find these materials around your house or for a couple dollars at the grocery store. We recommend:

  • Spaghetti and Marshmallows for our youngest builders. They are easy to work with (but a bit sticky).
  • Straws and Tape for tower builders that want to reach the sky
  • Toothpicks and gummy candy for tower builders that want to test the strength of these small materials.

We also utilize a few free bridge building apps to help you test these ideas out in virtual physics simulators:

  • Build a Bridge! is a freemium game available on Android and iOS.
  • Bridge Construction Free is a limited free game available for iOS.
  • Physics Simulation Building Destruction is a free game available on Android and iOS.

Here are the STEM challenges that will help you build your brain power!

  • Challenge 13: Build the first 5 bridges in the app. (Click here if you have trouble installing it!)
  • Challenge 14: Build the tallest tower possible with 20 straws and tape.
  • Challenge 15: Build a bridge tower IRL.
  • Challenge 16: Building a toothpick tower that can support a brick.
  • Challenge 17: Becoming an accomplished virtual bridge builder. (Challenges 6-10 in the app)
  • Challenge 18: Building a tall bridge
  • Challenge 19: Building a long bridge
  • Challenge 20: Becoming an advanced virtual bridge builder. (Challenges 11-15 in the app)
  • Challenge 21: Becoming an expert virtual bridge builder! (Challenges 16-20 in the app)
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Lincoln Memorial

Explore Washington DC’s Lincoln Memorial in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn about Abraham Lincoln’s legacy, the architecture of this many-columned monument, and more.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

  • American Landmarks > The Lincoln Memorial

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App:

  1. Open the app store
  2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
  3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
  4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
  5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
  6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
  7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
  8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
  9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
  10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
  11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom.
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Gunston Hall

Explore George Mason’s home, Gunston Hall, in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn facts about the historic home and about the people who lived there.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

  • Alexander Hamilton and the Ratification of the Constitution > George Mason’s Gunston Hall in Virginia

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App

  1. Open the app store
  2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
  3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
  4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
  5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
  6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
  7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
  8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
  9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
  10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
  11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom.
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Washington Monument

Explore DC’s Washington Monument in-person or through the Google Expeditions virtual reality app! Learn about the monument’s history through interactive questions.

Google Expeditions/Which Destinations to view:

  • American Landmarks > Washington Monument

Instructions for downloading/using the Google Expeditions App

  1. Open the app store
  2. Search for “Google Expeditions”
  3. Select the app titled “Expeditions” with the orange icon
  4. After the app finishes downloading, open the app and log into a google account
  5. Go to the “Library” section at the bottom of the app
  6. Search the name of the tour you want to download in the search bar
  7. Tap the tour you want to see, then tap “Download to view or guide”
  8. Press “View” to open the menu for the virtual tour
  9. Scroll to the tour location you want to start at.
  10.  Press the binoculars icon in the top right to start viewing in VR mode
  11. To search for another tour, exit the tour and go back to the “Discover’’ tab at the bottom.