The new adventure playground has been installed and it looks like it will be lots of fun for the students at our school. They need to add wood chips or fibre to cover the area underneath the structure and then it will be ready to go. Thank you to the GPAC for raising the funds needed to purchase this playground equipment. My students can’t wait to experience climbing on this structure during their recess and lunch breaks.

This TED talk is about an individual who practiced for many years to become a yo-yo master and a Japanese world champion. He does things with a yo-yo which will amaze you. What are your thoughts, ideas or questions?

This video shows some time-lapse sequences taken by astronauts on board the International Space Station. The ISS orbits our planet every 90 minutes. Can you see the lightning storms and the Aurora Borealis (Northern Lights) in the video?

The students in our class show a genuine interest in learning about new forms of technology, so I thought I would share some information about a new kind of tv that will soon be available.  The new tv will be similiar to existing tv’s that have images and audio, but it will also provide smells. In the new tv’s there is a place where odors will be released. For example, if you’re watching a cooking show you might smell frying bacon or onions. Just imagine, your favourite tv show might have a scene at the beach and you’ll get a wonderful ocean smell in your living room. Of course, advertising will also have smells so if you’re watching a commercial about fabric softener you will experience that fresh smell of clothes just out of the dryer. These new tv’s will work with your existing cable connection and many of the manufacturers will be releasing them this Fall, just in time for Christmas. Do you think your family will be interested in purchasing one of these new tv’s with smellavision technology?

This is an amazing video of the space shuttle launch from cameras mounted on the booster rockets at 4,500 km/hr. Follow the blastoff, climb, separation, tumbling descent, and splash in the ocean. In the top right hand corner you can see the speed of the space shuttle increase in miles per hour. The video is wonderful, but the sound is the best part so turn up the volume on your speakers. Please share your thoughts, ideas or questions.

In Science we are learning all about Structures. The Tacoma Narrows bridge opened on July 1, 1940. At the time it was the third longest suspension bridge in the world. The longest suspension bridge was the Golden Gate bridge in San Francisco and the second longest was the George Washington bridge in New York.

When the bridge was being constructed construction workers noticed that in windy conditions the bridge deck started to move vertically. The construction workers gave it the nickname ‘Galloping Gertie’. On November 7, 1940 the wind rose to a speed of 64 km/h and the bridge began to vibrate violently. Leonard Coatsworth was a Tacoma News Tribune editor and the last person to drive over the bridge. He was forced to flee his car and leave behind his terrified dog Tubby.

There was no loss of human life in the collapse of the Tacoma Narrows bridge, however Mr. Coatsworth lost his car and his black cocker spaniel. Mr. Coatsworth received US $450.00 for his car and $364.40 for the contents of his car which included Tubby. The cause of failure was aeroelastic flutter and it has influenced the design of many long suspension bridges since 1940. The bridge is often discussed in Engineering and Science classes. In class we are using popsicle sticks and white glue to build our own bridges.

Thanks for inviting me to participate in your blog. It’s a great way to share information and keep in touch with people anywhere in the world.  3 years ago my family and I took some time off and traveled around the world. To keep in touch we kept a blog with pictures and a diary of what we did and where we went. If you want to read our blog you can find it here. Eventually we turned the blog into a book that we have at home. Above is a picture of where we were 3 years ago exactly. We were in Thailand on an island called Koh Chang.  We went on an elephant trek and while we were on it the driver stopped to give the elephant a bath and invited us to swim with her. It was one of the highlights of our trip. This elephant is an Indian elephant. Do you know how to tell the difference between an African and an Indian elephant?

On Friday a meteorite exploded over central Russia in the Ural mountains damaging buildings, shattering windows and injuring over 1,200 people. It weighed about 10 metric tons and was travelling at a speed of 30 kilometres per second. The incident had no connection to an asteroid ( 2012 DA14 ) that passed fairly close to Earth at a distance of 27, 520 kilometres on the same day. 

In Science we’ve been learning about Structures. What do you think about this very interesting table? Please share your thoughts, ideas or questions.

It’s the Chinese New Year and the most important of the traditional Chinese holidays. And all over the world, wherever there is a Chinatown, the festivities are a colourful display of dragon dances, lantern festivals, feasts and of course firecrackers! This is the year of the snake and if you were born in 1965, 1977, 1989, 2001 or 2013 you are also a snake. Snakes are determined, wise and intense. Which Chinese zodiac animal is your sign? What qualities of that animal do you possess?