Science Newsletter. Curriculum Corner. Science Fair is Coming! IN THIS ISSUE

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1 Curriculum Corner Science Fair is Coming! Science Newsletter Orange Township Public Schools Release your inner science geek!! The Science Fair is coming! The Science Fair is coming! The Orange District Science Fair is coming, and will be held June 10 12, with our special evening event on: Thursday, June 12 th Students all around the district are hard at work preparing for their school fairs, where winners will compete at the districtt level. School Fairs are taking place soon! Park: May OPA: TBA OHS: May Forest: June 5 th Lincoln: May Oakwood: May Heywood: June 2-4 Cleveland: June 3-5 Rosa Parks: May The fair will display student projects, and have hands-on activities, dissections, planetarium, live animals, crafting and more! See you there! IN THIS ISSUE Science Fair Orange Goes Green o Earth Day o Recycling Programs Spotlight on Spring o Cherry Blossom Festival Be a FOSS Boss What to Expect When You re Expecting (a walkthrough) What We re Learning in Science Science in the Summer o Local Science and Nature Attractions Science is a way of thinking g much more than it is a body of knowledge. -Carl Sagan

2 ORANGE goes GREEN! Earth Day Orange Re ecycles! Are you ready? Earth Day s countdown April 22, 2014! is on What are you doing for Earth Day? Every year on April 22, over a billion people in 190 countries take action for Earth Day. From San Francisco to San Juan, Beijing to Brussels, people plant trees, clean up their communities, contact their elected officials, and more all on behalf of the environment. Like Earth Days of the past, Earth Day 2014 will focus on the unique environmental challenges of our time. The theme for Earth Day 2014 is Green Cities. With investments in sustainable technology, improved public policy, and an educated, active public, we can transform our cities. The action of a billion people is powerful! To bring this home, Orange is going Green! The schools are jumping on the band wagon and starting recycling programs. Students are supporting it as well as the staff. Earth Day encourages everyone to support public transportation as well as using bicycles to promote greener cities. Spring Break Academy for Grades 3-4 will have an Earth Day focus- Students will conduct research and create projects from recycled materials. As Orange goes Green, the elementary schools in the district are embracing environmentalism by implementing recycling programs! Park Avenue Elementary school, students have been working with Ms. Rogers and Dr. Harlem to bring the district s first pilot recycling program to Orange. Students created flyers and are acting as ambassadors to promote the practice of recycling and help others understand its importance. Administrators are collaborating with the town and Board of Education to obtain new bins to recycle paper, cardboard, metal, plastic, and glass. The new program kicked off with a lunch time celebration depicting recycling raps, dances, and public service videos. At Lincoln Avenue School, students are currently working on the recycling bin contest. Students are competing to decorate recycling bins that will be used throughout the school. Winners will be determined soon! What will you do to support Earth Day? Please join us in celebrating Earth Day at OHS on April 17 th!

Seasonal Update Spotlight on Spring Branch Brook Park s Cherry Blossom Festival is home to the largest species variety of

The sun is shining more, and it s getting warmer.

Some plants are even starting to bloom flowers!

Festival right here in Essex County at Branch Brook Park!

historic Essex County Park System, captures the beauty of the cherry tree, and embraces the Japanese tradition of hanami.

community partners throughout Essex. Many events are free and all are open to the public.

3 Seasonal Update Spotlight on Spring Branch Brook Park s Cherry Blossom Festival is home to the largest species variety of Cherry Blossom trees in the world! Spring has sprung, and we can see it all around us! The sun is shining more, and it s getting warmer. Birds are happily singing their songs, and building nests with their mates; trees are starting to sprout new leaves! Some plants are even starting to bloom flowers! One of the biggest celebrations of flowers in bloom not only in our area, but in the world, is the annual Cherry Blossom Festival right here in Essex County at Branch Brook Park! For the last 38 years, people throughout New Jersey have traveled to Essex County s Branch Brook Park to celebrate spring under and awning of pink petals every April. The Cherry Blossom Festival celebrates the arrival of spring with a jam packed schedule of events that pays homage to the historic Essex County Park System, captures the beauty of the cherry tree, and embraces the Japanese tradition of hanami. The festival is administered by the Essex County Division of Cultural and Historic Affairs and is supported by corporate and community partners throughout Essex. Many events are free and all are open to the public. The park celebrates the bloom of their many cherry blossom trees with a week-long festival that includes: Bike Races Children s Fun Walk 10K run Historic Park Tours via Trolley 6 th grade poster contest Bloomfest which includes: o Japanese cultural demonstrations o children s activities o live music o crafter s marketplace o food o and much more! Bloomfest is on Saturday April 12 th and Sunday April 13 th a great opportunity to get outside and enjoy the season! The festival lasts until April 19. For more information, visit:

4 BE A BOSS In this issue of BE A FOSS BOSS we are highlighting the Teacher Preparation Video. The video begins with an introduction to FOSS, followed by an introduction to the module. The videos also include teacher guides, safety precautions, setup procedures, and real classroom footage of each investigation. These videos are a resource to help you prepare to use the FOSS module program kits. Check out the teacher preparation videos to help you get ready for science instruction! What to Expect When You re Expecting (a Walkthrough) Big Ideas, Essential Questions, 3 Part Objectives Big Ideas The overarching big idea is the concept that guides the entire unit. This is the big concept that can be broken down into smaller concepts for each lesson. Essential Questions The smaller concepts are tied to essential questions for each lesson. Essential questions are questions that will lead students to the big understanding for the unit, and are higher order thinking questions. For example, in Levers and Pulleys the big idea is that machines make work easier. A concept is: Effort is lessened when the fulcrum is closer to the load. An essential question that leads to this is how can we use a levers to make work easier? The concepts represented by essential questions guide instruction: What lesson will I prepare so that students can grasp the essential question and those concepts? 3-part objective: Behavior: What the students will be expected to do. Condition: How you will prepare students to do this? Criterion: How the expectation will be assessed be specific and include the rubric/grade. K Animals 2 x 2 1 New Plants 2 Insects 3 Matter and Energy 4 Structures of Life 5 Diversity of Life 6 Earth Science Earth Layers, Plate Tectonics 7- Life Science - Cells and Their Processes 8 Physics- Forces and Motion 9-12-(course offerings) Biology, Environmental Science, Physics, Chemistry, Astronomy*, Pharmaceutical Science*, Forensic Science, Horticulture, AP Chemistry, AP Physics *- New Course!

5 There are lots of local places to continue science experiences when school is out. Here are some places you can visit this summer and all year round! Cora Hartshorn Arboretum The Cora Hartshorn Arboretum and Bird Sanctuary, also known as the Hartshorn Arboretum, is an arboretum and bird sanctuary located at 324 Forest Drive South, Short Hills, in Essex County, New Jersey. 324 Forest Dr S Short Hills, NJ (973) Van Vleck House and Gardens The house and gardens display a public botanical garden of mostly ericaceous acidic heathers and other flowering plants that have been developed over several generations. 21 Van Vleck Street Montclair, NJ (973) Trailside Nature and Sciencee Center Trailside Nature & Science Center is Union County s Environmental Education Center, located in the Watchung Reservation, a 2,065-acre preserve containing woodlands, fields, lakes, streams and more than 13 miles of hiking trails. 452 New Providence Road Mountainside, NJ renewal/parks-facilities/trailside-beta/ Field Station: Dinosaurs ty- An outdoor prehistoric theme park designed to resemble a dinosaur dig site within the first few dinosaurs weeks of discovery. Lifelike animatronic can be seen on walking trails. One Dinosaur Way Secaucus, NJ Liberty Science Center Liberty Science Center is an interactive science museum and learning center with hands-on exhibits, planetarium and theatre shows, all located in Liberty State Park, Jersey City. 222 Jersey City Boulevard Jersey City, NJ Tenafly Nature Center Tenafly Nature Center is a non-profit member supported nature preserve and leader in environmental education. The 380 acre grounds contain 7 miles of trails, a scenic pond, small animal collection. Programs are offered to the public year round! 313 Hudson Avenue Tenafly, NJ World of Wings A one-of-a-kind entertainmen and education center committed to delivering a truly unique and wholesome experience to people of all ages. Come see their butterfly exhibits, live animal exhibits, butterfly atrium. Other recreational activities are also available such as jumping room, blacklight room, and more! 1775 Windsor Rd Teaneck, NJ Buehler Challenger & Science Center Work in our Space Station simulator, solving real problems through teamwork and insight. Science has never been so fun. 400 Paramus Rd Paramus, NJ (201)

6 Jersey Explorer Children's Museum The Jersey Explorer Children s Museum is filled with exciting and unique exhibits and learning experiences for the children who visit us. 192 Dodd Street East Orange, NJ Newark Museum and Planetarium The Newark Museum is the state s largest museum. It holds fine art collections from around the world, as well as science exhibits! The Dreyfuss Planetarium is a spectacular interactive theatre for learning about astronomy, space, and planetary science. Audiences can explore the constellations, travel through the Solar System, visit distant galaxies and soar to the edge of the Universe. 49 Washington Street Newark, NJ (973) Eagle Rock Reservation Eagle Rock Reservation is a 408 acre area of wooded land located in central Essex County on the crest of Watchung s First Mountain. Prospect Ave West Orange, NJ (201) Essex County Environmental Center The Center offers hands-onn curriculum and cutting edge programs and workshops for all ages. The environmental center campus is ideal for outdoor nature exploration and hands-on educational activities. On site are a frog pond, greenhouses, and trails close to the scenic Passaic River. 621 B Eagle Rock Avenue Roseland, NJ o Turtleback Zoo TurtleBack Zoo is situated on 20 acres in the South Mountain Reservation. It is part of the Essex County Park System, the oldest system in the United States. It houses over 700 animals, and is open year-round. They recently developed a new Sea Lion Exhibit. 560 Northfield Avenue West Orange, NJ Edison Museum Thomas Edison s home and laboratory are a step back in time, when machines were run by belts and pulleys, and music was played on phonographs. Where to the passerby, the buildings betray little evidence of the industries they once started. Discover where America s greatest inventor changed our world forever. 211 Main Street West Orange, NJ dex.htm Have a great summer of science!

Community-based Green Infrastructure Initiative in New Jersey

Community-based Green Infrastructure Initiative in New Jersey Rutgers Cooperative Extension Water Resources Program www.water.rutgers.edu February 21, 2018 Christopher C. Obropta, Ph.D., P.E. obropta@envsci.rutgers.edu