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ELEMENTARY SCIENCE

Class Available at EIE

2024 – 2025 School Year
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Class Available at FLC

2024 – 2025 School Year
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Class Available at PCLC

2024 – 2025 School Year
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Class Available at PC Prep

2024 – 2025 School Year
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Elementary Science

Grades: K – 5th (Students should be at least 5 y.o. by Sept. 1)
Cost of Class: $360 per semester* (two-semester course)
*See Locations and Schedules for possible additional Student Fees that may be added to your classes and possibly payable with charter funds.

Note: Lab supplies will be provided when students are In-Person for class.

The subject of study changes monthly with a mix of physical and life science courses. The order of subjects will vary per location. These are not offered as individual sessions but as two-semester courses. Below is a description of all sessions we cover over a three year rotation. Please see specific locations for the sessions they are teaching for the year.

All About Energy

Come learn about energy! What is it? Learn how energy “works”, what the three types of energy are, how to transfer it, how to produce it, and how to calculate how much you produce. Filled with lots of cool, ENERGETIC experiments!

Amazing Matter

How do you define life? What is the difference between living and non-living objects? What are the differences between solids, liquids and gasses? What causes some things to float while others sink? Let’s find the answers through hands-on experiments!

 

The Amazing World of Water

Water is one of the most abundant resources on earth. What is it made of and how does it function? You’ll be amazed at how much you do not know about this substance that constantly surrounds us. We’ll learn about why it is important to protect the water on our planet and we’ll even perform some water tests by designing and using our own water filters. Come join the fun!

Animal Behavior

In this class your students will learn about the behavior differences among various types of animals. Just a few of the questions we will explore are: 
What is the difference between an earthworm and a mealworm? What does a snail eat? What is an earthworm’s favorite spot, light or dark, moist or dry? We’ll have all hands-on activities to learn about the behavior of these and other critters.

The Attractive World of Magnets

Can you resist the pull of magnets and the fields they create? We’ll discover what magnets are, what types of materials they can and cannot attract, how many different types of magnets there are, and how magnetism relates to electricity! You won’t be able to pull yourself away from this class!

The Big World of Tiny Insects

This is the best time of the year to learn about these little six-legged wonders. We’ll learn about the life-cycle of bees, ants, ladybugs and crickets. We’ll find out why insects are the most abundant animals on our planet. This class is filled with lots of fun experiments and activities, some of which the kids get to take home!

Biology of Birds

Why do birds have feathers?  What kind of birds live near your home?  What are the different types of beaks and feet that birds have and what does that say about what they eat and where they live? We’ll answer these and many more questions as we take an in-depth look at the biology of birds. We’ll even piece together what an owl had for breakfast by dissecting owl pellets! You won’t want to miss this fascinating look into the world of birds.

Bubbles

Come learn about the complexities of bubbles. What causes bubbles to be the shape that they are? What geometrical shapes can we make with bubble solution? What is surface tension and how does it relate to making bubbles? You’ll utilize your math skills to demonstrate the properties of bubbles.

California Grunion

What are grunion? Have you ever been on a grunion run? By the end of this class you’ll be ready to take a late night field trip with the class to a local beach to watch this phenomenon called a grunion run. Grunion are strange fish who actually lay their eggs on land instead of in the water like most fish.  Why would they do that?  What do the eggs look like? We’ll look at developing eggs through microscopes so you can see what is going on inside that egg that stays buried in the sand for 2 weeks at a time. Why do the grunion only lay eggs during 2 of the moons’ phases? You will learn about the moon’s cycles and even look at some real grunion and learn all about what they look like and why they live such a strange life. Hopefully, we’ll even be able to hatch some eggs in class (don’t worry, we’ll release them into the ocean so they can grow up). Finally, we’ll do Gyotaku, which is the Japanese art of fish printing. You’ll create beautiful Gyotaku of Grunion to take home with you. Each family is invited to join us on a group grunion run. The exact date will be announced at the start of the class. Each student will also be given a schedule of Grunion runs for the rest of the year to enjoy with their family.

Chemistry For Kids

Learn physical and chemical properties of matter and apply this information to discover the identity of unknown substances.

More Chemistry For Kids

Let’s learn more about chemistry! In this class we’ll explore acids and bases, perform titrations and experiment with a variety of chemicals that are right under your nose.

Detective Investigations - Part 1

You’ll become a real forensic scientist as you use modern-day crime-solving techniques to solve a variety of mysteries. Some of the tests you will perform are fingerprint analysis, chromatography (ink analysis), hair analysis using microscopes, and more! There will be a new case to crack each week. Come join the fun!
 

More Detective Investigations

Are you ready for mysterious capers that need to be investigated?  We will put you to work as a forensic scientist, using actual crime lab techniques to help us solve some interesting cases.  Completion of Detective Investigations #1 is not necessary for participation in this class.  This class is all Hands-On!

Dinosaurs

Learn all about the prehistoric world of dinosaurs. Come make dinosaur replicas, fossils, and even go on a fossil dig like a real archaeologist! This is a dino-mite class!

Discovering How Lights, Lenses, and Mirrors Work

Surf the waves of light. What happens to light as it passes through a lens? You will use a laser beam to discover some of the properties of light and construct pinhole cameras to show how light travels.

Edible Science

In this crazy class, all of our supplies and experiments will involve edible items. You don’t have to eat them but you might want to. Why does popcorn pop? Can we affect how big the popcorn will be when it pops? What is capillary action and what organisms use it? What is really in your food? Learn to read labels and see what they’re really saying. We’ll even explore molecular gastronomy! What is that? Come find out!

Ecology

Learn about the relationships that make this world so unique. We will study everything from the food chain to acid rain. We’ll be making some cool ecological models using soda bottles (so start saving those 2-L soda bottles)!

Electrifying Electricity

Come learn the shocking truth about electricity! What is electricity? How is it produced? We’ll learn about AC/DC, parallel and series circuits and you’ll even build a working electric motor. Come have an electrifying time!

Elementary Engineering

Come learn to think and plan like a real engineer. You will learn how to plan projects and change them as you learn new information. You’ll build everything you are learning about so if you are a hands-on kind of kid you’ll love this class!

Fruits and Flowers

This is a great time of the year to discover flowers and fruits! Why do plants have flowers? What exactly is a fruit? What is the difference between a fruit and a vegetable? How are flowers and fruits related?  You’ll answer these questions and others by inspecting a variety of fruits and flowers.

Gasses

How do you crush cans by using only gas pressure? Can you break a stick with only 1 sheet of newspaper? Do hot gasses act the same as cold gasses? Do hot and cold gasses take up the same amount of space? We’ll lift you off the ground with only plastic baggies and straws – hey you can even lift your teacher! How do you get an egg stuck in a jar and remove it using only gas pressure? If that’s not enough, you’ll build your own hot air balloon and we will fly them on the last day of class. Don’t miss out on the fun!

Geology Rocks!

Come learn about what the earth is made up of. We’ll study plate tectonics, mountain formation, earthquakes, volcanoes, erosion, and more with fun and messy experiments!

Germs and Disease

What exactly are germs?  How do you catch a cold?  What is a disease?  We’ll explore the differences between bacteria and viruses and study some common diseases and learn prevention techniques. This class will be filled with tons of interesting experiments!

Illuminating Lights and Crazy Colors

This class could get messy but it sure is fun! We’ll explore what color is by mixing various colored liquids and by using colored lenses. You’ll make your own color wheels and spin them to make new colors. You get to experiment and see if you can make the colors you predict by using your color wheel. We’ll use pigments and filters to learn what chromatography is and we’ll even find out if you are colorblind through some really fun experiments! How do you actually see color? How do colors absorb and reflect light? You’ll even make your own pair of 3-D glasses and check out some funny pictures in class, then you can take them home to watch movies or read 3-D books!

Incredible Brain

In this class we will look at more systems of the human body.  We will cover the brain, the nervous system, the skin, and sight. We will do experiments with your own body (don’t worry, nothing hurts). We’ll even dissect a brain!  Don’t miss out!

The Incredible Human Body

Come discover how wonderfully intricate the human body is! We’ll explore the digestive, respiratory and circulatory systems as well as bones and muscles. You’ll learn how your own body works. Come join the fun!

Inventors and Their Inventions

What does it take to be an inventor and make some of the most famous inventions of all time? We will complete some of the experiments that were used by inventors like Galileo (make a telescope) and Thomas Edison (make a light bulb). You will even make a few inventions of your own, like an apparatus to safely escort an egg from the top of a building to the ground. Put on your thinking caps before you come to this class!

Investigating the Invisible

Welcome to the wonderful world of microbes! We’ll look at the differences between plant and animal cells and also discover protists and bacteria. With the use of our microscopes, we’ll also discover what lives in a drop of pond water as well as some crazy new organisms each week!

Lights and Colors

We’ve all seen lights and colors but what are we really seeing? We’ll learn about how our eyes see colors and how light is focused on the retina. We’ll discover additive and subtractive coloring using filtered lights and pigments. We’ll even discover what different colored lasers do to gummy bears! This class is all hands-on so come join us for enlightening time!

Magical Machines

We use machines every day. Usually we don’t even realize what all these machines are doing. We’ll explore the world of machines from levers to pulleys and gears. Through these fun experiments, the students will learn the basic physics behind simple machines. The kids will even design a machine to lift the teacher!

Marine Life

This class is all hands-on with marine creatures. Learn about the habits and anatomy of various marine organisms. We will be dissecting a shark, fish, and some invertebrates like clams. We’ll also discover the beauty of the kelp forest and find out what kinds of animals live there.

Mean, Green Photosynthesizing Machines

Come learn about the fascinating life of plants. Plants provide us with life-giving oxygen. In this class, we’ll grow our own plants and learn all about the different parts of plants, photosynthesis, and the carbon-oxygen cycle and we’ll also discover the process of germination and transpiration. You’ll be a real green thumb when you finish this class.

Rocks and Minerals

Come explore the fascinating world of rocks and minerals! We’ll explore crystal formation, and learn how to identify minerals through various tests like the Mohs hardness test, specific gravity, color, streak, and others. We’ll also learn about sedimentary, igneous, and metamorphic rocks.

Scientific Method

What is the scientific method?  Is it a logical way of problem-solving in science?  In fact, you use this method every day but you probably just don’t realize it. We will practice this method every week by solving cool, fun experiments with many outcomes. Your student will decide what they want to test and try it right in class. Some of the experiments we’ll figure out using the scientific method will be;  What is the best way to make the perfect flying plane? How can you test whether an egg is raw or hard-boiled without breaking it? Why does food coloring react differently to different types of milk? How can you tell what is in a box without picking it up? We’ll even throw in more crazy experiments until you are a walking, talking scientist! See you there!

Silkworms

Learn about the life cycle of the silkworm. We’ll study this creature from egg to larvae to pupa to moth. Each student will receive their own silkworms and science journal. This class is even a great idea for a science fair project! We’ll also read Jill Wilcox’s book called, “Wego the Wonderful Silkworm”.

Space, The Final Frontier

The final frontier….come explore the planets of our solar system including satellites like our moon! We’ll discover what planets are made of and what the differences are among them. We’ll even discover why the Earth is the perfect place for us to live. You’ll get to make your own rocket to launch on the last day of class!

The Tiny World of Microbes

Welcome to the wonderful world of microbes! We’ll look at the differences between plant and animal cells and also discover protists and bacteria. With the use of our microscopes, we’ll also discover what lives in a drop of pond water as well as some crazy new organisms each week! 

Wacky Weather

Become a novice meteorologist in just 4 short weeks! You will make your own weather station to take home. We’ll discover how a thermometer actually measures the speed of particles by experimenting with the thermometers you will make in class. Learn the difference between Fahrenheit and Celsius through measuring samples in class. How do clouds form? Why do clouds have different names? We’ll make our own clouds and see if clouds form better in clean or dirty air. Discover why weather patterns form, which clouds bring rain, and how tornadoes form. Does warm air rise or fall? What about cold air?  How does that make our weather? What is lightning and how is it formed? We’ll have clouds, rain, dew, wind, tornadoes, and lightning right inside our classroom!Â