6th Grade Discovery Room Update (September)
Sixth graders in Mr. Bednarz’s class have Discovery Room twice every month. In the first meeting we learned about arctic ecosystems and the different plant and animal life that inhabit there. We talked about climate change, and how it affects the native species, as well as humans who live in the arctic. After our discussion the students built structures out of clay which we placed in trays filled with frozen sand, soil, and rocks to simulate permafrost. The trays were left out in the classroom for the remainder of the week, until we came back on Friday to observe how the melting permafrost had affected the buildings. Most of the structures experienced some form of collapse as their foundations melted and hard ground turned to mud.
Clay structures built on melting permafrost.
