The Body Invaders!

Dear 4^th Grade Parents,

We just started a fun new health unit on Communicable and Non-communicable Diseases. It seems at this time of year many of us have first-hand experience with some nasty cold and flu viruses! Sounds like an appropriate time to learn the difference between communicable and non-communicable diseases!

Students will learn about pathogens such as viruses and bacteria, how they are spread, and what each of us can do to help prevent the spread of communicable diseases.

We even have a fun activity day planned during which we are hoping to have a visiting micro-biologist join us. The students will each cough into a Petri dish, and then see what grows after the dishes are incubated. Similarly, they will use another Petri dish with agar and touch the dish before hand washing, and again afterward to demonstrate how well they are really washing their hands! We’re not done yet—the kids will also have the opportunity to see real live bacteria under a microscope!

Check out this cool link that uses concrete graphic images to depict the real size of a germ compared to other very small surfaces. The kids loved it!

http://www.cellsalive.com/howbig.htm

Valentine's Day

This Friday we will be having a Valentine's Day celebration! Mrs. Harrington and Ms. Kinsman wanted to do something special for the students, so we will be serving delicious Italian sodas! If you would like to donate a two liter of plain soda water, please let us know. We will need the bottles before Friday in order to have them refrigerated and cooled in time. Mrs. Harrington has already purchased cream and cups, while Ms. Kinsman will take care of the strawberry flavored syrup.

In addition to our sweet treat, students have been given plain envelopes to decorate as "mailboxes" for Valentine's Day. We sent home a class list on Friday, along with the envelopes, for kids who want to bring in cards for the class. This is not a required activity, nor is it necessary to send in extra candy or extravagant gifts. Simple, homemade messages or inexpensive store bought cards are just fine. The key is that all students are included and have fun.

Finally, we will be spending a part of the morning and the afternoon working on a special art project. In the spirit of love and sharing, we will be working on "Mixed Media Hearts" to help decorate the hospital room of McKenzie Anderson, a local girl who is working toward recovering from a rare illness that has left her paralyzed from the neck down. Ms. Kinsman heard about McKenzie's story from her sister (an employee of the Children's Miracle Network), and knew that a special art project from our class could do so much to brighten this little girl's day. She has been in contact with McKenzie's mom, who was delighted to hear that our students would be willing to share their artwork with her daughter. 

If you would like to volunteer on Friday afternoon, we can always use a few extra hands. We will begin our celebration around 1:40 and will work until the end of the day. Please let us know if you are interested in helping out!