All students enrolled in this course will rotate through three units of Science exploration, spending 4 weeks on each unit in the fall semester and 5 weeks on each unit in the spring semester.  

Students will be assigned to the same classroom throughout the year, and teachers will bring a new topic to them each month.

Paleontology 
Instructor: Rebeca McKim
9 week unit (4 wks Fall/5 wks spring)

Get ready to dig into the past! In this fun class, you’ll discover fossils, learn about amazing dinosaurs, and explore creatures from the land, sky, and sea. You’ll also become an archaeologist—digging for artifacts and learning how people lived long ago. Hands-on activities and cool discoveries every week!

Meteorology
Instructor: Nikki Williams
9 week unit (4 wks fall, 5 wks spring)

Wild Weather Watchers: Exploring the Wonders of the Sky ???

Get ready to become a junior meteorologist in this exciting journey through the world of weather! 

In Wild Weather Watchers, students explore the science behind the skies—uncovering how clouds form, what causes wind and rain, and why powerful storms like hurricanes and tornadoes occur.

Each week, students will dive into a new weather topic through interactive experiments, creative projects, and engaging discussions. 

From building simple weather tools to tracking real-life forecasts, learners will develop observation skills and a deeper understanding of how weather shapes our daily lives.

We’ll explore questions like:
1.    How do clouds “decide” to rain? 
2.    What makes thunder and lightning? 
3.    Why do weather patterns change? 

With a mix of science, creativity, and curiosity, this class encourages students to think like scientists while having fun along the way. By the end of the course, students will be confident weather watchers—ready to read the skies and share what they’ve learned!  

Mechanics

Instructor: Summer Jessee
9 week unit (4 wks fall, 5 wks spring)

Silly Uses for Simple Machines

This course will explore the power of simple machines through an engaging dive into the world of Rube Goldberg’s wonderfully complicated inventions.  

Based on the books Rube Goldberg's Simple Normal Humdrum School Day and Simple Normal Definitely Different Day Off, the students will deconstruct the crazy inventions described to find the simple machines that make them work.  They will recreate the simple machines to discover their hidden power and potential for real world applications.