Living Together

Dear all,

End of week 2. Let us recap on what we have covered so far.

Science

We have finished the topic on forces which is closely linked to energy. So revise these 2 topics together when you are studying.

We went through the experiment on how different balls affect the bouncing height. The bouncing height is never higher than the initial height of the ball. The bouncing height always gets lower as energy is lost in the form of heat and sound energy. When the gravitational potential energy is converted to kinetic energy when the ball bounces, some of the energy is also converted to sound and heat energy. Thus, the ball has lesser gravitational potential energy at each bounce to be converted into kinetic energy.

(We can see the link between energy and forces here)

We also talk about the importance of how there is a layer of cushion in the helmet to help absorb the impact when the motorcyclist hits his head. This protects the head as compared to just the outer layer present only.

Remember that there are 4 main forces that we have learnt that they are:

1. Gravitational force
2. Frictional force
3. Elastic (Spring) force
4. Magnetic force 

Heat is not a force! We cannot see forces. We can only see the impact of the forces most of the time. For example, when we push a bowling ball, we can see the impact of the push when it knocks down the pins and rolls around.

Today, we moved on to the next topic of Living together.

• Living organisms - Living things such as men, plants and animals.
• Habitat - The place in which living things adapt and survive in. 
• Population - The size/numbers of the living organisms
• Community - Coming together of the living organisms to adapt and survive in a habitat

 

We also discussed a few important questions such as:

• Can a type of animal be found all over the world? The answer is no. Animals adapt to different environments such as the Polar Bear which can only be found in cold climates in which they adapt very well to. 
• Plants and animals can survive in the same habitat as long as they can adapt to the habitat's conditions. They depend on each other and are interdependent. The plants are eaten by the herbivores. In some cases, plants need insects to help them pollinate their pollen grains. Also, some plants need animals to disperse their seeds (through dispersal by animals). 

 Do you know that humans are also living organisms. We have different population size in different countries. We live in habitats too which differ from environment to environment. Some countries experience snow and the four seasons while some countries do not. Also, we live in a community where different races and gender come together. We depend on one another for survival.

English

We have finished the supplementary worksheet for Unit 5 and we have done a short exercise on making inferences. Inferences are important to help us elaborate and understand a story. It is an essential skill for your pre-reading thinking activity.

We also talk about gerunds which are special nouns made from verbs by adding the -ing to the back. Gerunds are usually found after a verb.

e.g We like swimming. (Swimming is a noun here which refers to a kind of sport).

Homework for the weekend:

• Journal writing
• With your parents' permission, catch an insect to put into our terrarium for next week's experiment. Insects can range from beetles to ladybirds to snails to earthworms (or any worms) to spiders. Be safe and do not destroy the nests! 

Thank you,
Have a good weekend,
Sincerely,
Mr Nelson Ong