lower school scientists

volcanoes erupting!

experimentation...

third graders made polymers

second graders tasted roots and tubers as part of their plant study

box turtle observations

First graders are artists and scientists; here they are drawing their observations of Sabrina, the box turtle!

bone specialists

how do our bones work together? fifth graders find out!

molecule mania!

making monosaccharides then linking them together using dehydration synthesis...

welcome to the new school year!

seventh graders have visited the Synnestvedt Outdoor Classroom

eighth graders are experimenting in the lab...

check back here often to see what's going on at NCCS in our science classrooms!

Also, welcome to our new science department members, Jeannie LaPlante (teaching 8th & 9th grades) and Sanj Maliakal (teaching 6th & 8th grades).

what did you do on your summer vacation...?

stay tuned for september....

have a fun summer! from the nccs science department...

clay animal kingdom

First graders have finished their animal kingdom projects! Working from their own sketches, they designed and molded amphibians and reptiles out of clay. Bird seed, pine cones and other natural materials were used for scales, claws and marking patterns on their animals.

tagging horseshoe crabs!

Country Schoolers, their parents and teachers waded into the water on Old Mill Beach in Westport this past weekend to capture and tag horseshoe crabs as both an extension of the seventh grade Long Island Sound unit and community service for Project Limulus (see 'what we're reading" for link).

Marine Biology in the Florida Keys

Everybody in for the swim test! Ninth graders studied coral reefs and other ecosystems of the Florida Keys during their weeklong expanded study. Highlights were snorkelling at the Looe Key National Marine Sanctuary, the Dolphin Research Center and the Turtle Hospital.

Dr. Tepler, biology guest speaker

NCCS parent, Dr. Izzy Tepler, volunteered to speak to 9th grade biology students on the topic of genetics in cancer research. Dr. Tepler is a medical oncologist at the Bennett Cancer Center of the Stamford Hospital. His sub-specialties are breast cancer and cancer genetics. His lecture focused on recent research that has led to the identification of a specific gene linked to familial breast-ovarian syndromes. His talk served as an excellent culmination to the 9th grade biology unit on genetics and patterns of inheritance.

saving salmon

NCCS is part of a four state effort to reestablish a population of Atlantic Salmon in the Connecticut River. The Connecticut River Salmon Association runs the Salmon-in-Schools program where eggs are hatched in classrooms from over 74 Connecticut schools. Once the alevin mature into fry they are released into a tributary of the Connecticut River. Our project is funded by the Jeniam Foundation.

top: A fourth grade student monitoring water temperature for Atlantic Salmon alevin (larval hatched fish).

bottom: salmon eggs

maple madness

8th graders toast to spring during a visit to the sugar shack to discuss maple syrup production.

twizzler meiosis

9th grade biology students take a hands on (and edible!) approach to meiosis by re-enacting the cell division process using twizzlers and toothpicks.

mirror hide and seek

sixth graders were caught playing “mirror hide and seek”and working on other mirror games using the principles of reflection

pillbug detectives

first graders tested pillbugs' responses to light and dark

blue liquids

three mysterious blue liquids...

which are the same? different? how would YOU find out??

beginners get charged up

digestion drama

fifth graders rehearsed for their digestive system skits with a multimedia approach...

Bernoulli in action

second graders explore the properties of air!

Mr. Hallett heads back to Middlebury

Students thanked Mr. Hallett for his time in the classroom with them over the past month. Mr. Hallett will be returning to Middlebury to continue his studies in environmental science. We wish him the best in his future endeavors!

fourth grade is electric!

fourth graders stay current by testing insulators and conductors :)

the hip bone connected to the...leg bone...

finishing the owl pellet study means assembling a skeleton, and that requires a steady hand and a good eye for the differences between very small bones.