John Johnston

Balloon Power

While the Primary 7s are away at Ardvulan for the week enjoying the outdoors the rest of the Biggies have been improving their STEM skills.

We were working on keeping safe while using saws and hot glue guns. And on the test and improve part of the design cycle.

The First round consisted of creating wooden frames with wheels. We then attached a balloon and straw to provide some air power. As well ask keeping safe we practised our measuring, and learn how to use a vice and saw to cut wood. THe hot glue was used to hold the frames together with right-angled (more maths) reinforcements.

After we ran the cars along the corridor we though about how to improve our designs. One idea was to provide a platform for the balloon to stop it getting stuck in the frame. We also adapted the way we connected the balloons to straws to get less leaking.

two children working on model balloon cars

Finally we had a bit of fun in the gym hall testing out the cars to see whose would go the furtherest.

Back in the classroom we identified the learning that had taken place and skills we had improved.

Pupil Voice

We used wood , cardboard, balloons, duct tape, wood sticks, milk lids, card and straws. We used the as the base of the car and the wheels.
Billie

Our class made some balloon powered cars. They are very cool and can almost go all the way across the hall! They aren’t very durable and not good at going straight though. The things we learned when making these are: how to use saws and hot glue guns, a bit of measuring and how to make a balloon car.
Robert

The p 5/6/7 made balloon powered cars. We built them then went for a race. The building process was hard though. We built them with cardboard, wood, milk lids, tape, straws, a balloon and a skewer. We used tool that were saws, vice, hot glue guns and snipper as all as I can remember. Also our classroom tools that were pencil, rubber, ruler and scissors.
Gene

We used the 2 10cm and 2 15cm lines of wood that we cut, and used hot glue guns to glue all of it together. One it was glued together we used some paper straws, bottle caps and sticks. We put the wheels through the stick and the paper straw on top of the sticks. Then after we put a balloon on the car with a reusable straw. We then used duck tape to close it off so no leaks could happen.
Jason

First we had to measure the wood into different sizes. Then we had to make right angles and hot glue them all together. After we got a straw and milk lid and put a hole through and attached it on. Then we cut a straw and put the straw through and taped it on.
Noah

How to make it:

First get a 50cm long wooden stick.

Then grab your pencil and draw 2 lines among 15cm.

Then draw 2 lines among 10cm.

Get your saw and cut where the lines are.

Use hot glue to put the sticks into a rectangle shape.

Use a piece of card and use hot glue to stick it on top of your car.

Grab your hot glue gun and flip over the car to stick 2 paper straws onto the bottom of your car.

Use skewers and put them through the paper straws.

Put bottle caps on the skewers to act like wheels.

Stretch a balloon and use scissors to cut the bottom off the balloon.

Put a drinking straw through the balloon.

Then wrap tape in the middle. If it doesn’t work wrap another one on.

Finally put tape on the middle (Don’t wrap) then stick it onto the car and play around.

There you have it! Now you have a cool car at home! WARNING! Don’t put near cats or other sharp things
Xander

After the race finished we went back in the makerSpace and talked about what we had to improved, and the next day we improved them.

(Thursday) on Thursday we improved our cars by putting in a piece of cardboard to stop the balloon from getting caught and bursting, we also used a different type of balloon and cut the top off of it, and we also used a different type of straw which was easier to use. After we improved are balloon we had a different race and stuff like that. The winner was Calum, but I think I did quite good because I was 2nd, the only reason I lost was because my wheels were squinty
Chloe

Picnic Lunch

Some of the Biggies headed down to Dow’s Wood for a picnic lunch today. We had a relaxing time eating in the woods dappled with sunshine. Food was eaten, trees climbed. A woodpecker drummed around us in the treetops.

Scratching with P1-2

On Wednesday the Biggies went to Primary 1-2 to teach them a little about ScratchJr. This is a programming app for younger users. The Biggies have experience with coding with Scratch itself, micro:bits and Arcade.

Both ethe Biggies and the P1-2 workeked really hard and had a ton of fun. Some of the Biggies wrote about it on their e-portfolios so I’ve taken some quotes.

I learnt how to explain to use scrachJr to younger people and also how fun it is to use ScratchJr.I think we all used a few good different skills but I used ICT, problem solving and leadership I think I was good at all the skills I used. I loved working with the wee ones it was really fun I loved there watching the little films they were all so good.
Alex

We did use a lot of our skills to do the project of teaching the p 1/2’s to be able to use JR For p1/2 it can be a bit hard for them but we weren’t long in teaching them how to use scratchJR. We used of our skills to do so we had to use communication and our own ICT skills. And all in all it was a good chance to work with the p1/2 team.
Blair

We had to make a film or a scene it was so fun with the primary 1/2 . One of the primary one was making a car crash or float about in an iceberg it was so FUNNY.
Faith

This week we worked with primary 1/2 on ScratchJr we were teaching them how to move characters and make them say things. I liked working with the little ones and teaching them how to use ScratchJr because it was really fun and whatever they had they were happy with it. I also enjoyed it because Evie was always thinking ahead. I learned that the primary 2s were already really good at ScratchJr and that it wasn’t me teaching Evie it turned into Evie teaching me.
Juliet

More pictures on the Bairn’s Blog.

Starting Scratching

New Podcast out BBP episode 8

BBP episode 8 haiku and poetry

A walk around High Banton

On Tuesday, as part of out outdoor learning day, the Biggies had a walk around High Banton. We are studying the way people lived in Banton in the past so went to look at the houses and landscape.

First we had to get our selves kitted out with wellies and water proofing because it would be very muddy and wet at the bit that we would be going to. It was all the way up at drum Nessie farm in High Banton. We started by turning right at the end of the school. Road and then you fallow the road up to the cattery that is at the top of the road and then we saw what looked like a 19th century house and it had been done up it looked amazing.

Going through the cow field

First we were tasked with a problem we had to go through a field full of cows. And that was the only way through so we had to we started by climbing over the gate but then we realised that the cows were all the way over at the other side of the field so we were fine.
Blair

Next we saw a garage that could have been a old house because it was built of rocks. …

We came out at the swan and got a picture of that because it first opened in 1853. Across the road from the swan there was a house that was built in 1811. We know that because it was engraved on the stone above the door.

Juliet

We then went down one of the roads out of Banton to the mill and took some pictures of it. The mill is really old and was opened in 1836 which is about 200 years ago. When we were coming back we saw the old police house that is just a normal house now but use to be the old police station for Banton. Then we were on the road the school is on and we got a picture of the newest house in Banton that was only finished this year.

In conclusion I really enjoyed the walk and it was nice to see the old houses and buildings in person and not on a screen. I was also nice to walk about and and see the old houses that people would have lived in a long time ago and still do. I didn’t really like all the muddy puddles but other than that I loved it.
Juliet

In school

When we had went back to school and we looked at all the pictures and we thought of where the were and cut the pictures that Mr J had taken and a map that he printed. We stuck the map on to a sheet of a paper and the the picture’s around the map. We had drawn lines to where the places were and if we knew the name of the place we wrote that and like The Swan and when it was made 1815.
Alex

P7 Ardvullin Trip

The Week before this the primary Sevens headed off with Mrs Rae, some Chapelgreen pupils and two Chapelgreen teachers, Mrs Sava and Ms Carline. Here are some reports:

Read Them

Micro Pets

For the past couple of weeks, we have been working on a micro:bit project in class. This is the first time some of the class have used micro:bits while others are more experienced.
We took the idea of a virtual pet from the makecode site and then extended it in different ways.

We started with the idea of making the pet happy by stroking it’s logo and making it sad by shaking it.

After that the class could extend it in lots of different ways. For the beginners this involved feeding and giving the pet a drink. The more experienced pupils surprised me with the complexity of what they were doing. We had health scores, feeding to keep healthy and avoiding starvation; being sick, with the chance of illness and death and being annoyed when petted too much!

Some of the class were intrigued enough to keep working in their free time and were great at sharing techniques. I was delighted to see a good understanding of variables and repeats shown by some.

Here are a couple of examples, click the play button, ▶️, to see them in action. Be sure to turn on the sound for giggles & squeaks.

My class made micro bit tamagotchi’s if we shook it it had to make a sad face and sound also on logo pressed it had to look happy and make a happy sound. We had to add other things in .

This is what mine does ,

My pet sleeps on button a and b using a led block and repeats it 8 times.
On button a pressed it eats using a led and repeat block If you press button b it dies and I also used a led block a repeat block and a on button b pressed block .
Juliet

Sleep

Be happy if stroked (press logo)

Be sad if shaken

Die (wait long enough and don’t feed it)

Be sick if fed to much(can be cured using b)

Be scared (by making a noise/blowing/filling the red bar 180+)

Be fed (using a)

Get a health check (A+B)

Nathaniel

Junior Leaders

On Monday last week Julie from Active Schools came in for our first session of Junior Sports leaders. The class had a great time and are looking forward to working with the wee ones in the playground to keep them active.

Elastic Cars

The biggies went back to the maker space for a warm up of our engineering skills today.

Some Biggies reaction:

I learned that you don’t need a motor to make things go

Today I learned how to make changes in my work, I learned how to make rubber bands into a working motor and I learned how to improve the work I had already done!

I learned about how different weight can affect a moving thing and how different types of rubber bands can change how the speed works

I learned that you can do it you have to just believe in yourself

Outdoor Learning Day June 2023

We started the day by going to the woods to gather a bit of firewood and different things to test as tinder.

The woods have changed quite a lot since our last visit, the grass & bracken is a lot higher. Down by the Gladstone we saw a woodpecker and later on a frog.

Back in school we tried different items as tinder with our flies and steels. not much success. The only thing that really caught was some bog cotton we had picked on our previous visit.

Next we mixed up some dough to cook over the fire later on in the day.