Greetings from Suncoast Elementary School in sunny Spring Hill, Florida! Square of Life was probably the most memorable experience of our second grade year. After making observations of our squares, small student teams each created PowerPoint presentations of their findings. They each compared their “square” to a “square” somewhere else in the world. Then we invited our families in for a wonderful night of Square of Life presentations.
Here we will present each team’s written findings:
Team 1 (Dante, Patrick, & Arianna)
About Our Partner School
We compared our “Square of Life” to Julio Alvarado School in Puerto Rico. Here are a few interesting things that we learned about their school.
nThey are located by the Caribbean Sea.
nThe average temperature is 88ºF. That sure is hot!
nThey live in a tropical environment.
nWe enjoyed learning about Escuela Julio Alvarado.
Animals
In our square we found red ants and flying bees. We noticed that the red ants were fire ants. The children at Escuela Julio Alvarado also found ants. They also found birds, spiders, brown lizards, and caterpillars. They didn’t see any beetles.
It was fun learning about the place where I (Dante) was born!
Non-Living Things
In our square we found non-living things such as dead yellow flowers, water dripping from a faucet, and red mulch. The children at Escuela Julio Alvarado noticed gray and black small rocks. They didn’t see any yellow flowers, water dripping from a faucet, or red mulch. Some things that they found that we didn’t were gray and black small rocks.
Plants
In our square we found two flowers, brown leaves, and weeds. The children at Escuela Julio Alvarado found grass, a tree, and weeds. They didn’t find any flowers. We thought the plants in Puerto Rico would be a lot different from ours, but they weren’t
What We Learned
We learned that dead flowers can still have color. In my partner school, Escuela Julio Alvarado, we learned about their animals and trees and plants. Escuela Julio Alvarado saw some of the same things our group did like ants, and green and brown weeds. We learned that no matter where in the world you are some things are still the same!
Team 2 (Augustus, Breanna, & Brianna)
About Our Partner School
We compared our “Square of Life” to Mulwala Public School in Australia. Here are a few interesting things we learned about their school.
wThey have gardens and school playgrounds.
wThey are having a drought. That means they are having little or no rain.
wIt was fun learning about Mulwala Public School!
Plants
In our square we found plants. We observed the grass, a tree and also some leaves and pinecones. The children at the Malwala Public School found some weeds and fungus.They didn’t see any trees, leaves, or grass.
Animals
In our square we only found one red ant and one black ant, a black beetle and a white butterfly. We observed the black beetle climbing up the pine tree. The children at Mulwala Public School found bees and birds and lizards. They didn’t see any beetles. Some things that they found that we didn’t were bees, birds, and lizards.
Non-Living Things
In our square we found a dead leaf, dead grass, a dead pinecone, and a dead ant. We also saw some pine needles. The children at Mulwala puplic school found rubbish which means trash. They also found an alcohol bottle, mud, small rocks, paper, and some dirt and sand. I enjoyed learning about Mulwala Public School.
Team 3 (Kristopher, Jennifer & Jordin)
About Our Partner School
üWe compared our “Square of Life” to Desert’s Edge in Cairo Egypt. Here are a few interesting things we learned about their school:
üWe learned that our partner school only has 3 kids in their class.
üThey are hoping they get more students.
üThe school is located in Egypt near the Gaza Pyramids.
They get to go horseback riding and do experiments.
Animals
üIn our square we found bugs. We observed crawling bugs, beetles and fireants. The children at Desert’s Edge school only found one flying bug. They didn’t find much at the desert. They didn’t see any flowers at all. Some things they found that we didn’t were one flying bug.
Plants
üIn our square we found bugs. We observed crawling bugs, beetles and fireants. The children at Desert’s Edge school only found one flying bug. They didn’t find much at the desert. They didn’t see any flowers at all. Some things they found that we didn’t were one flying bug.
Non-Living Things
üIn our Square we found a fossil of a shell, rabbit scat and some sand and rocks. In case you haven’t heard, rabbit scat is little balls of poop from rabbits. The children at Desert’s Edge School also discovered some flying bugs. They didn’t see any pine needles or a fossil. Some things that they found that we didn’t were a metal knob, and pieces of plastic.
What We Learned
We learned that there is a school called Desert’s Edge in Cairo, Egypt. We also learned that ants are everywhere! We know our own backyard better now. I really learned that flying bugs sting, and bite. It was fun learning about Desert’s Edge School and telling about the school.
Team 4 (Corrine, Mikayla, & Shawn)
About Our Partner School
¤We compared our “Square of Life” to Alta Vista Elementary School in Los Gatos, California. Here are a few things we learned about their school:
¤They don’t get rain between April and October. That’s when we get the most rain.
¤The school is located in a valley.
¤San Jose is the third largest city in California.
It is rated the safest big city in America!
Animals
¤In our square we found animals. We saw three different kinds of ants. We observed fire ants, carpenter ants, and queen ants. Don’t ever get near a fire ant. If it bites you, it will really sting! We noticed there were a lot of ants climbing in our tree.
¤The children at Altavista Elementary also found a spider. They didn’t see any ants. Some things they found that we didn’t were a spider and a worm.
Plants
In our square we found weeds, trees, and grass. On the tree we found a lot of fire ants. The children at Altavista Elementary School almost found the same amount of plants like our group did. They did not find some of the stuff that we found like weeds and grass.
Non-Living Things
In our square we found a piece of cement, a soda can, and a leaf. We saw five pieces of mulch and a stick. The children at AltaVista Elementary School found small rocks, large rocks, dirty metal, and plastic. They didn’t see any mulch, sticks, soda cans, or any cement. Some of the things that they found that we didn’t were plastic and large rocks.
What We Learned
¤We learned that Alta Vista Elementary School has some of the same things that we have. We were surprised that they have found almost everything we found.
Team 5 (Taylor, Alex, & Alison)
About Our Partner School
We compared our Square of Life to English Estates Elementary School. Here are a few interesting things we learned about their school:
§They have wild fires close to their school.
§They have 700 kids.
§The students live 45 minutes from Disney.
§We liked learning about that school a lot.
Animals
§In our square we found red ants, beetles, and a black spider. Ooh! One was climbing up the tree. We observed fungus and we saw bugs .
§The children at English Estates Elementary School found flying bugs, a lizard, and a worm. They didn’t find a snail.
Plants
§In our square we found a tree, flowers, pinecones, and Spanish moss. We examined the bark of the tree.
§The children at English Estates Elementary School also saw a tree. They didn’t see any pinecones but they found grass and weeds.
Non-Living Things
§In our square we found pinecones, a lot of pebbles, dead ants, and pine needles. There were many pine trees. We observed pinecones and found seeds in them.
§The children at English Estates Elementary School also saw dead ants. They didn’t see any pinecones, pine needles, or pebbles.
Some things they found that we didn’t were metal, mud, plastic, and small rocks.
What We Learned
§We Learned that our partner school, English Estates Elementary, has some of the same things we have like ants, flying bugs, snails, trees, and even some weeds. They also have some of the same animals we have like lizards and brown and black spiders. Their school is also located in Florida. I like learning about new things and other schools.