The 6th grade is studying the atmosphere. Today they started making a scale drawing of the layers of the atmosphere. I put a data table up on the board with the names of the atmospheric layers and how far above the earth each layer extends with a column to calculate how many centimeters they will draw the circle representing each layer if the scale is one kilometer equals one millimeter. We started with the troposphere as an example and they calculated that if the troposphere extended 20 kilometers (rounded to the nearest 10 and discounting that it is thinner at the poles which we have already discussed) above the earth on our scale drawing how far above the circle representing the earth would they draw the edge of the troposphere. Every team struggled to change 20 millimeters into 2 centimeters, but after that one they were quick to get the stratosphere's thickness of 50 kilometer would be drawn as 5 centimeters. Before they started the drawing I wanted to impress upon them that the scale we were using for the earth was way off. I had them guess the diameter of the earth. The closest to the right answer got a point. The guess of 5 million kilometers won the point. One team asked me if a quadrillion was really a number before they guessed one quadrillion. No team could calculate how many centimeters the earth's real diameter of (rounded) 13,000 kilometers would be on our scale drawing. (I have 13 meter sticks ready to show them tomorrow.)
Before they started the drawing I wanted them to put the data table for the atmospheric layers, distances, and scale in their lab notebook. I had them start a team race to copy the information off the whiteboard. I asked if they would like me to sing them a song while they copied. They said, "yes." I began singing a silly little diddy called, "Chicken Lips". I had just finished the first chorus ( "Oh chicken lips and lizard hips and alligator eyes, monkey legs and buzzard eggs and salamander thighs, rabbit ears and camel rears and tasty toenail pies, stir them all together, it's mama's soup surprise") when one girl hopped up and ran to the sink and heaved her lunch. I've never had that reaction to my singing before. I'm not sure if it was my voice, the lyrics, or the loftiness of our discussion which caused the reaction - or most probably none of the above.
i love that song! i remember hearing your little ditties during my planning periods in the lab. i'm so happy that you wrote the lyrics... where does a song such as that come from?
ReplyDeleteIt was on a tape called something like "Silly Songs for Kids" I bought for my own kids 20 or so years ago. What I wrote is the chorus. The verses are below:
ReplyDeleteVerse 1: When I was just a kid I never liked to eat.
Mama'd put things on my plate I'd dump them on her feet.
Then one day she made this soup. I ate it all in bed. I asked her what she put in it and this is what she said ... chorus
Verse 2: I went into the bathroom and stood there by the sink.
I said, "I'm feeling slightly ill. I think I need a drink."
Mama said, "I've just the thing. I'll get it in a wink.
It's full of lots of protein and vitamins, I think." ... chorus