WJ GCE Portfolio

In our first unit of FOOD class, we have discussed ecosystems, mathematical inequalities, and soil quality for gardening. We also had the opportunity to visit the Plant Chicago, which is an organic gardening space that uses aquaponics to provide nutrients to the soil. There, we tested soil quality, much like we did in class. We learned about the three types of nitrogen found in soil: ammonia, nitrites, and nitrates.  We also returned to in-person school for two days a week. It's fun to be in the classroom with everyone again. (We miss you RL and LA!)  Our Action Project is building on a theme that Rock (our leader at the Plant Chicago) talked to us about: anyone can be a farmer. And another video showing a "guerilla gardener" in Los Angeles made the same point: anyone, anywhere, can farm. So, for our action project, we are going to grow three plants. The difference: the soil quality between the three gardening containers.  Now, our three plants will be in three separate c

 So this winter has been cold!   You know how to make it warmer?  BURN STUFF! For our Fuel class we're done just that by learning about combustion, an exothermic chemical reaction, and demonstrating lots of fires.  Like, camping fuel, matches, even a big campfire.  We've talked about how different countries use different fuels, and used algebra to predict future trends in these fuels.  We even met with Christa Markgarff, an expert with Nicor Gas who has great knowledge of energy trends in the US. In the following slideshow, you can see lots of information and details on all of these things.  There was a lot to learn -- but, even more interesting, there's a lot more questions I hope to answer moving forward!