Ms. Gillingham Explores Science on Her Vacation !

Ms.Gillingham, one of our 4th grade teachers, took Dewey( her classroom dolphin) on her vacation this summer. She has sent me some of the exciting observations thatshe and Dewey made on their trip. These are her comments on her observations .

"Franklin Mountains State park is in the mountains and Basins region of Texas. As you can tell from the picture it is a much different ecosystem than what we have in the coastal plains region."

 

What are some differences that you see? Do you think she saw different animals here than what we see in our environment? What makes this ecosystem different ?



 



"This spider web is over the entrance to the spider's home. What an intricate trap this spider has for its prey! With a little research, you could find out the exact type of spider that lives in this area and spins this type of web."







"We made it to the top of Mundy's Gap and this view was our reward! Isn't it amazing? From this viewpoint, you can see Texas and New Mexico . New Mexico begins about where you see the green rectangles in the distance. At this point on the Texas border there is no river showing the border, and of course , there is no large black line on the ground like you see on a map. "

 

What do you think? Does all Texas look the same? What makes this part of Texas look so different? Do you think climate might have something to do with it? Do you think there is an ocean close to this part of Texas? Look at a map and see for yourself!

"There were lots of butterflies along the trail. This is a picture of a swallowtail butterfly which was sipping nectar from a thistle." 

 

 

"On one of our stops with Dewey,was to an abandoned mine shaft. You can see Dewey's new friend the Australian shepherd was with us. When we went in it was so easy to  understand why so many desert animals make burrows. It was so much cooler underground, probably 30 degrees cooler! What an amazing adaptation ! "

Good thing Dewey is not real! There is no way a real dolphin could of gone on Ms. Gillingham's vacation. It does not have adaptations for that habitat!

Thank you so much Ms. Gillingham for sharing these great observations with us !
I can see you and Dewey were great Scientists exploring your world on your vacation !
You are truly Mad about Science!
That's a good thing!