Cheerios, Science, and Disciplinary Literacy
Cheerios, Science, and Disciplinary Literacy By Wendi Vogel, Science Consultant, Kent ISD, DLE Task Force Committee Member (Note: This blog post is written to introduce the DLEs, produced by GELN/MAISA, to educators. It could be used for individual learning, in a PLC, a staff meeting, department meeting, or professional learning opportunity as well. Eating cheerios while reading is strongly recommended.) Have you ever eaten a bowl of Cheerios and noticed when you get toward the end of the Cheerios, they “stick” together in groups, or end up near the edge and stick to the sides of the bowl? If not, take a look at the picture above, or try it yourself! When looking at this “Cheerio effect,” it makes me wonder: Why does it do this? Do other cereals do the same thing? Does the bowl matter? Does the liquid matter? What if I use whole milk? Skim milk? Carbonated liquid? Do leaves do this if they land in a pond? Is there some kind of force acting on the Cheerios? The Framework for K-12