COCC Solary Array

By Eniat (Grade 7)

On Wednesday the 1st of November the upper graders of Black Butte School went to COCC Redmond campus to see their solar array. Once we got to the campus we went to a classroom to learn about different types of energy. The main types of energy are hydroelectric, solar energy, fossil fuels, biofuel, and wind. In all of these 6 types of energy solar is the only one that does not use a generator.

On the bus we were asked to come up with questions to ask the professor we worked with. One of the more common questions was “will the panels work with snow on top of them?” The answer was yes the panels work with snow on top of them but not as well.  Another common question was “will the panels work with the reflected sunlight of the moon?” The answer was also yes but not as well.

The solar array has 1556 solar panels. This array  can power the campus during the summer and actually makes extra energy that they can to the power company, but in the winter they don’t make enough to power the campus, so they have to buy the energy from the power company. Ilya one of the 8th graders at BBS said “It was a really enjoyable field trip.” Athan, one of our 5th graders said, “I liked it and am happy that solar panels were invented so we don’t have to use fossil fuels as much.”

This field trip was fun because we got to go into a college classroom, touch an actual solar panel, and track the amount of energy they were making.

Bend Science Station

By Cody (grade 8)

The Black Butte School upper grades class went to the Bend Science Station on Friday, November 5. We went to learn about how to make a motor and a little bit about how electricity works. On the way there we got to talk about how we thought motors worked. When we got there, we met up with a guy named Dan who was going to teach us for the day.

The first thing we did was talk about magnets and how they work in motors and what types there are. The permanent magnet in a motor helps make the motor spin when the two different types of magnets are pushing against each other. Next we were told about how an electric motor works. An electric motor works by having a solenoid that then has power sent through it, then the electricity can make a circuit that makes the solenoid turn into an electromagnet.

We then went on to make our own motors. We made a type of motor called a brushed motor. A brushed motor is a type of motor that gets its power directly from the power source. It uses two brushes that rub against the armature. What we first did was work on bending some copper into a shape to work as brushes. Then we put the brushes that we made into a wood block with pre-drilled holes to act as a base. Next we worked on getting a D-size battery hooked up to the brushes. We last got an armature and permanent magnet to finish it off. This works by having the electromagnet and the permanent magnet push against each other. Athan said,“ I think it was fun, and everyone had a great time.” Last thing we did when we got back was teach what we did to the younger kids.

Beard is Back!

By Ace (grade 4)

Mr.Sharp’s mind blowing beard has returned! Why did Mr.sharp shave his beard? Mr.Sharp said he was bored without it. Paisley said he probably looks better with it. We got used to him without it. He looks like he did before. Mr.Sharp and his mind blowing beard are perfect together.

He started to grow his beard in the spring and it grew into summer. When Rope and I went to his house in the summer to work we saw his beard. He had a slight beard, you probably could not see it from five feet away. That’s how Mr.Sharp’s mind blowing beard returned.

Save the Monarch Beauties!

by Audrie (grade 5)

Monarch butterflies are dying because of the reduction of milkweed. The Butterflies only lay their eggs on milkweed. The monarch butterflies are the symbol of Texas, Minnesota, Alabama, Illinois, West Virginia, Vermont, and Idaho.

Black Butte School went on a field trip with Karen Gentry. She took us to the new kid's fishing pond in Camp Sherman to plant milkweed. Talon and Weston said when they planted their milkweed, “we will tuck them in at night and kiss them and sing them a lullaby." Their scientific Name is Danaus plexippus.

I thought it was fun to go out with the whole school and I hope it helps the monarch butterflies come to Camp Sherman.

Creepy Halloween Creeps

by Jo jo (grade 5)

This month kids are excited for Halloween. This year lots of kids are going to wear really cool costumes. Some of the costumes that the kids at school are going to be wearing are mini mouse, vampire, soldier, and pokemon.

This year kids are excited for the annual fire station haunted house especially the scary people and the fog machines. Fog machines are a machine that puts out fog. Fog is silky white and floats around like clouds drifting in the air. This year people are predicting rain and snow.

Every year during Halloween time kids are excited for carving pumpkins. When you carve pumpkins you make a face on them and put them in front of your door. Also there is a tradition of trick or treating when you go to someone's door and after they open you say "trick or treat!" That is a way of saying, "give me candy." This Halloween will be a wonderful scary night.  

Smoke in the Air

By Cody (grade 8)

In the clean crisp mountain air people are able to run free and have fun, but what happened before that? About a month ago the air was very hard to breath in with lots of thick smoke clouds. The smoke mostly came from a recent fire called the Milli fire it was caused by lightning and burned 24,079 acres 9 miles from Sisters, Oregon. The fire was able to make tons of smoke and keep burning for a month because it was fueled by dry timber and brush which made all that black smoke.

People didn't have a great time with the the smoke because when it gets in your lungs and eyes it irritating. Some people with asthma can't deal with the smoke because they don't have as much of lung capacity and the smoke is heavier than the surrounding air so it won’t come out of your lungs as easily. Lots of people were wearing masks which helped them keep the smoky air out of their lungs.

This impacted the wildlife by making it so the animals are in panic. Also the animals aren't able to deal with the smoke as well as we humans are. This also impacted the way humans are going to deal with the pollution of smoke the next time and this will make us more prepared.

Scott Henderson said ”the smoke was horrible.” Emily said “the smoke was annoying and inconvenient.” Something that we all can agree on is that this smoke has impacted us and given us more awareness to be prepared.

The Total Solar Eclipse

By Emily (grade 6)

On August 21st, 2017 me and a lot of other Oregonians, including my classmates got to experience our first total solar eclipse. Eclipses like this are very rare. People are lucky to see one in their entire lives. You have to be in the right place to view it, or you have to travel to another state, or in extreme cases, another COUNTRY. Us Black Butte students didn’t have to go anywhere. We stayed right where we were. Well, I think my classmates did, anyway. I went to Sweet Home to see it. It was still the same experience, just not as long. Let me explain some of the reasons why the solar eclipse is so significant and special.

The last time a solar eclipse like this took place was February 26th, 1979. It crossed through Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana and North Dakota. Of course, me and my classmates weren’t alive then, which is why it was awesome to have a total solar eclipse in 2017. When the moon was almost completely passed over the sun, it immediately went from bright and hot to dark and cool in seconds. All the previously singing birds stopped chirping, thinking it was night. The nature and wildlife was silent for the entire remainder of the eclipse.  

I didn’t see this, but flowers also close up during the eclipse preparing for sunset. I’m sure the animals were confused when it became light a minute later. They probably thought it was a really short night. Our dog and cat was outside the whole time, and they didn’t know what to think. When the solar eclipse was over, videos of it were scattered all over the internet just hours later. Ilya Goheen said: “It was actually pretty cool.”

As a lot of people know, staring at the sun for any amount of time during a solar eclipse can cause serious vision problems, temporary or even permanent vision loss. That’s why everyone needed to have those glasses. But you didn’t need the glasses the entire time. I took the glasses off and looked around at the trees and nature. It was really dark and cool. It sadly only lasted for like a minute and 40 seconds. It was disappointing when it was over.

The next solar eclipse will be on April 8th, 2024. It will be visible over North America, Mexico, USA and Canada. In case you’re wondering where it will be in the USA, it’s the state of Texas. If you want to see it you might have to do some traveling. I hope to see it, but who knows If I’ll be able to? I might just go to Texas in 2024 to see another amazing eclipse. Video footage can’t show how cool it really looks. You’d just have to see it yourself.  Cody Hanks said: “It was amazing.” I definitely agree.  

I’m really glad and lucky I got to experience this with my family this year. At first, I didn’t think this was a big deal, or that it was worth getting up at 10 a.m. during Summer break. But it’s totally worth it. I would have regretted it so much if I hadn’t seen it.