International Weather Investigation
When prepping for my weather unit, I set out searching for a weather data collection form. I came up short until I saw a link that led me to Skype. I clicked on the link and was reading about an International Weather Investigation based out of Sydney, Australia. I think I screamed out loud. After reading the overview, I KNEW we could participate. Basically, students in Sydney need 3-weeks worth of weather data about our climate. Perfect, right? I added our name to the Google Doc and waited for my email full of information. By 8:00 AM the next morning, my inbox had two brand new emails from Sydney. I could barely contain my excitement. Really - I kind of freaked out.
To start the project, my classes mapped out where other participating schools were located. With world maps in hand, students were using the Google Doc to find countries and schools all over the world. We were marking places in Asia, South America, Russia, America, and so on. It was incredible! Today, my students collected their first afternoon of data. I didn't even have to remind anyone about the project. I recommend YOU checking out this spectacular climate project here.
Hurricane Sandy
It's hard to fathom what a hurricane might be like in Missouri. We're accustomed to talking about tornadoes and severe thunderstorms. I wanted my students to be aware of what was happening on the other side of the country. Today, I spent a chunk of science time talking to my students about Sandy hammering the east coast. I found video clips to show my students and they asked several questions. We grabbed the maps and figured out who was being hit the hardest and several students asked about our pen pals and I.W.I. friends.
How do you get your students to see the big world that they live in? How do you open their eyes outside of their current residence? Do share!
