Middle and High School … from a Montessori Point of View
Sparking curiosity with the Toilet Paper Timeline, then following up with the beautifully drawn Cartoon History of the Universe seemed to work pretty well to keep students interested and engaged in their work. However, in putting it all together in their presentations we needed a simple graphic organizer to point out the highlights. The History … Continue reading “Synthesizing the history of life”
The Toilet Paper Timeline of Earth History worked as well as I’d hoped. The beginning was a bit boring, it was a challenge keeping the kids focused, since nothing much happens for a very long time. It helped that we had to unroll the toilet paper back and forth across the room, so I had … Continue reading “Toilet Paper Timeline in practice”
Jennifer Wenner has posted a beautiful demonstration of geologic time using toilet paper for the timeline at SERC. You’ll need a 1000 sheet roll and by the time you’re done there will be toilet paper everywhere. This is a great demonstration because as you unroll the toilet paper you get a great feel for the … Continue reading “Toilet Paper Timeline of Earth History”
Current events often generate the teachable moments we’re always seeking in order to strike students’ imagination. The eruption of Eyjafjallajökull is a prime example. I’ve already used it to point out the intersection of geothermal energy and plate tectonics, but there is so much more. Eyjafjallajökull has been a wonderful subject for the art of … Continue reading “Integrating Eyjafjallajökull”
Almost every time I discuss protons, neutrons and the nucleus of an atom, or at least so my students complain, I end up talking about nuclear fission and fusion and nuclear weapons. If the discussion goes on long enough I tend to bring up the cold war and how the fear of mutually assured destruction … Continue reading “Nuclear Winter and MAD”