Roberta's Corner
Windows to the Universe will offer numerous workshops at the upcoming NSTA meeting in Chicago, Illinois. Workshops include:
November 10 , 2005
- Climate Change: Classroom Tools to Explore the Past Present and Future
, 8:00-9:00 am, Sheraton Hotel,
Superior A;
- Magnetism and Space Weather, 1 - 2 pm, Navy Pier, Rm 301/303;
- Earth and Space Science Share-a-thon, 2:30 - 3:30 pm, Navy Pier,
Grand Ballroom.
November 11, 2005
- What's Below the Surface?, 9:30 - 10:30 am, Navy Pier, Rm 207;
- Geomagnetism, Electricity, and Space Weather, 1 - 2 pm, Navy Pier,
Rm 310/312;
- Climate and Global Change: A Toolkit for Teaching, 2:30 - 3:30,
Rm 310/312;
- WALLS (Water, Air, Land, Life, Space) Workshop, 4 - 5 pm, Navy
Pier, Rm 202.
Find out more about our workshops, and what we'll be sharing there, at our
Fall 2005 Chicago NSTA Schedule.
Roberta Johnson
Windows to the Universe Principal Investigator
Jennifer's Corner
Many teachers start the year with a study of rocks and minerals. Use our Layers of Rock activity which has students build a model of sedimentary rock layers. Like the rest of our activities, we've tried to use very inexpensive materials to get at essential science principles. This activity is also aligned with the National Science Standards (particularly Structure of the Earth System, Earth's History, and Developing Scientific Inquiry Skills). Check it out!
Lisa's Corner
Get your students analyzing data and drawing conclusions about how climate has changed since the last Ice Age with our Paleoclimates and Pollen classroom activity. This classroom actvity is ideal for the middle-school level and is relavant to the Earth History component of Content Standard D and the Ecosystems component of Content Standard C. As an extension to the Paleoclimates and Pollen activity, have students visit the Climate and Global Change section of Windows to the Universe for more information about Earth’s climate system.
Julia's Corner
We can now send you our newsletter in Spanish!
To change your newsletter options or other registration information , please go to our Members Area. Don't forget to leave comments and tell us what you'd like us to add to our members-only area in the future.
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Randy's Corner
Earth will have a close encounter with the planet Mars just before Halloween
this year. Once every 26 months Earth and Mars draw near to each other, and
Mars takes on the appearance of a brilliant red star blazing in the night sky.
Astronomers call such a close approach a "planetary opposition" because the
planet is directly opposite the Sun in the sky as viewed from Earth. Since
Mars will be relatively close to Earth at opposition, and since the side of
Mars facing Earth will be entirely lit (like a full moon), the red planet will
be especially bright for the weeks leading up to and following the opposition
on October 30th. To learn more about this astronomical Halloween treat, check
out the following pages on Windows to the Universe:
Planetary oppositions supply "teachable moments" related to Earth & Space
Science concepts. Some of the specific National Science Education Content Standards
you might want to touch upon include:
- Objects in the sky - The sun, moon, stars, clouds, birds, and airplanes
all have properties, locations, and movements that can be observed and
described.
- Changes in earth and sky - Objects in the sky have patterns of movement.
The sun, for example, appears to move across the sky in the same way
every day, but its path changes slowly over the seasons. The moon moves
across the sky on a daily basis much like the sun. The observable shape
of the moon changes from day to day in a cycle that lasts about a month.
- Earth in the solar system:
- The earth is the third planet from the sun in a system that includes
the moon, the sun, eight other planets and their moons, and smaller
objects, such as asteroids and comets.
- Most objects
in the solar system are in regular and predictable motion. Those
motions explain such phenomena as the day, the year, phases
of the moon, and eclipses.
- Gravity is the force that keeps planets
in orbit around the sun and governs the rest of the motion in the
solar system.
Marina's Corner
What does our moon have to do with tides? According to Maori and Maya mythology, a lot!
Check them out!
Maori,
Maya.
Coming up this month!
On October 17th, there will be a partial lunar eclipse, are you ready?
Take a closer look at The moon,
Lunar eclipse, and
Our Moon image gallery.
Not only will these links lead you to great information about Earth's satellite, the Moon (addressing the National Science Standard about Objects in the Sky), they will show you cultural connections that will be of great interest to your students (while addressing National Standards of Science in Personal and Social Perspectives).
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