Climate Change: VII

Can we really escape from the effects of climate change?  It is hard to imagine that we know we are damamging the Earth but several people are doing nothing.  Those who are trying to make a change, is it enough?  If we look at history global climate change is how many animals and people were able to migrate around the world.  So is global climate change bad?  I believe, the rate we are causing the climate to change will haunt us in the near future.

Explain:
Did you know it takes 100 years for CO2 to decompose?  I didn't.  This module really made me think about the dump here.   Recycling was a part of daily life in California.  I think I went through withdrawals when I came here and I did not have to seperate my trash.  Then I took everything to the dump.  There is so much waste.  I am learning the many of the students see no reason to recycle it is just easier to get a new one.  So when I looked at the carbon cycle I wondered what kind of damage we are doing in my small little village of Old Harbor.  Will my recycling program really make a difference?

Bear cubs at the Old Harbor Dump. 

This lesson really made think about how the changes are effecting the people of Alaska.  I would like to see the tribe here brainstorm the climate change and the impact on our community.   I really appreciated seeing the Inuit people discuss their observations.  I hope to see more scientists gather information from Native Observations. 

Explore:
There is so much to explore and apply in this lesson.  There is biology, chemistry, astronomy, physics, a little bit of everything.  I will definitely use the interactive media to  help the students understand the science behind Carbon.  Especially the periodic table media.  I would have loved to use that particular activity when my students did their element project.  The mystery element is a great way to help student understand the organization of the periodic table. 

I would like to use the Inuit Video to help students create their own brainstorm about changes in our environment here on Kodiak Island.  This video would give them examples of the types of observations they need to think about, then the students can apply them to our local area. 


Extend:
Currently, I use FOSS to teach science.  I could see the Chemistry section of this module being combined with the Chemical Interactions Unit of FOSS.  The videos are a prefect connection to the activities in the unit.  The Population and Ecosystems Unit studies the Coral Reef Ecosytems of Puerto Rico and Florida.  The video on the Coral Reef helps students see the delicate balance we need on Earth and connects to FOSS unit.  Last year, my students struggled with understanding of the spectrum when looking out into the night sky.  The spectrum videos and interactive media would really support this activity so they can understand what they are seeing in the colored bands of light.  This would help bring the students toward the understanding of Universe and lead to discussion on creation. 

I really appreciated the various theories on creation.  Evolution is a hard topic for student to understand the videos in this module can show another perspective to them based on science.


3 Colleagues:
Ernestine always seems to relate the science back to the culture.  I love her closing line about learning.

If you want to check out additional teacher resources; be sure so read Janet's Post. 

Kathy shares incredible pictures and insight about how she personally saw the impact of Global Climate Change.