NASA Wants Your Input

Yesterday NASA issued an invitation to vote online for the most important contribution the space agency has made to exploring Earth and improving the way we live on our home planet.

NASA is conducting the survey as part of its celebration of Earth Day. Vote now - the poll closes next Tuesday, April 21.

NASA has selected 10 candidates for consideration as the greatest achievements about planet Earth, including diagnosing Earth's ozone layer, predicting food shortages, and tracking ecosystems worldwide. Poll results will be announced on NASA's website on Earth Day, April 22.

To cast your votes, click here.
For more information about Earth Day and NASA, click here.

Earth Science Week 2009 - Sun Shadows Project

Help your students become “citizen scientists” by taking part in an international research project. The Sun Shadows Project is looking for help in studying the relationship between the seasons and the length of shadows.

Beginning with a science experiment at James Monroe Middle School in Albuquerque, N.M., in October 2007, students hypothesized that their shadows would be longer in winter than in summer. The study has grown since then, using data from both of Earth’s poles and many locations in between. Last year, the project students presented initial results at the American Geophysical Union’s Annual Conference.

The Sun Shadows Project students are looking for fellow scientists to measure shadows and submit findings online. Click here.

Because the Sun Shadows Project offers a great way to begin “understanding climate,” this year’s Earth Science Week (Oct. 11-17) theme. Click here to learn more.

Can Earthquakes Be Predicted?

USGS has a new Podcast on their site titled, "Can We Predict Earthquakes?"
Click here to download the mp3.
Might be worth listening to with your class and having them write a response.




Here is their Podcast on the magnitude 6.3 earthquake in Italy last week.
(Click the above image to get info about this quake!)
Click here to download the mp3.





Also another neat USGS Podcast about the 2008 Illinois Earthquake.
(Click the above image to get info about this quake!)
Click here to download the mp3.

USGS VIDEO PODCASTS

What a great way to start the day! A video podcast from the USGS! Check out their podcast website and pick your topic.

Project on your BigScreen or Whiteboard. Run a week of these as Bellwork. They can be required to write five interesting facts down for Bellwork points.

USGS also produces Audio Podcasts covering great topics which would be worth using as well. On the same page.

And the BEST PART? They can be downloaded straight to your computer to be saved for future use. What fun!

Earth Science Week 2009

Earth Science Week this year will be October 12 - 18, 2009. Not too early to start planning!

“Understanding Climate,” the theme of Earth Science Week 2009, will promote scientific understanding of a timely, vital topic: Earth’s climate.

Click here to visit the Earth Science Week website. You can sign up for a newsletter, order materials to celebrate Earth Science Week, and even check out a great list of Teaching Climate links. NOTE: They don't have 2009 Materials up yet, but 2008 Materials might be worth check out, too!

Don't forget, Marcia's Science Teaching Ideas website also has some great ideas for Teaching Climate!