This week’s blog focuses on Earth Day, April 22. There is no news article accompanying today’s blog. Instead, we provide you with an assortment of resources related to Earth Day. Do you know how Earth Day started? You can find the answer to that question and more in The History of Earth Day by Gaylord Nelson. For instance, it might surprise your students to learn that there has not always been an Earth Day. The first Earth Day occurred in 1970.
Your own perception of Earth Day might need some updating too. It’s no longer just about being aware of what stresses our environment, refraining from littering and picking up trash, or planting a tree. There now exists, for example, a Green Schools initiative consisting of four programs: healthy foods, curriculum, policy and civics, and green facilities. Consider how you and your students might get involved with one of these programs in order to promote environmentally friendly schools.
EarthDay.gov is a treasure-trove for the classroom teacher. Scroll down the page for a list of linked topics, including acid rain, climate change, drinking water
, endangered species, estuaries, ground water, invasive species, National Youth Service Day (April 20-22), and trash: reduce, reuse, recycle.
Want to know what Earth Day-related events are occurring near you? You can enter search terms or search by date or location at http://ww2.earthday.net/search/node.
Here are some additional resources from the National Science Digital Library Middle School Portal related to Earth Day and environmental education: Science Themed Days and Weeks; Why Earth Science?; Global Learning and Observations to Benefit the Environment (GLOBE); and AAAS Atlas of Population and Environment.
We Need Your Help
We want and need your ideas, suggestions, and observations. What would you like to know more about? What questions have your students asked? Do you have a favorite activity that you would like to share? We invite you to share with us and other readers by posting your comments. Please check back each week for our newest post or download the RSS feed for this blog. You can also request email notification when new content is posted (see right navigation bar).
Let us know what you think and tell us how we can serve you better. We want your feedback on all of the NSDL Middle School Portal science publications. Email us at msp@msteacher.org.
[…] Mary LeFever wrote an interesting post today onHere’s a quick excerpt […]
How about spending Earth Day getting your young gardeners (and those young at heart), excited about plants and nature? I thought your young gardeners would enjoy an indoor gardening adventure, growing the TickleMe Plant (Mimosa pudica). Recently featured by the National Gardening Associations Kids Store, http://www.kidsgardeningstore.com/14-1030.html
If you want to give your young gardeners an experience they will never forget, consider having them grow a TickleMe Plant. This is the plant that will close its leaves and lower its branches when you tickle it. They sprout in days and can be grown indoors any time of year. Just Google TickleMe Plants or go to http://www.TickleMePlant.com for seeds and growing kits. This plant has turned many kids into plant and nature lovers. I know, because I grow TickleMe Plants in my classroom. Your children may never look at plants in the same way and neither will you!
Happy Growing,
Mark
Science Teacher