If you saw a newspaper or the news on TV at all last week, you must have heard about the catastrophic bushfires in southern Australia. Most were clustered 50 - 100 km northeast of Melbourne, capital city of the state of Victoria; yet there were other fires scattered across a wider area as well. The most recent stories from the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) report at least 200 persons died. Many more lost their homes and are displaced. The recent reports also state that the person suspected of arson in starting some of the fires has been arrested.

Of course wildlife was impacted as well. Australia has a number of unique species, many of which are endangered, including Koala. One blogger reports over a million native animals have died. Its is difficult to say if and when the environment will recover, given the current drought.

So why should we care? It’s half a world away and it was a freak accident, after all. Not so fast. Some recognize the fires as part of a trend of more severe weather events associated with climate change. The same BBC story that reported on the death toll in the Australian bushfires also reported severe flooding in New South Wales and Queensland, shutting down thoroughfares and isolating towns.

How to Turn This News Event into an Inquiry-Based, Standards-Related Science Lesson

Did your students hear news reports about the Australian bushfires and see some of the associated pictures? If not, you can access a variety of related stories from http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/asia-pacific/7894011.stm. What are your students’ reactions? Ask for their thoughts: Are the fires likely to recur or was this an isolated event? What accounts for the ferocity of these fires as compared to all others before them?

How about the early February tornadoes in Oklahoma — the most severe in the state’s history? Is that another isolated event, or part of an emerging trend?

What is the relationship between climate change and weather events? This is a good opportunity to help students discriminate between weather and climate, while developing a sense of their relatedness. The following resources from the National Science Digital Library Middle School Portal will be helpful: Oceans, Climate and Weather; El Niño and His Sister La Niña; Polar Bears and Climate Change; and The Powerful Punch of a Hurricane.

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