Breakout Edu Live Events

Breakout Edu school kits are great team building  activities.   The games are designed for groups to solve puzzles and challenges,  and eventually get the physical cases open.   Right now the company is providing daily puzzles and a chance to win prizes for classrooms and homes.   These are short and fun topics that families can engage in. 

https://www.breakoutedu.com/

Idaho Codes and IPTV Partnership

I am copying the email/post we received from our local school district.  I am grateful for all the STEM opportunities that our families can pursue.   It looks like they are offering free curriculum to the first 1000 students that sign up.  Maybe that will be lifted during the stay at home orders.  

IDAHO CODES
Idaho Codes is a collaboration between the State of Idaho, Idaho Technology Council, local businesses, and Code to Success that offers an online web development program for the students in Idaho. By introducing computer science principles that can be learned at home or in the classroom, we prepare students to work remotely with the skills to embrace the digital economy.

Idaho Codes provides access to all Jr. High and High School students during COVID-19 and beyond with the mission to utilize coding as a relevant skill for the challenges of tomorrow. Idaho Codes is opening a pathway for students in Idaho to improve their future.

http://www.idahocodes.org/?fbclid=IwAR3kcwXuTYEkfVSnJcoSEwJ5MckQpiSG5x4dKfmdyAysqFML3pgl64ubPhE

Easter Eggs and Natural Dyes

There are so many ways to bring science into your homes, especially during holidays.  This fun graphic explains how you can color Easter eggs with natural dyes!   Hold the line by following guidelines about social distancing!

Signs of Spring and Journey North

This morning on a short walk (nearby, with just my dogs), I noticed tulips and daffodils starting to bloom.   Their bright colors reminded me of one of my all-time favorite sites for Citizen Science.  Journey North is a wonderful resource that focuses on migratory behaviors of animals large and small (literally gray whales to hummingbirds), and plant life cycles as well.  It has a fabulous collection of maps, reporting prompts, and activities for families, classes, and communities.  You can report when you see tulips emerging and blooming, butterflies migrating through your neighborhood, or birds of prey returning to nesting sites.   It teaches geography, global climate and planting zones, and all kinds of lessons in migration.   There is a section for educators and that is all of us!

https://journeynorth.org/
https://maps.journeynorth.org/map/?map=tulips-spring&year=2020

This picture was taken a few years ago...it's a beautiful day today!!

CSI Herrett Center Reptile Revue

I have loved the virtual museum, zoo, and aquarium tours streaming to our laptops.  I think the Georgia Aquarium set the bar high when they broadcast their penguins out for a walk to visit all the other exhibits.  For the time being,  we are being invited to places large and small to learn about unique ecosystems and species.

As I checked the Georgia Aquarium site today for updates, I found a delightful reference and invitation to practice Mindfulness while watching some of their webcams.  Yes, please!!

https://www.georgiaaquarium.org/mindfulness/

At CSI we have a great team that manages the Herrett Center and Centennial Observatory.  Tomorrow, they are hosting their popular Reptile Revue remotely.  Search @HerrettCenter for their Facebook Live event tomorrow at 4 PM MST. 

Teachers and parent-teachers, I want to point out the Educator Guide on their website.  I look forward to visiting again soon!   https://herrett.csi.edu/index.asp

Letterboxing while you socially distance...scavenger hunt hiking!

I have been an avid letterboxer for over 10 years.  I have dragged family, friends, and strangers on these deliberate hunts in all kinds of places.  Sometimes it has been a wild goose chase (in Lake Tahoe and on the shore of Puget Sound, and southeast Alaska to name a few memorable hunts) but most of the time, we find a hidden box right where the clues lead us.  The small containers have a stamp and a logbook for finders to document their success.  These boxes are hidden in plain site all over the world, and I have loved discovering new places as I follow the directions.  They are placed on tops of mountains, and underneath park benches.  They are NOT supposed to be left in national parks or other restricted areas, but they are near entrances in West Yellowstone and other popular tourist destinations. 

You can find clues using a variety of apps and websites, but I stick with
https://www.atlasquest.com/
http://letterboxing.org/

Look up your area and see if anyone has hidden a box to find.  Geocaching is related, but I like the no-tech features of letterboxing.  As you safely explore the world around you, enjoy a new hobby!  It is so fun!

Let's celebrate Dr. Jane Goodall!

It's April 3, and Dr. Goodall is celebrating her 86th birthday!  I have posted about her before, but this year is special.  A few months ago on a quick trip home to Texas, I was able to visit the Grapevine High School Ecology Center, which we originally built during my senior year of '88-'89.  The dedicated teachers recently assigned to the Center have great things planned to restore the space to the primary purpose of outdoor, experiential learning. 

During my trip, I was able to locate, scan, and share most of the original pictures and documents from our work in the early years of the project.  These can now be accessed by the current set of students who will continue our efforts.

I am grateful for the influence of my parents who made it possible for me to meet Dr. Goodall in 1985.   After the tireless work of my mentor teacher, Sherri Steward, we were honored to have Dr. Goodall dedicate the Ecology Center in 1989.  She returned to support our school again in 1992 when the students were ready to celebrate an expansion. 

Dr. Goodall is a global influence today, even as she remains safely isolated at her home in England during the COVID 19 pandemic.  She remains active, passionate, and driven in much the same way that led her to Africa in the 1960s to change the world!

Seek out the people that have made a difference in the world.  They are real, and sometimes you get to meet them!   Sometimes they are the heroes in your own community.  Reach out, say thank you, and commit to making your little corner of the world a better place too!

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/03/25/science/jane-goodall-coronavirus.html

STEM Kits that are Out of this World!

I don't have any stock in this company, but it's been one of my go-to gifts for family members for years.  KiwiCo makes monthly STEM kits for all ages, and each box comes with a building activity or all the simple tools to do science, engineering, and math. 

https://www.kiwico.com/

Today I received a few examples from my niece who uses these kits to support her curious children.  The materials are copyrighted, of course, so I will just include a few snapshots of some of the experiments that families can do together. 

KiwiCo has added a new section for all the parent-teachers and supporters leading the charge at home.  I love that they have included free resources for families about health, resilience, and learning. 

https://www.kiwico.com/kids-at-home

I grew up on Ranger Rick and Highlights magazines, and there was something so exciting about receiving the new issues in the mail.  Many years have passed, but it's still an awesome time to have an invitation to discover arrive in your mailbox every month!

Online learning, Guest Speakers, and the Genetic Science Learning Center

This semester,  I am teaching a "Science in Society" general education course for the College of Southern Idaho.  The purpose of the course is to develop a strong sense of connection between a variety of disciplines, including natural sciences, oral and written communication, social sciences, and the humanities.  We will also uncover and correct common misconceptions that impact our decision making and perception of the world. 

Each week we cover a specific scientific discipline and relate it to our daily lives.  Along with every other teacher in America, I moved my class to online delivery using primarily ZOOM sessions.   And of course, I modified the scope of topics to include the ongoing impact of COVID 19 and infectious disease prevention and treatments.

Yesterday, as I mentioned in my previous post, we also had an earthquake in the central mountains of Idaho, so it was great to hear from our local Geology instructor during our class discussion.  Remote learning is a challenge for all of us, but it does allow for new opportunities.

I shared one of my favorite teaching resources from the University of Utah Genetics Learning Center.  Both sites...the learn.genetics.edu and teach.genetics.edu are full of interactive resources and virtual labs for all ages.  For an at-home activity, my students can do the Family Traits Trivia Game.  We can learn a lot about our families while we spend so much unexpected time together!

https://learn.genetics.utah.edu/

https://teach.genetics.utah.edu/