Contents:
Introduction
The class
Discussion
Discussion sections
Curriculum downloads
Student feedback
Contact us
Our Curriculum
Below is a list of the subjects we covered and a brief description of the discussion section activity for each. Clicking the links below each description will download a PDF of our curriculum for that secton (some files are larger than others due to images). To see photos of Landslides and Bolides in action, click here. Each section's curriculum follows the same format. First is a Materials/Prep page, which outlines what is needed for the section and what preparation needs to be done before the section begins. Second is an Outline page, which offers some basic introductory information about the subject, an overview of the activity, detailed instructions for the activity, and a list of suggested prompts for discussion. Following this are any other necessary files, such as student instructions, data sheets, and so forth. Several sections require large maps or other files which cannot be PDFed; these are provided through separate links.
Earthquakes - Students read newspaper and journal articles about the political and economic problems surrounding a federal proposal to require states to insure all public buildings. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (16 k) Volcanoes - Students calculate recurrence intervals for six Ecuadorian volcanoes and use these and other data to rank the hazard levels for these volcanoes. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (1.2 MB) Ecuador maps (2.5 MB) Hurricanes - Students plot tracking data for eight major Atlantic hurricanes. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (2.1 MB) Plotting Map (1.2 MB) Nor'easters - Students listen to a traditional folk song from Prince Edward Island depicting a devastating shipwreck and compare to events depicted in the book and movie "The Perfect Storm". (Note: This activity was not well recieved by students and so is not included). Land/mudslides - Students model landslides using wooden ramps, sand, and Monopoly houses. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (8 k) Floods - Students graph precipitation and discharge data from Vermont rivers. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (1.3 MB) Avalanches - Students practice using avalanche transcievers to find buried victims. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (284 k) Tsunamis - Students observe and analyze four historic artistic depictions of a tsunami that devastated Lisbon, Portugal, in 1755. We cannot provide the images here for copyright reasons, but they can be obtained free of charge from the Kozak Collection of UC Berkely. We used images KZ103, KZ112, KZ 130, and KZ 142. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (8 k) Bolides - Students model bolide impacts using rocks shot into trays of flour and colored sand. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (8 k) Climate Change - Students create a work of art depicting some facts or opinions related to human-induced climate change (assigned before section). Students present art in section. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (8 k) Nuclear Isssues - Students write a short research paper about a collection of photography depicting the nuclear age (assigned before section). Students present research in section. DOWNLOADS: Curriculum (112 k) |
