English/Language Arts
Explore lead sentences - opening with a question...and an answer!
Author Patent does something very clever in the opening line of this Minute. Identify which students are hearing about the “butterfly effect” for the first time in this Minute. Would the opening have hooked them if Author Patent had ended her first sentence after the word “effect” instead of explaining what the phrase meant? Have your students try one of these out for themselves. “Have you ever heard of _______, {define here}?” In writing, this is known as an appositive. Have your students hunt for examples in their reading and bring them to class to share. Once they are comfortable finding and naming appositives, have them try it out in their own writing.
Explore second person voice
This Minute utilizes the second person voice, a casual choice where the author speaks directly to the reader. Be sure to point this out and discuss the benefits and potential challenges with your readers and writers!
Social Studies
Explore the history of the US National Park system
Yellowstone was the first national park established in the US. Have students explore US history through the national parks. What else was happening in 1872 when Congress established Yellowstone as a public park? When did that morph into a National Park system? How many parks have been added over the years, and how big is the area covered by national parks? How many people are needed to maintain the national park system? What is the value of having a national park system?
STEM
Explore ecology and ecosystems
Use this Minute to introduce or reinforce the idea of ecosystems. Look from the broadest - freshwater, marine and terrestrial, to biomes all the way down to food webs. Investigate how ecosystems work and explore the things that make an ecosystem stable...or not. What kinds of things can disturb an ecosystem? Are disturbances always negative? How do humans intentionally and unintentionally change ecosystems through their behavior?
Explore native landscaping and biodiversity
There is a movement afoot in this country to consider planting native plants in your home landscape design. Take this opportunity to explore the ramifications of invasive species in both the plant and animal kingdoms. University of Delaware professor Doug Tallamy has been beating the biodiversity drum for years.
Explore wildfires and droughts
Wildfires and droughts are two examples of natural disturbances of ecosystem equilibrium. Have students explore the causes and effects of these disturbances. Are they always bad?
Explore physics - chaos theory, the butterfly effect, and why you cannot predict the weather long term!
Challenge students to find other examples of the butterfly effect, part of chaos theory. How can this affect our ability to make predictions about natural phenomenon like the weather?
Research Skills
Explore National Parks online
The National Park service maintains an extensive website that lends itself to learning about nature, history and more. Take some time to explore it with your students or on your own - there are plenty of good lesson plans, searchable by subject area, grade levels and standards. Make sure you check it out.
Explore lead sentences - opening with a question...and an answer!
Author Patent does something very clever in the opening line of this Minute. Identify which students are hearing about the “butterfly effect” for the first time in this Minute. Would the opening have hooked them if Author Patent had ended her first sentence after the word “effect” instead of explaining what the phrase meant? Have your students try one of these out for themselves. “Have you ever heard of _______, {define here}?” In writing, this is known as an appositive. Have your students hunt for examples in their reading and bring them to class to share. Once they are comfortable finding and naming appositives, have them try it out in their own writing.
Explore second person voice
This Minute utilizes the second person voice, a casual choice where the author speaks directly to the reader. Be sure to point this out and discuss the benefits and potential challenges with your readers and writers!
Social Studies
Explore the history of the US National Park system
Yellowstone was the first national park established in the US. Have students explore US history through the national parks. What else was happening in 1872 when Congress established Yellowstone as a public park? When did that morph into a National Park system? How many parks have been added over the years, and how big is the area covered by national parks? How many people are needed to maintain the national park system? What is the value of having a national park system?
STEM
Explore ecology and ecosystems
Use this Minute to introduce or reinforce the idea of ecosystems. Look from the broadest - freshwater, marine and terrestrial, to biomes all the way down to food webs. Investigate how ecosystems work and explore the things that make an ecosystem stable...or not. What kinds of things can disturb an ecosystem? Are disturbances always negative? How do humans intentionally and unintentionally change ecosystems through their behavior?
Explore native landscaping and biodiversity
There is a movement afoot in this country to consider planting native plants in your home landscape design. Take this opportunity to explore the ramifications of invasive species in both the plant and animal kingdoms. University of Delaware professor Doug Tallamy has been beating the biodiversity drum for years.
Explore wildfires and droughts
Wildfires and droughts are two examples of natural disturbances of ecosystem equilibrium. Have students explore the causes and effects of these disturbances. Are they always bad?
Explore physics - chaos theory, the butterfly effect, and why you cannot predict the weather long term!
Challenge students to find other examples of the butterfly effect, part of chaos theory. How can this affect our ability to make predictions about natural phenomenon like the weather?
Research Skills
Explore National Parks online
The National Park service maintains an extensive website that lends itself to learning about nature, history and more. Take some time to explore it with your students or on your own - there are plenty of good lesson plans, searchable by subject area, grade levels and standards. Make sure you check it out.
© Karen Sterling, 2018 - May be used for educational purposes without written permission