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Dawn
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I'm writing our 06-07 ed. plan today and I'm stuck on science. 
We'd like to cover earth science this year (rocks, space, weather) but this branch of science is not my strong suit and I'm drawing blanks. So I'm wondering what resources you all can recommend ...
They (meaning the School System) like to know what I plan to use and *I* need good materials to help me plan out our year! So far I do have:
Golden Guide: Geology
Night Sky magazine
Stone Wall Secrets
We also have big science encyclopedias (Kingfisher, Usborne) but I'm looking for earth science specific materials (books, online, kits, *anything*  ) ...
Thanks for any help!
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lapazfarm
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Stone Wall Secrets is great!
Earth science is one of my favorite things-so much to learn!
Here are a few links and I will get right back to you with other resources:
Volcano World
Smithsonian-Dynamic Earthvery cool.
Rocks for Kidsthis one is excellent.
NASA Welcome to the Planets
I Know That-Science labs has some earth science related labs.
Virtual Tour of the Sun
Reeko's Mad Scientist Lab fun general science.
Science News for Kids-Earth Science Archives
Explorit Science Center
EPA Ozone info nice explanation of ground-level vs tropospheric ozone.
USGS the "mother lode" of earth science info.
I will be right back with other resources!
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lapazfarm
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I don't know how you feel about ready-made curriculum, but ds and I used this last year and very much enjoyed it-learned alot too.
Great Science Adventures-Earth's Landforms and Surface features
This is a science curriculum put out by Dinah Zike where you end up making a lapbook (and alot of other stuff). Very thorough and everything you need is right there in the book, though there are lots of suggestions for additional reading, websites, etc to go along.
If you are interested in it after reading the website description then I can give you some feedback on what we liked and what we didn't. I will say that there is ALOT of cutting and pasting and coloring involved and if your ds like that, then this may be a good fit. If not...
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lapazfarm
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Another good resource:
Office of Naval Research-oceanography great oceanography info. Also check out the link to space science resources.
Alaska Volcano Observatory
live volcano webcam here
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Theresa
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Dawn
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Theresa, thank you so much for all these ideas and links!!  I'll be checking them out asap!
I like the sound of the Dinah Zike book! Ds11 is not a big fan of cutting and pasting, but ds(almost 7) is - as am I  . Also, my weekly coop has been trying to do a lapbook project and this may a nice project to work on together this fall ...
I thought of another resource. Keeping in mind I will be doing earth science with both of my older two boys (11 and 7 in August) ... I thoughtOne Small Square: Cave would be fun especially if we combine it with a trip to some cave around here (I think there are some in western MA or possibly southern NH).
That leads me to more earth science questions  ... what are fun topics within this branch of science? I know in general there's astronomy (stars), geology (rocks), meteorology (weather) and fossils (paleontology?) ... then the cave book popped out at me and I thought hey, that fits in there somewhere, right? And speaking of Stone Wall Secrets ~ we live in New England where there are oooold stone walls everywhere. It would be fun to look into those, even the history. Building with stone through the ages ...
Now I'm getting excited - earth science is starting to look fun! 
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lapazfarm
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Cool (guaranteed boy-friendly) earth science topics...
Volcanos
Earthquakes
Extreme weather-hurricanes, tornados, etc.
glaciers
oceanography-deep sea trenches, vents, etc.
sink holes (goes along with caves)
diamonds and other gemstones, crystals and geodes
meteors and comets
supernovas and black holes
panning for gold
extreme environments (hottest, coldest, highest, driest, deepest, biggest etc)
Anyway, those are the topics that seem to interest my ds and the boys I taught in classrooms as well.
Also wanted to mention that ds and I really LOVE this book:Readers Digest Pathfinders: Rocks and Minerals It has fantastic pictures, graphics, text and ideas for experiments and activities. High browse factor.
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MaryM
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Dawn wrote:
| Now I'm getting excited - earth science is starting to look fun! |
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Good!!! Earth Science is tons of fun. All through junior high and early high school I vascillated between wanting to be an astronomer, geologist, or archeologist (which is not really an earth science but did combine paleontogy and history).
Dawn wrote:
| That leads me to more earth science questions ... what are fun topics within this branch of science? I know in general there's astronomy (stars), geology (rocks), meteorology (weather) and fossils (paleontology?) ... |
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Dawn, at one point this year I was just thinking about the same question in terms of how could I classify all the topic under earth science into basic general categories as there is so much there in addition to what you mentioned. I haven't found quite the list I'm looking for. ( and this often happens to me - while I'm working on a reply someone else posts - so I'm somewhat repeating what Theresa just posted but in a perspective of how the sciences fit together, while Theresa's is all the fun topics that fall into the science categories).
Atmospheric science is the broader category that includes meteorolgy as well as climatology.
There are the water sciences like:
Oceanography (ocean motion/currents, ocean zones)
Hydrology (water and water cycle - ground water,rivers, etc.)
Limnology (lakes and ponds)
And geology has so many sub-categories besides rocks. Paleontolgy would generally be included in the broader category of geology. Other geologic topics include physical geology (landforms), plate tectonics, volcanology, seismology (earthquakes) glaciology (historic geology), soil science (formation, weathering, erosion), mineralogy, petroleum geology, sedimentology to name just a few of the very specific sciences.
Speleology (study of caves) is its own separate earth science so you are right on target there. Don't forget to get some cool headlights we just got the kids for a night hike.
Geography study is usually included in earth science study since it looks at earth's surface and mapping of physical features and land forms/topography.
Astronomy is an interesting science - it's not technically earth science but is almost always studied with earth science curriculums because the earth is very much influenced by its orbit, the moon, sun, and place in the solar system. One of my favorite resources for astronomy/space study is The Way the Universe Works.
I'll second the USGS site as one of the best resources out there for info on this topic. They have so much on-line. There is so much it is almost overwhelming to navigate. I find new things all the time and "get lost" following links. On their site you can find specific info about your state and projects there in the "About Us" section. This is the link specifically to their education pages.
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Katie
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What wonderful resources. I've been drooling over my Michael Olaf catalog, thinking how much ds would enjoy some of the earth sciences products they have - rock matching sets, charts, sticker books etc. Some of these or something similar might add some hands-on fun and learning.
I'll have to save this thread for next year.
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MaryM
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And Dawn, have you used the Janice Van Cleave books before? They are great for that age range - very easy to follow experiments and great explanations. She has lots of earth science and astronomy topic books in her extensive works.
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aussieannie
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Hi Dawn,
Dawn wrote:
| We'd like to cover earth science this year (rocks, space, weather) |
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Well I have three books that I highly recommend, on exactly the same subjects you plan to study, they are from the Creation science people (protestants) but there is nothing offensive or worrisome in them - suitablity would depend on where you views lay in the creation/evolution debate.
The Astronomy Book
The Geology Book
The Weather Book
I wouldn't want to start another debate about this creation/evolution subject , so just disregard this posting if they are not suitable at all.
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Dawn
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I am so blessed to have this Forum!! Thank you all for sharing your ideas on earth science. I am feeling much more oriented and prepared to pull together a fun and interesting year of study. I am busily bookmarking sites and cross-checking the library for the books you all suggested.
Mary, thanks for taking the time to break down all the categories, and Theresa too for pointing out the boy-friendly topics ~ deep sea trenches, glaciers and extreme weather ~ very cool stuff. I am thinking a look at global warming and its effects on our weather would be a timely and interesting subject as well.
There really is so much to explore!
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Oh, and I wanted to mention that part of the reason we'll be studying earth science this year - other than the fact that we haven't done so (in depth) in a while - is that it goes well with our history this year, The Middle Ages.
For a few years we used Story of the World and I remember reading in The Well Trained Mind how certain periods in history match up well with certain branches of science. For example, during ancient times man was coming to understand more about life science - human anatomy and the like. And in the middle ages there were discoveries being made in the field of earth science ... I'm kind of talking out of my hat because I can't locate my copy of WTM, but I thought this was a neat concept - looking at the "science" of the middle ages. Now I just need to pinpoint what those earth science discoveries were! Astronomy, gravity ... I'm guessing. Does this ring a bell with anyone or am I remembering things all wrong? (Completely possible!)
Hopefully I will put my hands on my copy of WTM today and will post more about this idea.
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lapazfarm
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Dawn,
From my readings, great advances in earth science were for the most part made in the 1600's through about 1800. This was the time period of Newton's descriptions of gravity, the orbits of the planets,and optics (among many other great things), when the size and weight of the earth were determined (Cavendish and others),as well as the distance from the sun, when Captain Cook mapped large portions of the earth and observed the transits of Venus, and Franklin experimented with electricity. If we end the middle ages around 1500 or so, the only real earth scientists you will run into would be Copernicus (works published 1543)and DaVinci(1492-1519) and that would really be the Renaissance period.
In my opinion the middle ages are more associated with a particular aspect of physics-mechanics. This is the age of trebuchets and catapults, flying buttresses and other advances in architecture. Not exactly what you had in mind, but to tie in with the middle ages a study of simple machines and building trebuchets is always fun, especially if you let them build a big one!
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Dawn
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lapazfarm wrote:
Dawn,
From my readings, great advances in earth science were for the most part made in the 1600's through about 1800. |
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You are right, Theresa, earth science seems more a factor at the time of the Renaissance. And I finally found the WTM book. The way they describe the connection is: "We divide the four years of science into subjects that roughly correspond to the history periods ... Second graders collect facts about the earth and sky, a division designed to go along with the medieval-early Renaissance period, when Copernicus and Tycho Brahe observed the heavens."
Since we're planning to work through the years 400-1600, it will take us a while to get to that end of the medieval period! But I like the idea of catapults and flying buttresses ~ as I'm sure will my boys! I did find resource lists for both the middle ages and earth science in WTM that look helpful. Now what I need to do is figure out what *order* in which to study the topics - can you tell I just love all this planning?
Actually, not to stray from earth science too far, but I thought it would be interesting to look at herbalism during the middle ages as well as the development of Mary gardens (flowers, herbs), along with Marian devotion ...
I'm getting off topic, but thank you again Theresa for your thoughts on this ~ I hope you don't mind if I pick your brain all year long! 
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Dawn
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MaryM wrote:
Dawn wrote:
| That leads me to more earth science questions ... what are fun topics within this branch of science? I know in general there's astronomy (stars), geology (rocks), meteorology (weather) and fossils (paleontology?) ... |
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Dawn, at one point this year I was just thinking about the same question in terms of how could I classify all the topic under earth science into basic general categories as there is so much there in addition to what you mentioned. I haven't found quite the list I'm looking for. |
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I'm reading back over this thread and jotting down notes. Mary (or Theresa, or anyone ), I know I'm getting very detail-oriented, but how would you present earth science to your children, that is, in what order would you place the subjects? I was thinking of beginning with earth (formation of, core, structure)and moving outwards, ending the year with astronomy, but then wondered about looking at the seasons - maybe astronomy would best be covered in the winter and say, geology in the fall when we can go looking for interesting rocks, soil and old stone walls.
I'm over-thinking this aren't I? But this part is so much fun!
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lapazfarm
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Ok, I think I would teach it in this order:
1. Earth's place in the solar system, it's motions (day, year, seasons, etc)
2. The rest of the solar system and astronomy topics(the moon, planets, comets, supernova, etc).
3. The composition of the earth and how it changes form. (earth's layers, tectonic plates, sea floor spreading, volcanos, earthquakes, glaciers)
4. The rock cycle (igneous, metamorphic, sedimentary, rocks and minerals, erosion, deposition, etc)
5. Longitude and latitude, compass, continents, landforms.
6. The oceans-waves, tides, etc.
7. The hydrologic cycle
8. atmosphere and weather (incl. global warming, extreme weather, etc)
I think this way one concept builds upon the previous in a way that makes sense (at least to me). Maybe others can find different logical paths, but this would work as a framework.
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JuliaT
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Dawn, you have had some great book recommendations but I wanted to add another book. We will be doing earth science this year as well. We have already started with geology because it was part of a rabbit trail. The book we are using is called Geology Rocks. I can't give you a link nor can I give you the publisher because I am at my parent's right now and do not have the book handy. I found this book at Rainbow Resource. It is a great book. It has interesting little tidbits of information as well as neat experiments or activities.
We are also using The Earth Science Book by Dinah Zike. It is not part of the Great Science Adventures series. It is informative as well.
Julia
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MacBeth
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 Just lost a whole post!!! Argh!
Maybe I'll just send you over to my earth science page, and the page we put together on mining (we are going to go mining in upstate NY again this weekend). Both pages have links and books, and ideas and pictures! This weekend we are trying a new mine: Crystal Grove
A few books I love for earth science:
Rocks in His Head (biography of self taught geologist from Springfield)
Roadside Geology of Massachusetts (for you!)
How to Dig a Hole to the Other Side of the World (I laugh every time I read this)
Oh, and don't forget to mention that Seismology is the
The Jesuit Science, and that the father of modern geology is Blessed Niels Steno! Go Catholic science! 
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Dawn
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Wow! This is so cool MacBeth! I will have to mention this to my father-in-law who studied to be - and came *this close* to being - a Jesuit priest. After leaving the seminary he went on to become none other than a *science* teacher! Those are great sites ~ thanks!
p.s. Thanks for the link to your site. I looked there but somehow missed your earth science page - perfect!
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lapazfarm wrote:
| Ok, I think I would teach it in this order: |
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Thanks, Theresa ~ your list will get me started on the right foot.
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4Real Forums : Exploring God's Creation in Nature and Science
Topic: Help with earth science resources?
