Today is Earth Day!  Started in 1970 and led by the actions of Senator Gaylord Nelson of Wisconsin, Earth Day was created to draw attention to the polluted state of the air, forests and rivers in the U.S. Each year focuses on a specific theme and the theme for this year year is "The Face of Climate Change". 

Climate change can seem like a remote problem for our leaders, but the fact is that it's already impacting real people, animals, and beloved places.  

Planning activities outside of your normal schedule to recognize Earth Day may be a tall order for some parents, so how about taking your kiddos on a Virtual Field Trip to an exotic location like Antarctica or explore the vast solar system? 

Preparing Students and Children To Solve Problems That Don't Yet Exist 

I was reading through a PowerPoint article, Did You Know, about some aspects of the world population and technology in the world, and finally some important ideas for education in the future.  The concept that really struck home with me is that, “the top 10 in-demand jobs in 2010 didn’t exist in 2004 … We are currently preparing students for jobs that don’t yet exist… Using technologies that haven’t been invented… In order to solve problems we don’t even know are problems yet.”  What a daunting task educators and parents have in such a quickly changing world.

In my mind the best way to prepare students and children to solve problems that don’t yet exist is to help them gain the knowledge that is needed, teach some problem solving strategies, foster critical thinking skills, and practice practice, practice.  This is why I love Math Word Problems.  I’m not a sadistic teacher who enjoys watching my students suffer, I just like math that applies what we’re learning to real life.  I remember one assignment we had that asked a question about the cost of food at a restaurant and some students made a calculation error and found that the orange juice was $110.  The crazy part was that they submitted that response for a grade.  There are only two reasons I can think of for this kind of a response, either they have gone to too many baseball games, or they didn’t think much before submitting their responses.

Are you curious about the title of this blog post? I admit, I may have been deceptive! "Curiosity" is an innate human trait, and something that you carry with you all of the time. It is the backbone of science. It helps us to generate questions, and to acquire knowledge and skills. However, I am writing about a different "Curiosity".

Hoosier Academies, a K¹² partner school,  is now the proud sponsor of the Muncie Children’s Museum Magic Science Mobile that will host experiments that offer “magical ways to look at science.”  Fun experiments like Frosted Flakes (a lesson in minerals) and pennies (cleaning them with soda pop) will be featured regularly that will not only teach kids about Science but give them a chance to learn some cool tricks as well! 

According to the museum,  "Children will journey through the world of science using magic and mystery. This interactive show teaches children about the magic behind everyday items such as pennies, pop cans and cereal! Children will participate in these fun-filled experiments and learn cool tricks to impress their friends."

Mobile science carts are just one of many ways to engage with students and teach them through engagement that science can be fun.  Recently, Slate magazine created a special issue looking into science education.  They asked their readers to come up with ideas on how to fix science education in America. They received over 100 proposals with ideas ranging from public policy changes to engaging 'fun' experiments for kids.  The list is full of great ideas and some can be done with your kids at home.