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Support for WATERS curriculum spreads in Oregon

Two teachers with their crumpled paper watershed models

The WATERS (Watershed Awareness using Technology and Environmental Research for Sustainability) project recently ended with a Master Teacher Workshop at our Concord office for selected teachers who participated in the National Science Foundation (NSF)-funded research with excellence and enthusiasm. The goal of the workshop was to exchange best practices for teaching the now freely available, […]

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What is the future of forest fires? Using Wildfire Explorer to learn about boreal forest succession

Quebec Canada wildfire smoke consumes New Jersey and New York City June 7, 2023

Last summer, thick plumes of wildfire smoke from northern Canada blanketed cities as far south as Washington, D.C., in an eerie orange haze. Record-breaking wildfires in provinces across Canada resulted in catastrophic damage to homes and communities, the destruction of more than 45.7 million acres of forest, and dangerously unhealthy air quality throughout the Northeast […]

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New YouthQuake project engages urban middle school students in geoscience practices

The Seismic Explorer showing the number of earthquakes that occurred in California between 1980 and the present.

With most California residents living within a 30-minute drive of one of the state’s 500 active fault zones, the threat of earthquakes looms large. Scientists are constantly monitoring seismic activity, conducting risk assessments to determine when and where earthquakes may occur, and predicting the potential impacts to surrounding communities. Our new National Science Foundation-funded YouthQuake […]

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Under the sea: How a dive to the seafloor can help students unlock Earth’s past

Seafloor spreading modeled in TecRocks Explorer

Stephanie Seevers is an Earth science teacher in Colorado and a consultant on the TecRocks project. I was talking to my 9th grade Earth and Space Science students recently about why they think so many people lack a solid understanding of our planet and its history. We brainstormed ideas, and while several theories sounded valid, […]

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Linking block coding, visual representations, and science concepts

GeoCoder with block code (left) and a visual representation of two tectonic plates (right).

The everyday work of modern seismologists—the scientists who study earthquakes, hazards, and risks—exists right at the intersection of two NGSS practices: “Analyzing and Interpreting Data” and “Using Mathematics and Computational Thinking.” Seismologists collect huge amounts of data from satellites, remote sensors, and GPS networks in order to monitor Earth’s surface for signs of land movement […]

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