This Week in Earth Science: June 1 - 5

• After recording the SpaceWeather.com data for the day (the first activity each day this week) and reviewing the constellations for tomorrow's quiz, students will observe some "expanding universe" demos and experiment with the giant frequency and wavelength spring on Monday.

• On Tuesday students will review constellations one more time with a slide show then they will take the Constellation Quiz.

• Wednesday will feature a music video "Supernova" and a lab "Stellar Evolution Concentration."

• An Astronomy II Unit Quiz will be given on Thursday and a study guide for the Semester Exam will be given and reviewed.

• Collecting textbooks and reviewing for the Semester Exam will be done on Friday. The SpaceWeather record sheet will be completed today and handed in to be graded. Also the Experimental Beads Project is due on Friday as well.

This Week in Earth Science: May 25 - May 29

• No school on Monday due to the Memorial Day holiday. Please remember those who have died in service to our country.

• A new warm-up begins on Tuesday, the SpaceWeather Record Sheet. Astronomy II Vocab is due at the beginning of class, we will review the Glaciology Test from last week, and students will learn about nothing (the "nothing" of the Universe).

• The final project of the year will be assigned and discussed on Wednesday, the Experimental Beads Project. Students will also draw a Cosmos Mind Map in class.

• On Thursday students will prepare for next week's Constellation Quiz. They will receive a Constellation Study Guide which will be reviewed in detail. If time permits, a Constellation music sciTunes video will be viewed.

• The history of the Milky Way will be shared on Friday and students will try to identify large groupings of stars in the Galaxy Sorting Lab.

This Week in Earth Science: May 18 - May 22

• The Weather Map Search assigned Friday is due on Monday. Students will be plotting and analyzing the Mauna Loa CO2 data on a graph in small groups for most of the hour. This data is from the world's longest ongoing climate change study.

• Tuesday will be a lab day. Students will construct a 3-D bathymetric map of Lake Michigan and identify ten important lake bottom features. Glaciology Review Questions will be assigned for homework.

• After checking the Glaciology Review Questions on Wednesday students will have an opportunity to earn bonus points as they prepare for tomorrow's test.

• The Glaciology Test will be given on Thursday. An Astronomy Vocab Sheet will be assigned that is due on Monday.

• Friday is Spring Fling Day. There will be an award assembly in the morning and the Staff vs. Seniors Basketball Game in the afternoon. Friday evening a group of Earth Science students are traveling to the Rogers Observatory in TC to observe the night sky.

Earth Day Video

On Wednesday April 22nd approximately 40 students from my Earth Science and Mr. Block's Environmental Science classes spent the day with the staff of the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore working for environmental improvement on Earth Day. The students did an awesome job and successfully removed tons of old fencing and trash, uncovered a sand-covered boardwalk, as well as planted dozens of White Pine trees. This video captures some of the highlights of the day. This was the 12th consecutive year Benzie Central students have participated in the "Great American Clean-up" at the Sleeping Bear Dunes. Many thanks to Ranger Jim and his wonderful staff for their guidance and encouragement on this special day.

This Week in Earth Science: May 11 - May 15

• The Weather Record Warm-up Sheet continues this week until Thursday when it will be collected and graded.

• On Monday students will draw and label a Severe Weather study guide to use in preparation for the Severe Weather Quiz to be given on Friday.

• Students will return to the JetStream Online Weather School on Tuesday to learn about thunderstorms and take the online NWS Thunderstorm Quiz.

• Weather watching will be featured on Wednesday. Students will learn about ten weather-related phenomena they can observe. A slide show will feature these.

• A demonstration, video clip and a PowerPoint presentation about our disappearing glaciers and climate change will be featured on Thursday. The Weather Record Warm-up Sheet will be collected and graded too.

• Friday will be the Severe Weather Quiz. A "Rise and Fall of the Great Lakes" demo will be shared. Homework (Weather Map Search) will be assigned for the weekend.

This Week at BACC: May 4-8

• Students will continue to monitor the daily weather conditions each day this week for their warm-up at the beginning of each class. The Sand Dune Poster Quiz will take place on Friday and time will be spent each day reviewing the species and features that students will need to know for the quiz.

• On Monday students will learn about the Milankovitch Ice Age Theory with demos and then make an Ice Age Flip Diagram.

• Students will learn ten important clues on Tuesday that reveal there really was an Ice Age in Michigan. There will be a slide show to watch and a local map on which to find and record the clues.

• Wednesday students will be searching maps and atlases for Great Lakes facts and statistics.

• Tornadoes will be featured on Thursday in class with the video "Tornado Intercept."

• The Sand Dune Poster Quiz will be given in class on Friday. Demos and discussion will take place about the changing Great Lakes past, present and future.