April 6, 2012
Did you know that classes can enter Seymour Simon’s YOUR EARTH DAY PROMISES contest? A class can comment on any one of Seymour’s blog entries between now and April 22, 2012 (Earth Day). When you write your comment, tell Seymour what your class is doing to help take care of the Earth. Every time a class writes a comment, you will be entered into a drawing to win a FREE Skype session with Seymour Simon. You can enter as many times as you like, so start thinking about what your class can do and get those entries in!
Click here for all the details about the YOUR EARTH DAY PROMISES contest.
Posted by: Liz Nealon
April 5, 2012
Today’s "Cool Video of the Week" is an animation that puts me in a holiday mood. Just looking at it makes me feel like I can smell chocolate!
The video below is an example of what is called "Stop Motion" animation. Do you see the black camera on the right hand side of the photograph? It is mounted on a stand, and the animator take a photograph, then moves the pieces of chocolate on the cake slightly, takes another photograph, moves the pieces a little further, and so on. When you put all the photographs together, it seems as though everything is moving. It takes a lot of patience to make this kind of animation, but it certainly pays off.
Press "Play" (below) to see it - just for fun. And best wishes to all my readers for a Happy Easter and Chag Same’ach (Happy Passover)!
Be part of Seymour Simon’s celebration of Earth Day 2012 by commenting on blog stories like this one, and telling Seymour about YOUR Earth Day Promises! How are you going to make a difference for the Earth? What will you do to make it be Earth Day / every day? Each time you leave a comment between today and April 22, you will be entered into a drawing to win a free, personally autographed book from Seymour Simon. So get started by clicking "comments" below, and tell us about Your Earth Day Promises!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
April 4, 2012
Good morning, and welcome to Writing Wednesday, where every week there is a new opportunity to publish your creative writing on the Seymour Science blog. This week, we are asking you to read an excerpt from Seymour Simon’s new book BUTTERFLIES, and explain in your own words what he is saying and how he uses details to express his idea more powerfully.
From BUTTERFLIES, by Seymour Simon:Throughout human history butterflies and moths have been the subject of stories, myths, poetry, art, drama and dance in many cultures. The Hopi Native Americans perform a ceremonial dance in homage to the butterfly. An Irish saying goes: "May the wings of the butterfly kiss the sun and find your shoulder to light on, to bring you luck, happiness and riches today, tomorrow, and beyond." For many of us, butterflies are symbols of the wild loveliness and wonder of nature.
Your assignment: Write a paragraph or two explaining the main idea that Seymour is trying to express on this page. Use your own words to express his theme. And, give examples of telling details that he uses to support his theme.
When you are finished writing, click on the yellow "Comments" at the bottom of this post to enter your writing!
Note to Educators: Today’s Writing Wednesday exercise is designed to use in support of CCSS Reading Anchor Standard #2: Determine central ideas or themes of a text and analyze their development; summarize the key supporting details and ideas.
Posted by: Liz Nealon
April 3, 2012
Here’s a photograph that makes me think of the beauty and wonder of Earth. This rabbit is munching on snowdrops, which are usually one of the first flowers to appear in the spring - often even poking their heads through the snow!
A snow drop plant looks like three drops of milk hanging from a stem, which is where the flower gets its Latin name Galanthus, meaning "milk-white flowers."
Photo: Patrick Pieul/EPA
Be part of Seymour Simon’s celebration of Earth Day 2012 by sharing your own photographs! Take a digital photo showing an Earth treasure around your school or home that makes you appreciate our planet. Click on “Send Us Photos/Video” (in the yellow bar at the top of every page) and follow the instructions to upload it to the website. We will publish your Earth Day photos and videos on Seymour’s blog, and each person or class that uploads a photo will be entered into the drawing to win a personally autographed book from Seymour Simon!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
April 2, 2012
In today’s Science News, we have this photograph of baby turtles making their way into the ocean after their release during a campaign to save sea turtles in Aceh Besar, Indonesia. Hatching baby turtles have always been in danger from predators who snatch them while they are heading for the safety of the water, but now they are facing extinction due to the action of the most powerful predator of all - human poachers who kill them for their meat, fat, shells and eggs.
Now, conservationists are educating the public about the importance of helping these baby turtles to make it to the safety of the water. They hope that with knowledge and the support from the public, sea turtles will eventually be able to come off the endangered list.
Photo: Heri Juanda / AP
Be part of Seymour Simon’s celebration of Earth Day 2012 by commenting on blog stories like this one, and telling Seymour about YOUR Earth Day Promises! How are you going to make a difference for the Earth? What will you do to make it be Earth Day / every day? Each time you leave a comment between today and April 22, you will be entered into a drawing to win a free, personally autographed book from Seymour Simon. So get started by clicking "comments" below, and tell us about Your Earth Day Promises!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
April 1, 2012
Today is April 1, and we are beginning our celebration of Earth Day with a report of the discovery of a new species on our planet! A chameleon small enough to perch on the head of a match has been discovered on a tiny island off Madagascar. It is called a "Brookesia micra" chameleon, and it is believed to be the smallest species ever found. This tiny reptile is just six-tenths of an inch (16 millimeters) long, and even with its tail fully extended, it only measures 1.1 inches (29 millimeters).
Chameleons (even ones as small as this one) are particularly well-adapted for catching the insects that make up most of their diet. They have feet like parrots, with two toes facing forward and two facing backward, so that they can grab onto branches and climb easily. Each of their eyes moves on its own, so they can see all around them as they hunt for insects. And when they spot an insect, they shoot their long tongues out of their mouths at lightning speed, enabling them to catch fast-moving prey.
Photo: Joern Koehler / Reuters
Be part of Seymour Simon’s celebration of Earth Day 2012 by commenting on blog stories like this one, and telling Seymour about YOUR Earth Day Promises! How are you going to make a difference for the Earth? What will you do to make it be Earth Day / every day? Each time you leave a comment between today and April 22, you will be entered into a drawing to win a free, personally autographed book from Seymour Simon. So get started by clicking "comments" below, and tell us about Your Earth Day Promises!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
March 30, 2012
We’re going to celebrate Earth Day for the entire month of April here on the Seymour Science blog. Our team will be writing lots of articles about our home planet - showing the beauty of nature, plants and animals, talking about how we can help our environment, and what kids can do to make a difference.
When you comment on our stories, we want you to share Your Earth Day Promises. What will you do, not just on Earth Day but every day, to help protect our environment? How have you changed your behavior because of what you have learned about taking care of our planet Earth? What beauty do you see around you that inspires you to love Earth?
Here is how you enter the EARTH DAY PROMISES CONTEST:
1. Read Seymour Simon’s blog every day in the month of April. Click on the yellow "comments" button at the bottom of each story and tell us your Earth Day Promise, and why it was inspired by the story.
2. You can write your Earth Day Promises on your own, or your class can write comments as a group. Class entries should tell one thing that the class is doing to honor our planet for Earth Day. (example: recycling all the paper used in class).
3. Each time you write a comment, your name is entered into the drawing for a prize. You may comment and enter as many times as you wish between April 1 and April 22 (Earth Day).
4. Or, you can enter by taking part in Seymour Simon’s EARTH DAY PHOTO CONTEST. Take a digital photo showing an Earth treasure around your school or home that makes you appreciate our planet. (examples: Clouds, trees, animals, etc.). Click on "Send us Photos/Video" (in the yellow bar at the top of every page) and follow the instructions to upload it to the website. We will publish your Earth Day photos and videos on Seymour’s blog, and each person who uploads a photo or video will be entered into the drawing to win an autographed book.
5. VERY IMPORTANT!!: Each time your write a comment, you must tell us the following:
a. Your name (first name and last initial only).
b. An email address if you have one.
c. The name of your teacher and the name of your school.
d. What town and state you live in.
We will keep this information private (we will not publish it on the website), but if we do not know who you are, we will not be able to contact you if your name is chosen in the prize drawing!
PRIZES:
1. Everyone who writes a comment will be entered into a drawing to win a personally autographed copy of EARTH: OUR PLANET IN SPACE.
2. Each person who uploads a photograph or video will be entered into a drawing to win a personally autographed copy of BUTTERFLIES.
3. Every class that participates will be entered into a drawing to win a free, 45-minute Skype session with Seymour Simon.
4. Everyone who participates and gives us an email address will receive a free, downloadable certificate, signed by Seymour Simon, which commemorates their participation in SEYMOUR SIMON’S YOUR EARTH DAY PROMISES event.
Seymour Simon’s YOUR EARTH DAY PROMISES CONTEST starts on Sunday, April 1, so come, read, write and tell us how you are going to make a difference for our planet Earth!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
March 30, 2012
A student named Nicholas S. wrote recently with a simple question. WHY DO CATS CHASE MICE? This is a question that has been asked by many a cat lover. It can be upsetting to see your beautiful, gentle friend turn into a hunter.
But don’t blame your cat - it can’t help itself. Although cats have been domesticated (living with humans as pets) for thousands of years, they are still predators like their relatives the lion, tiger, leopard, etc. The hunting instinct is inborn. Even if you make sure to feed your cat regularly, it will not be able to resist chasing a delicious-looking mouse!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
March 29, 2012
At one time, I had many freshwater tropical aquariums set up around my house. I was very much into the hobby of keeping tropical fish. I had all kinds of tropical fish in my tanks: angels, neons, barbs, tetras, guppies, white clouds, dwarf cichlids and many more. I even had several marine tanks set up and wrote a book about them called TROPICAL SALTWATER AQUARIUMS, How to Set Them Up and Keep Them Going. But over the years, I kept fewer tanks of fish and finally there were no tanks left.
But I’ve started again. I’ve just set up two small freshwater aquariums. Here’s what I did.
I washed out the tanks thoroughly, using NO SOAP at all, just water and a clean (never used) sponge. Then I rinsed the tanks completely and set them in safe places that were strong enough to support their weights when they were full of water, gravel, plants and fish. Water weighs a lot; you should figure that an aquarium averages about 10 pounds a gallon, so a ten-gallon aquarium is going to weight about 100 pounds.
I poured tap water into the aquarium and let the water age for several days. I also added a water conditioner, which helped the water age more quickly.
I washed out about two pounds of gravel per gallon in a new plastic bucket (remember NO SOAP) and then poured the gravel into the aquarium.
I added a filter, a small water heater and then planted a few underwater plants. After another few days I added a few fish: white clouds, platys, cherry barbs and two small catfish.
So far the fish seem fine. I’ll keep reporting to you about how they are doing and also show you some photographs. If you have a tropical fish tank and home or in class, write about your experiences and send me some photos too!
Posted by: Seymour Simon
March 28, 2012
Welcome to WRITING WEDNESDAY! Every week there is a new opportunity to publish your own creative writing on the Seymour Science blog. This week, we are asking you to contrast two different kinds of science news stories - a firsthand account, and a secondhand account.
The Facts: This week’s big science news story is about James Cameron, the film director who directed both "Titanic" and "Avatar." On Monday, Cameron used a specially designed submarine to dive alone to the deepest place on Earth. The place is known as the Challenger Deep, off the coast of the Pacific island of Guam, and it is almost impossible to imagine how deep it really is. The Challenger Deep is 120 times deeper than the Grand Canyon and more than a mile deeper than the tallest mountain on Earth, Mount Everest, is tall.
Only two other people have ever made this dive. In 1960, Swiss engineer Jacques Piccard and U.S. Navy Capt. Don Walsh descended to the bottom in a bathyscape (a deep-sea diving craft) called the Trieste.
Read these descriptions of the two events. The first one is a firsthand account - which means that the story is being told by the person who was actually there. The second is a secondhand account - a story that is retold by someone who was not there, but has heard it from someone else.
Firsthand Account (James Cameron writing on Twitter): "Just arrived at the ocean’s deepest point. Hitting bottom never felt so good. Can’t wait to share what I’m seeing with you."
Secondhand Account (U.S. Navy website): "Only two people have ever been to the deepest part of the world ocean, and Dr. Don Walsh is one of them. In 1960 Walsh, along with Swiss inventor Jacques Piccard, piloted the U.S. Navy’s bathyscaph Trieste to a spot at the bottom of the Marianas Trench known as the Challenger Deep. Inside Trieste’s seven-foot diameter cabin and with more than 16,000 pounds per square inch pressure outside, Walsh relied on the knowledge and skills of the ocean engineers and marine technicians who built the craft and supported its operation."
Your Assignment: Tell us about the differences between the firsthand account and the secondhand account. Contrast and compare the two stories by telling us about the main focus of each. How is the information you got from each of them alike? How is it different?
When you are ready, click "comments" below and write about the differences and similarities between these two accounts.
Happy writing!
Photo: Mark Thiessen / National Geographic
Educators: Today’s Writing Wednesday is designed to use in support of CCSS Anchor Standard RI.6: Compare and contrast a firsthand and secondhand account of the same event of topic; describe the differences in focus and the information provided.
Posted by: Liz Nealon
