Volcanoes Lesson Plans

Mt. St. Helens erupted on May 18, 1980. I was living in Northern California at the time, and we had ash falling on us from the sky. For so many of us, volcanoes are something we think of as having happened long ago and far away — the eruption of Mt. St. Helens changed our minds.

57 people died in that eruption.

Share this with your students:

Point out the image in the video (1:17) showing the dome as it forms and let your students know that something similar is happening right now in South America, in the so-called “sombrero uplift.” The current uplift is growing at about the same rate as fingernails. Mt. St. Helens was growing at a rate of six feet a day. Have students figure out how to chart the difference in the rates at which the volcanoes are/were progressing.

Visit Annenberg Learner’s interactive volcanoes exhibit (use your projector) to learn the basics about how volcanoes form, how they can be predicted, and how people deal with the dangers of volcanoes.

Now that you have your students’ attention, here are two lesson plans we like to use to study volcanoes. The first, a literature based study, is a good choice for upper elementary, while the second is suited to middle school or older.

21 Balloons

• Read The Twenty-One Balloons by William Pene du Bois and check out a fun Flash movie summarizing the book. Challenge students to catch the typos.
• Check out our hot air balloon classroom theme for more resources.
• Learn about heat and decide whether the 21 balloons really would have been able to escape the volcano as they did in the book.
• Have students design and draw their own balloons.
• Compare Krakatoa in the book with the real Krakatoa, located in Indonesia. Study more about the rainforests of Southeast Asia, where Krakatoa is located.

 

Preparing for volcanic eruptions

• Are you in the path of a volcano? Use the USGS map to find the nearest volcano to your school. Use Google Maps (or just ask Google directly) to find the distance from your school to the volcano.
• Determine whether you would be in any danger if the nearest volcano erupted. Divide students into ten pairs or teams and give each team one of the Time Magazine Top  Ten Volcanic Eruptions to research.
• Have students add the eruption they’re researching to the class timeline and map. Each team should also identify the furthest point at which effects of the eruptions were reported. Compare the distances with your distance from the nearest volcano.
• If you determine that your school would be affected by an eruption, list the effects you might encounter. Note that the 1815 eruption of Indonesia’s Mt. Tambora, the largest recorded eruption, affected the world’s climate so much that crops failed in Europe and North America. Use this information to remind students to consider consequences beyond the most obvious ones.
• Scientists like those in the video above now can predict volcanic eruptions in ways they couldn’t in the past, so people are usually warned. Check out the CDC’s advice on preparing for volcanoes. Compare this information with the disaster preparedness training you usually cover in school (such as preparation for earthquakes, tornadoes, hurricanes, severe storms, etc.) and take the opportunity to remind students of the importance of disaster preparedness.
• Develop a plan for your school if the nearest volcano should erupt. Depending on your location, it might include preparing for evacuation, staying inside to avoid ash, or raising funds for distant victims of the volcano.

Online resources:

• Volcano World’s lesson plans  The site contains lots of photos, virtual field trips, and more. Grab a cup of coffee and explore.
• USGS resources include up to date interactive maps of volcanic activity and alerts.
• Enchanted Learning’s classic volcano diagram
• Discovery Kids Volcano Explorer makes a great game for your computer center.
• Another option is the Volcano Maker

A note on the baking soda and vinegar volcano…

My kids made baking soda and vinegar volcanoes every year in school, I think. I have three problems with this activity:

1. It seems to imply that volcanoes are caused by a chemical interaction, which is not the case.
2. It’s an art project, which is fine, but doing it every year seems to give unwarranted importance to it.
3. Kids get sick of it, even though it’s spectacular, if they do it every year.

If you are determined to conduct this project, put a quarter cup of baking soda into a bottle with some dish soap and a bit of red food coloring. Do something with  the bottle to make it look like a volcano — sand, papier mache, or store-bought volcano kits will all work.

Pour in a half cup of vinegar and stand back to enjoy the show.

 

Shakespeare Classroom Resources

Those of us who teach Shakespeare can easily be overwhelmed by the — literally — millions of online resources on Shakespeare. You don’t have to spend hours clicking around looking for the best ones, because we already did it for you.

First, the plays:

• The Complete Works: all the words
• No Fear Shakespeare is a parallel translation of Shakespeare into modern English.

Now the background information to help place Shakespeare in time and space:

• Shakespeare Online: a retro site that requires some persistent browsing, but totally worth it
• Shakespeare Research Guide
• An interactive timeline of Shakespeare’s life
• A Shakespeare Google Earth Tour inspired by that timeline, written up as an assignment
• Macbeth: A Google Lit Trip
• A Shakespeare Atlas for Google Earth

Some things people think about Shakespeare:

• Lectures on specific critical questions about various plays, from Oxford
• Shawn and Shakespeare: an interesting collection of personal essays on Shakespeare’s plays, plus reviews of movies.
• The New York Times on Shakespeare

When it comes to video, you can probably find a film of any scene you might want to show in class. Go to YouTube and search for the specific scene, or for conversations between characters (“Othello and Iago” for example) to avoid having to wade through too many options.

We also want to point out a couple of general introductory videos about Shakespeare that should pique students’ interest at the beginning of the study:

This is a wonderful time to be studying Shakespeare!

Othello Lesson Plans

Othello is a tale of love, jealousy, murder, war, and betrayal. It’s a great story, with enough action to motivate students who find the language difficult to struggle through it, and poetry that makes reading the play a pleasure.

In the play, Othello, a war hero visiting Venice, falls in love with and marries Desdemona, the daughter of a Venetian nobleman. They run off and marry against the wishes and without the knowledge of her father, Brabantio. Iago, passed over for promotion in favor of Michael Cassio, sets out to destroy Othello. He uses other people to accomplish his ends, slyly planting ideas in their heads. He has his wife, Emilia, steal a handkerchief that Othello gave to Desdemona and plants it on Cassio, then uses it to persuade Othello that Desdemona is being unfaithful to him with Cassio. In a jealous rage, Othello kills Desdemona. When Emilia reveals Iago’s plot and it becomes clear that Desdemona was innocent, Othello kills himself.

Begin by reading the play. This is a play most suitable for older students, so we generally assign it as homework, encouraging students to use Google and YouTube as resources to help them grasp the story. We watch a few pivotal scenes in the classroom and read through the play together, discussing each scene and acting out important sections to make sure everyone has gotten the story.

We follow up with these lessons:

Get to know the characters

There are eight major characters in the play:

• Othello
• Iago
• Desdemona
• Cassio
• Emilia
• Roderigo
• Brabantio
• The Duke of Venice

Write the names of these characters on the board  and elicit descriptions of them from the class. Adjectives like these may turn up in the discussion:

• honorable
• innocent
• gullible
• manipulative
• sneaky
• wise
• honest
• dishonest
• foolish
• worldly
• devoted
• romantic

This is a good opportunity to work on choosing the best adjective out of many choices, and on getting the clearest possible idea of the meaning of abstract characteristics.

Ask for volunteers for each of the main characters and have them act out the bare bones of the story. We let students simply gather at the front of the classroom, move into the various groupings, and explain what happened, saying things like, “Roderigo got mad at Iago, but then Iago got around him again.” The object here is simply to make the complex relationships among the characters clear.

Have each character gather helpers from the “audience” so the class is divided into eight groups. Each group should then choose a line or brief speech that really shows the nature of their character. Have the original volunteer or a new volunteer from the group read the line(s) and explain why the group chose that passage to show the essential nature of the character.

We follow up with a writing assignment, asking for an essay on one of the characters. Ask for a clear thesis about the character, supported by specific lines from the play as well as the student’s thoughts and experiences of the emotions and relationships associated with that character.

Jealousy

 

Othello is all about jealousy, “the green-eyed monster that mocks the meat it feeds on.”

• Iago is jealous of Cassio, whom Othello gave the job that Iago wanted. This comes up in the first scene of the play.
• Iago may also be jealous of Othello’s relationship with Desdemona, because she takes the time and attention that Othello used to have for Iago. Eamonn Walker’s essay “Othello in Love,” in Living with Shakespeare: Essays by Writers, Actors, and Directors , goes into this idea thoroughly. We like to read this essay in class in preparation for the students’ essays on characters (in the lesson idea above).
• Othello’s jealousy is the most obvious in the play — through Iago’s manipulation, Othello comes to believe that Desdemona has been unfaithful to him with Cassio.
• Roderigo is jealous of Othello because he himself wanted Desdemona, and is able to be persuaded by Iago that he could have Desdemona if Othello were out of the picture.
• Bianca is jealous over Cassio, though she doesn’t know whose handkerchief he brings to her. As a courtesan, she may know that Cassio won’t really marry her, but she continues to hope that he will.

Watch and read this scene:

Use No Fear Shakespeare if students need further support in reading the scene.

Note all the ways that Iago puts the idea that Desdemona is unfaithful into Othello’s head, while pretending to be a good friend to Othello. Identify the tricks he plays, such as saying that Cassio is honest repeatedly in an insincere voice, or making Othello drag his suspicions out of him instead of telling him directly.

Keeping in mind that the accusations against Desdemona are false, ask students to role play a similar scene in modern times and in their own context.

Have students search the text of the play to find other places where this kind of manipulation takes place.

Discuss whether it is the fault of Iago or of those he manipulates when they become jealous and behave badly. Look at the three couples in the play: Othello/Desdemona, Cassio/Bianca, Iago/Emilia. Notice all the relationships among them, and between these individuals and the other characters in the play. Is all the jealousy manufactured by Iago? Does the play offer lessons about jealousy?

Would have, could have, should have

Regardless of Iago’s manipulations, Othello and Desdemona do run off together and get married. In the 1600s — and even today — running off secretly together rather than openly courting and planning their wedding was bound to upset people.

It is usually assumed that Brabantio, who was so sure that his daughter couldn’t love Othello that he assumes she must have been stolen away with witchcraft or drugs, would never have allowed Desdemona to marry Othello. Othello is black while Desdemona and Brabantio are white, he is an outsider, and he has no family background to equal that of Desdemona’s family.

However, Othello is also a friend of Brabantio’s, welcome in his home, and widely admired. When Othello and Desdemona talk with Brabantio in front of the Duke, they are respectful, loving, and persuasive. What if they had behaved this way from the beginning, talking with Brabantio and helping him get used to the idea? What if Othello had courted Desdemona in the way which was appropriate in their time and place? Could this story have had a happy ending?

As a class, identify the points at which things might have been different — if Emilia had refused to steal the handkerchief, if Othello had realized that Iago wasn’t really his friend, if Desdemona had gone for help when Othello began to be cruel to her…

Have students choose one of those points and write a new ending for the play. Act out or perform as reader’s theater some or all of the alternate endings.

Would the play have been as powerful with a happy ending? Would it have been a better play? Discuss the idea of a tragedy and why (or whether) people continue to enjoy tragedies.

Online resources

• NoFear Shakespeare’s Othello
• Folger resources on Othello, with some very interesting historical resources
• Oh, Hello, Othello has step by step lessons for each act.
• Images of Othello webquest
• Shakespeare’s Othello and the Power of Language from EdSitement
• A printable PDF lesson from Shakespeare in the Ruins

Yuck Kingdom Lesson Plans

Jeff Rivera’s books about Yuck Kingdom, Um, Mommy, I Think I Flushed My Brother Down the Toilet and Um, Mommy, I Think I Flushed My Brother Down the Toilet Again paint a picture of what happens when things go down the toilet that can make a fun introduction to the idea of wastewater treatment.

Real and Imaginary

Can people really get flushed down a toilet? Is there really a Yuck Kingdom? Certainky not. But there are things about the stories that ring true: older siblings can love their younger siblings and also find them maddening, kids can try to manipulate parents, and people can band together to stand up to something scary.

Have students list the real and imaginary things in the story.

Then study wastewater treatment and compare the reality with the imaginary Yuck Kingdom:

• Wastewater treatment information  from USGS
• interactive water treatment tour
• GBRA interactive tour
• interactive map

Have students look at these interactive resources and identify the things that are the same in all of them and the things that are different. Are there any parts of Yuck Kingdom that are like real sewage treatment?

Have students draw a line down the middle of a sheet of paper or poster board. Have them draw a scene from Yuck Kingdom on one side and from a real wastewater treatment plant on the other. Label them “Real” and “Imaginary.”

Rhyme

The book has lots of groups of rhyming words. Have students write the words on word cards and sort them into rhyming groups.  Have students find the parts of each group that are the same and the parts that are different. Find the groups where the same sound is spelled in different ways and those where the rhyming sound is spelled in the same way each time.

• shaking
• quaking
• fumbled
• tumbled
• jumbled
• twirled
• swirled
• curled
• sluch
• gush
• mush
• flush
• blush
• swaying
• fraying
• graying
• rusty
• musty
• dusty
• old
• cold
• mold

Some of the groups of rhyming words include made-up words. Find groups of words like these and have students divide the real words from the imaginary ones:

• crying
• mying
• rying

Families

At one point, the young heroine of the story says this about her little brother: “He was a pain, but he was my pain.” Author Jeff Rivera has 12 neices and nephews, so he knows what it’s like to have little brothers and sisters. Ask how many students have younger siblings. Create a list of the things they do that make them a “pain.” Then discuss what’s great about having brothers and sisters.

Some students may not have siblings. Ask whether they have similar experiences with a pet, friend, or relative.

Falisha doesn’t want her mommy to tell her daddy what she has done. She’s able to make things right, and we don’t see her getting in trouble with her dad, or having more than a scolding from her mom. Why do kids get in trouble with their parents? Is it important to make things right when we’ve done something we shouldn’t?

How does Falisha make things right with her brother? How does she make things right with her  mother?

Ask students whether they think Falisha and Jesse will get into trouble again in the future. Have them write a story of their own starring themselves and their sibling, pet, or friend.

Find more ideas for studying about families at our Families theme page.

Big Trouble by Trout Fishing in America Lesson Plan

Enjoy some imaginative learning fun with Trout Fishing in America’s song “Big Trouble,” a song expressing the trepidation a kid feels when he thinks about his parents coming home and finding the mayhem caused when “the monsters came to my house to play.”

The monsters may be fantasy and fiction, but the feeling is one most kids can relate to. Ask kids whether they’ve ever had an accident in the house or gotten into trouble with friends. How does it feel as they think about what their parents will say when they find out?

Then play the song (download the mp3 of Big Trouble or buy the album by clicking on the title below) and read the lyrics.

Big Trouble

My parents went out this afternoon,
And I was all alone.
I sure wish I’d gone with them,
Wish I’d never stayed at home.

Chorus:
‘Cause I’m gonna be in Big Trouble
When my parents get back today.
‘Cause this afternoon the monsters came
To my house to play.

There was a dragon in the kitchen,
that’s why the ceiling’s black.
And a vampire drank all the Kool-Aid,
And a witch chased off the cat.

The Fly threw up some oopy goop
And that’s what clogged the drain.
And the Blob sat on the sofa,
And he left an awful stain.

Chorus

Well Frankenstein wanted to play baseball.
So I told him to play outside.
He didn’t hear a word I said,
That’s how the TV died.

What happened to the table?
They’re probably going to ask.
There was a big guy with a chainsaw
And a scary hockey mask.

Chorus

Well the ghost went through the closet
He knocked the clothes all off the rack.
And the mummy ripped the sheets up and wore them
‘Cause he was starting to unwrap.

A werewolf ate all the cookies,
And then he ate the cookie jar.
And he was going to eat me, too,
So I hid behind the door.

Chorus

Once you’ve enjoyed the song, choose one or more of these activities to practice basic skills and extend the learning:

• Underline the rhymes in the lyrics and find the rhyming pairs.
• Have students identify the monsters listed in the song. Some, such as The Fly and The Blob, are from movies. Frankenstein is a novel (the doctor, not the monster, is named Frankenstein — most kids don’t know this). Werewolves and ghosts are creatures of folklore, and mummies are quite real — but the idea of mummies as monsters is probably also from the movie. Depending on the grade level, students can sort the monsters into these groups or research their origins. Click through the links on all but the movies to find lesson plans, activities, and links on those monsters.
• Have students draw a map of the house in the song, showing the damage done by the monsters. Older students can research to estimate the cost of the damages.
• “Big Trouble” is in a minor key. Use the Exploratorium’s major and minor key exploration to learn more about the spooky sounds of minor keys.
• Once you’ve thoroughly explored the sound and the meaning of the song, challenge students to write what happened when the mosters came to their houses to play!

A Pirate Writing Adventure, Step 2

Once you have something to say, it’s time to organize the information and get it written down.

Use the Pirate Writing Organization Sheet top explore several different ways of organizing information:

• Chronological order makes sense when you’re telling a story or describing events that happened in time. Smithsonian’s story of William Dampier, The Pirate Who Collected Plants, is a good example of this kind of organization.
• Compare and contrast is a good way to look at two things that have some things in common. A National Geographic lesson plan leads students to compare historic and modern piracy.
• Cause and effect organization is a good way to explore causes and consequences of a phenomenon. Pirate Matty presents an argument about the Causes of Piracy in the Caribbean.

Having discussed these types of organization (and any others in your frameworks), encourage students to choose an organizational plan and use our graphic organizers to plot out their essays.

 

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