Earthquake & Tsunami Lesson Ideas

Last week, Japan suffered an 8.9 magnitude earthquake, followed by a severe tsunami that washed up to 6 miles in shore in places. News coverage has been continuous—for ongoing coverage, visit http://www.cnn.com/WORLD/.

 This is an excellent time to teach children about earthquakes and tsunamis. As a part of this lesson, develop a family emergency plan. Make and practice an earthquake and, if applicable to your area, tsunami plan.

Earthquake and Tsunami activities (ordered easy to difficult):

1.  Simulate an earthquake. Place a thick layer of dirt over a cookie sheet. Use sticks and thread to create power lines and branches for trees. Use cars and figurine people. Have the child guess what the safest location would be. Shake the cookie sheet to simulate an earthquake, and watch what happens. Discuss the results compared to the child’s guess. (http://www.fema.gov/kids/jessnsam/ex01.htm)
2. Simulate a tsunami. In a rectangular aquarium, create a beach out of sand and gravel. Add little houses, cars, trees, people etc. for effect. Fill a large bag with rocks and empty it quickly in the opposite end of the aquarium. Watch to see the effects of the wave. (http://www.odec.ca/projects/2005/nara5n0/public_html/) (or do it this way -- http://www.all-science-fair-projects.com/science_fair_projects/25/297/ba2fb6f2868bf01ab540c85addda5309.html)
3. Make a seismograph with these instructions: http://www.sciencebuddies.org/science-fair-projects/project_ideas/Geo_p017.shtml?fave=no&isb=empty&from=TSW
4. Demonstrate the different types of earthquakes with hand motions and a sealed bag full of water.  http://thehappyscientist.com/science-experiment/earthquakes-and-tsunami
5. Make a shake table using these designs: http://jclahr.com/science/earth_science/shake/plans/deni/index.html
6. Determine what type of harbor barriers best protect against tsunamis (http://www.usc.edu/CSSF/History/2005/Projects/J0608.pdf)

As always, the depth of lesson should depend on the age, maturity and prior knowledge of your children. Below are some resources that can help you teach tsunami and earthquake lessons!

If possible, consider donating a Japanese Disaster Relief fund: http://www.google.com/crisisresponse/japanquake2011.html

New York Times: 20 Ways to Teach about the Disaster in Japan Across the Curriculum

This interesting list offers 20 suggestions on ways to teach specifically about the Japanese earthquake and tsunami disaster.

http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2011/03/15/20-ways-to-teach-about-the-disaster-in-japan-across-the-curriculum/

USGS Kids

In addition to showing maps with all of the recent quakes, the USGS website contains valuable facts, visuals and interactive materials.

http://earthquake.usgs.gov/learn/kids/kidsLearningLinks.php

NOAA Tsunami Brochure

This brochure provides safety instructions in the event of a tsunami.

http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/brochures/tsunami6.htm

United States Search & Rescue Task Force: Tsunamis

This site offers some good information on tsunamis.

http://www.ussartf.org/tsunamis.htm

Mission Statements

Every home school family should define a mission statement, either for the entire family or for each specific child that is being homeschooled. These mission statements provide guidance and should include one or more goals.

Some contend that effective mission statements include clear deadlines and are regularly reviewed. While this is certainly a good idea, it is also a matter of personal preference. I have one broad mission statement for the entire family with smaller individual goals for each child. It is on those individual goals that I set deadlines.

Answer the basic questions in the mission statement—who, what, when, where, how and why. Who does the mission statement apply to? The whole Smith family, or just Jane? What are you hoping to accomplish? By when? Where will this occur? How are you going to accomplish your goals? Why is accomplishing those goals so important? Why are you homeschooling? These questions don’t have to be answered in this particular order.

Our mission statement looks something like this:

This year, the Thelin family will work together to develop each individual’s knowledge, creativity and unique talents. We will use structured time and materials to learn the fundamentals of reading, writing, and some math at home. We will focus on our interests and explore science, geography and other subjects as opportunities of interest arise. At least once a month, we will visit a place of educational interest in our community, such as the science center, zoo, aquarium, children’s museum, etc. We will also look for educational opportunities in our daily life and in spontaneous family activities, such as going on errands, visiting family members, or going to the beach. We believe that learning is a fundamental part of living and that everyone should learn something new every day.

To break it down, we answered:

Who (The Thelin family)
What (develop each other’s knowledge, creativity and unique talents)
When (This year)
Where (at home and in our community)
How (through structured time and materials, field trips, and family activities)
Why (learning is a fundamental part of living)

Every family will have different focuses. I place great emphasis on developing and encouraging the talents and interests of my children. This is partially because, as a public school student, I was repeatedly told that I could never succeed as a writer. (Oh, how I would love to go back and show those teachers how well I’ve done as a professional writer!) My ego and personal issues aside, however, I never want anyone to discourage my children from pursuing the subjects and talents that genuinely interest them. 

As long as learning is the goal, there is no right or wrong mission statement. However, putting the homeschool mission into writing solidifies it for everyone. Consider framing it in a prominent location where most of the learning takes place.

Seize the Moment

Spontaneous teaching moments are often the most memorable—and memorable lessons are the very best, because they help the child retain the knowledge and information imparted. Not every teaching moment can be an adventure, but at least a few of them should be.

Also, teaching in the moment integrates learning into daily life. This helps children accept and appreciate that learning is a part of daily life. Learning is so much more than a classroom experience. Encourage your children to look for learning opportunities in their daily activities as well.

I have been ‘teaching in the moment’ since Jack started to talk. It’s the easiest method of teaching for me, since our lives are often so busy and hectic. You can probably guess that our preferred homeschooling method is eclectic, heavily leaning toward unschooling.

Teaching in the moment is easier than it sounds. As a homeschool family, parents are already very aware of what their children are learning (after all, they teach it!). Keep in mind recent lessons, and look for ways to apply them.

For example, my family and I went grocery shopping yesterday. On the way home, my oldest son (Jack) asked if we were going to drive through town or on the freeway. No doubt, he was hoping that we would go through town and conveniently pass his favorite park. I explained that the freeway was a better choice, because the groceries would be tossed around the van by the turns and sudden, frequent stops on the roads that go through town. He remembered a recent lesson on inertia, and we discussed how inertia and Newton’s Laws of Motion apply to daily activities.

There are countless ways to teach in the moment. Future posts will give specific examples on how to seize teaching opportunities at the grocery store, park, and in other unexpected places.

Unlike many other aspects of homeschooling, the benefits of spontaneous teaching are often easy to see. When children learn in a format that is fun and exciting, they are often eager to repeat the experience.

I will never forget Jack’s fourth birthday party, when he started encouraging his friends to throw his toys off of our porch so that he could demonstrate and teach them about gravity. I don’t think any of the kids listened—they were pretty happy just to throw the toys—but I knew by watching that Jack had learned something from our previous lessons.

Using everyday activities to teach also gives parents an opportunity to regularly reinforce that learning. For example, seat belts came up in our discussion about inertia on the way home yesterday. Now, when we get in the van next time, I can ask my children why seat belts are important. If they mention inertia or the Laws of Motion, I’ll know that they’ve retained that information. Every time we get in the van, they will use their seatbelt and get a little reminder about a principle that may not have seemed important when it came from a textbook.