Inside Our High School Earth Science Curriculum

Here at BlueSky, we like to be innovative about the education we provide to our students. Whether that means exploring their city’s trash programs, exploring a subject through music, or transforming food into representations of the Earth, we try to stay creative.  

The reason we value this idea of creativity in the curriculum is that we want our students to enjoy their education while thoroughly absorbing the lessons. Today we’re going to explore Julie Johnson’s earth science curriculum.  

The Lessons

In order to explore the wonders of the Earth, Julie uses live sessions for her weekly classes. Teaching high school students earth science virtually can be a bit challenging as far as encouraging engagement goes, but Julie finds that a hands-on approach produces great results.

Some examples of her lessons include utilizing different kitchen items in each of her lessons.

In order to illustrate salinity and density, Julie did a demonstration using food coloring, salt, and water.  The lesson involved differing amounts of salt resulting in different layers based upon density.

By using chocolate she demonstrated the different kinds of rock formation including sedimentary rocks, metamorphic, and igneous rocks.  By creating an environment where the students can use things they have in their homes or even just be present while she demonstrates, she allows the students to actually see the information being provided in action.

The Inspiration

These demonstrations were ideas born out of the thought of really wanting to engage with the students and get creative about the topics at hand.  While Julie doesn’t always use demonstrations, often relying on videos or models for her lessons, she finds that the demonstrations really inspire an environment of fun with her students.  

A virtual environment can be difficult to navigate and even more difficult to engage with, but by getting just a little creative and thinking outside the box, we can spark these students’ interest in their education and get them to think a little more creatively as well.

We absolutely love providing unique perspectives and personalized education so that our students feel connected to their schooling.  To learn more about us, drop us a line! We’d love to hear from you.