Inspiring Curiosity with Cloud Shapes

Several weeks ago on Twitter someone posted a TED Talk. This TED Talk was by Gavin Pretor-Pinney: Cloudy with a Chance of Joy. Now why would I blog about that? Watch the TED Talk below and see what comes to your mind!


 

A couple of things that I really liked was when Gavin was talking about unplugging from everything and just laying back and watching the clouds. He talked about several cloud formations and that got me to thinking about different science standards and how they have to do with cloud shapes. Wouldn't showing this video be a good idea for introducing a unit on clouds? I think so!

The grade levels and the content standards are listed below:

7th Grade: 7.E.1.4 Predict weather conditions and patterns based on information obtained from:

• Weather data collected from direct observations and measurement (wind speed and direction, air temperature, humidity and air pressure)


• Weather maps, satellites and radar


• Cloud shapes and types and associated elevation

5th Grade: 5.E.1 Understand weather patterns and phenomena, making connections to the weather in a particular place and time.

•  5.E.1.3 Explain how global patterns such as the jet stream and water currents
  influence local weather in measurable terms such as temperature, wind
  direction and speed, and precipitation. 

Another great idea is using Wonderopolis. They have a great wonder of the day #591: What is a Lenticular Cloud?

One idea of how this could be used in the classroom would be as an introduction to your unit. Watch Gavin's TED Talk at the beginning of the unit, then give students an assignment to just look at the clouds they see (maybe over a weekend). They could also take pictures of these clouds to identify later. Another idea is after taking these pictures and identifying the different types of clouds, they could blog about the cloud and maybe mention what type of shape they saw in the clouds.

How will you see joy in the shapes of clouds?

TED Talks To Spark A Conversation

Sometimes, in a group it can be hard to get a conversation started. You need that one focal point for everyone to rally around to get things moving. Videos and images are a great way to get your message out there and get folks talking. The same is true in the classroom. I can be helpful to start a unit or a topic off with some kind of visual stimulant that gets those creative thoughts moving.

That is why I love the TED videos. Especially the Talks In Under 6 Minutes series. These are great, snapshots of what could be longer conversations in short bursts. They come in loads of topics that could start a class discussion or kick off a meeting.

Below are some of my favorite videos to spark a conversation. There are tons of these be sure to head over to the TED website to discover more of them.

Derek Sievers: How To Start A Movement-This is hands-down my favorite one. I use this video to talk about leadership, obviously, but also the perils of the movement as well.


Rob Reid: The $8 Billion Dollar iPod-Understanding data and how it can be manipulated is important.


Renny Gleeson: 404, The Story Of A Page Not Found-How the 404 Page can build relationships.


Thomas Suarez: A 12 Year Old App Developer-If you give kids a chance, they can do some pretty cool things.


And lastly Mark Bezos: A Life Lesson From A Volunteer Firefighter-Why you shouldn't wait to be a hero.


Those are my 5. What are some of yours?

Oh, and in case you didn't know. There is a great wiki on Teaching With TED. Definitely worth a look if you want to use these or other TED videos in your classroom.