Community Blogs
Community Blogs
Discover how the GLOBE community is engaging in all things GLOBE through the community blog posts below.
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"Rivers and floodplains as key components of global terrestrial water storage variability"
Check out this new research. Did you know that terrestrial water storage differs across different climate zones? A team of NASA civil servant and contractor researchers have been using data from several NASA instruments and satellites to better understand the correlation of rivers and floodplains with global terrestrial water storage variability.
One of the NASA researchers, Dr. Matthew Rodell, will be our featured presenter for the ENSO Campaign's Phase III Webinar to be held on ...
Read More »
Posted in:
Field Campaigns:
EL NIÑO
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Learning science involves learning important concepts, conducting experiments to see first-hand how researchers discovered and confirmed some elements of science concepts, and learning how to think scientifically. With this complete approach to learning science, students are well-prepared to deal with the natural world around them and to make wise decisions when confronted with various choices. The ability to think scientifically is a valuable skill in almost all aspects of life and doing science teaches scientific habits of mind.
Students can do science through research projects ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
SCIENCE AND MATH
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
GENERAL SCIENCE
BACKYARD SCIENCE
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
HYDROSPHERE
PEDOSPHERE (SOIL)
BIOSPHERE
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
COMPETITIONS
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Gathering data
Once you have determined what protocols to use for your project, you will need to develop a plan for gathering the data. It might consist of using automated data collection or making your own measurements. Also, it may include finding data taken by others, such as when you compare your observations with those of another GLOBE school.
Automated Data Collection
If you are using an automated data collection device or devices, verify that the data are being recorded properly before your official testing timeframe. You will want to monitor that the data are being ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
EDUCATION RESEARCH
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
MEETINGS/CONFERENCES
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Teacher's Guide:
SECONDARY: 9-12
MIDDLE: 6-8
Sometimes, actually most of the time, I forget to be grateful for the fact that I have easy access to clean freshwater. When Thanksgiving rolls around each year, I try to step back and consider the many things I have to be thankful for. Day after day I work with the amazing science team behind the Global Precipitation Measurement mission, and I never cease to be completely amazed at how technology has enabled us to monitor our home planet.
During our last ENSO Phase III webinar, we learned about water quality in Europe from several GLOBE scientists, teachers, and students ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
LANGUAGE CULTURE AND ARTS
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
CAMPAIGNS AND PROJECTS (IOPS, ETC)
Field Campaigns:
EL NIÑO
WATERSHEDS
GLOBE Science Topics:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
SCIENTIST SKILLS
EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE
CLIMATE CHANGE
DATA INCLUDED
CLIMATE
GLOBE Working Groups:
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
HYDROSPHERE
BIOSPHERE
Learning Activities:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE
LAND COVER/BIOLOGY
HYDROLOGY
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
SCIENTISTS
Prepare your Research Plan
Prof. Constantinos Cartalis (University of Athens)
___________________________________________________________________________
The selection of the research strategy for the formulation of your research plan is probably the most important decision to be made. The choice of the strategy, whether analytical, experimental, descriptive or a combination of these, depends on several inter-correlated parameters and preconditions. Broadly speaking a research plan has four main points:
explanation of proposed research ( what will be done) ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
EDUCATION RESEARCH
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
MEETINGS/CONFERENCES
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Teacher's Guide:
SECONDARY: 9-12
MIDDLE: 6-8
GRADE LEVELS
By Claudia Caro and Erika Podest
Curiosity is a natural characteristic of all people, especially the young. It is the first step for a child to build knowledge, and I am sure we can all remember as children asking what?, why?, where?, and numerous other questions as we tried to learn new things.
Unfortunately, as children grow up, this natural curiosity slowly fades. Why is this? We don’t exactly know, but it might be that as children grow older they think they know all the answers or because most school systems are structured to teach by providing answers rather than ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
EDUCATION RESEARCH
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
MEETINGS/CONFERENCES
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Teacher's Guide:
SECONDARY: 9-12
MIDDLE: 6-8
Authors: Claudia Caro and Olawale Oluwafemi (Femi)
Our participation in the International Virtual Science Symposium (IVSS) as judges has allowed us to learn more about the scientific experiences of students involved in the GLOBE Program. As members of the GLOBE Science Working Group with backgrounds in Geography and Biology, we would like to share our findings about the importance of the IVSS in the GLOBE community and give you some advice to empower your participation in this extraordinary yearly event.
Why an International Virtual Science Symposium?
Knowledge ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Teacher's Guide:
SECONDARY: 9-12
MIDDLE: 6-8
GRADE LEVELS
When you start writing your GLOBE report for IVSS, it might be difficult because you might not sure where to start. We tend to start writing the Methods section first because it is something you did it yourselves and it should be relatively easy and straight forward to write. Second, you should write the Results section, do graphs, tables and texts (think of a best way to present your cool data to the whole world). Third, you should start writing the Introduction stating your hypotheses and predictions. The next step would be the Discussion section. It is funny to say but as scientists, ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
EDUCATION RESEARCH
SCIENCE AND MATH
TECHNOLOGY
Event Topics:
MEETINGS
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
MEETINGS/CONFERENCES
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Teacher's Guide:
GRADE LEVELS
SECONDARY: 9-12
MIDDLE: 6-8
Currently, Science education has transitioned away from textbooks to more hands on learning. This is an amazing opportunity for teachers to move away from the normal lecturing and explaining in class to reshaping the process of learning.
I think that the GLOBE Program is a fantastic organization and empowered program that promises to give an essential change in education. One example is teaching and learning from directs activities in the field.
An excellent activity is to share data from school to school through collaboration. Students can share what they are ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
Event Topics:
OTHER
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
GLOBE Working Groups:
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
HYDROSPHERE
PEDOSPHERE (SOIL)
BIOSPHERE
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Over the past few years I have been asked how to run a successful international collaboration from school to school. After much thought and reflection I have decided to blog about my experiences and the knowledge I have gained.
As an experienced teacher who has had success with multiple International Collaborations, I would advise you and your GLOBE students to start by getting involved in an existing GLOBE campaign online, rather than trying to start a project of your own. This is a great way to get your feet wet before you dive in.
Participating in other campaign projects is ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
Event Topics:
GLOBE LEARNING EXPEDITIONS
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
Field Campaigns:
SMAP
GPM
GLOBE Science Topics:
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
GLOBE Working Groups:
TECHNOLOGY WORKING GROUP
EVALUATION WORKING GROUP
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Many of us are so used to having clean freshwater that is easily accessible that we don't often stop to marvel at the fact that we are incredibly fortunate. The majority of our freshwater comes from our water cycle, and precipitation is unevenly distributed across the globe. You can learn more about the importance of clean freshwater resources in this "one-pager" entitled " Precious Freshness ".
During our ENSO Phase III Webinar #3, we will be focusing on water quality in Europe and Eurasia. We will host this webinar at 18:30 UCT, and hope we will have many of you from ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
SCIENCE AND MATH
LANGUAGE CULTURE AND ARTS
STEM
Event Topics:
CAMPAIGNS AND PROJECTS (IOPS, ETC)
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
Field Campaigns:
WATERSHEDS
EL NIÑO
GLOBE Science Topics:
GENERAL SCIENCE
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
SCIENTIST SKILLS
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
GLOBE Working Groups:
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
HYDROSPHERE
Learning Activities:
ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE
HYDROLOGY
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
SCRC RESEARCH
Primary Audience:
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Written By Allyson Edwards Hawkins High School, Hawkins Texas
When signing up for the GLOBE science club at my school, little did I realize the impact that it would have on my life. Our original team, comprised of just three eighth grade girls would one day develop into an international collaboration among students in three different countries. It wasn’t always easy but it my entire worldview was changed by being apart of GLOBE.
For our story, it began with us meeting face to face at a science conference ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
Event Topics:
GLOBE LEARNING EXPEDITIONS
GLOBE Working Groups:
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
ALUMNI
Written by Pegi Pavletić, Croatian GLOBE Alumni
Four years ago, as a Croatian GLOBE team of Medical high school in Rijeka, Megi Pavletić, Dina Bolkovac, our professor Tatjana Holjević and I, Pegi Pavletić visited 2nd Student research exhibition in Maryland, USA. That was an exciting opportunity for us as students in medical branch of studies, to experience ecological experimental work and gain further knowledge. That is where we stepped into contact with Hawkins school in Texas and their GLOBE team: Madison Jaco, Hope Hughes, Allyson Edwards and their mentor Audra Kay ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
Event Topics:
GLOBE LEARNING EXPEDITIONS
GLOBE Working Groups:
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
ALUMNI
The journal Scientific American just published a blog about GLOBE. The post, titled " The GLOBE Program: Making the Case for K–12 Citizen Scientists " discusses several aspects of GLOBE, including our contributions and campaigns. As well, it helps explain our mission of providing the resources for students across the world to become citizen scientists.
"Contributing to global datasets not only gives students a chance to collect data that scientists can actually use, but allows them to compare their experiences and findings with other students around the world."
To read more ...
Posted in:
Event Topics:
CAMPAIGNS AND PROJECTS (IOPS, ETC)
OTHER
Field Campaigns:
EL NIÑO
SURFACE TEMPERATURE
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
BACKYARD SCIENCE
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
It is pretty neat when you can get two for the price of one- as most teachers can attest to with regard to trying to get everything into their curriculum. Did you know that this year, the FIRST LEGO League's challenge is focused on water. And what could be better, as that water is also the theme of this year's ENSO Student Research Campaign !
The LEGO Challenge Project states: "People use water every day, but they don’t think much about how and why they use water. Whether it’s directly (drinking or washing) or indirectly (manufacturing the products they use or producing food ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
SCIENCE AND MATH
Event Topics:
CAMPAIGNS AND PROJECTS (IOPS, ETC)
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
COMPETITIONS
Field Campaigns:
EL NIÑO
WATERSHEDS
GPM
GLOBE Science Topics:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
CLIMATE CHANGE
CLIMATE
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
Learning Activities:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE
News Topics:
COMPETITIONS
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
Observations of daily precipitation have been a part of GLOBE from the beginning. At the start, GLOBE’s participation model was that schools would take measurement following all of the original 17 protocols. Atmosphere temperature, precipitation, cloud, and soil moisture measurements were to be collected daily at a site easily accessible to the school. A permanent installation of an instrument shelter containing a max/min thermometer mounted to a post along with a rain gauge was the expected norm with other measurements taken nearby. Daily temperature and precipitation measurements were ...
Posted in:
Field Campaigns:
EL NIÑO
GPM
GLOBE Science Topics:
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
EDUCATION WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Teacher's Guide:
DOCUMENT TYPES
From the start, the measurement of daily maximum and minimum air temperature within one hour of local solar noon has been a key GLOBE protocol. The low cost approach was to use a U-tube thermometer housed in a wooden instrument shelter facing away from the equator. The U-shaped tube contained mercury with pins on either side of the mercury. As the air temperature warmed the pin on one side would move while the other pin stayed in place; when the air cooled, the pin on the other side would be pushed up. The pins were held in place by magnetized strips behind the thermometer tube so that ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
STEM
TECHNOLOGY
GLOBE Science Topics:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
CLIMATE CHANGE
CLIMATE
GLOBE Working Groups:
SCIENCE WORKING GROUP
Investigation Areas:
ATMOSPHERE
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
TRAINERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
Quaking aspens can grow in a wide range of environmental conditions. They can tolerate a wide variety of variations in climate and environmental conditions including slope, moisture, surrounding vegetation, and soil ( https://www.fs.fed.us/wildflowers/beauty/aspen/ecology.shtml ). I found this information with a simple web search. But, before there was access to infinite articles, websites, and papers all a click away, scientists had to figure out growth trends using data. So, before I decided to do a web search about the environmental conditions of aspen habitats (my memorized aspen ...
Posted in:
Event Topics:
SCIENCE SYMPOSIA AND FAIRS
GLOBE Science Topics:
SCIENTIST SKILLS
Investigation Areas:
EARTH AS A SYSTEM
HYDROSPHERE
PEDOSPHERE (SOIL)
ATMOSPHERE
BIOSPHERE
News Topics:
VIRTUAL SCIENCE FAIR
Primary Audience:
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
I recently had the pleasure of meeting a GLOBE student named Aspen. I was excited because my favorite type of tree is Aspen (Quaking Aspen to be more specific, Populus tremuloides to be even more specific), and I was able to tell her some of the fun facts about her namesake.
My favorite thing about aspens is their bark. The white powder on it can act as sunscreen. It’s only about an SPF of 5 but it’s still pretty cool. The bark also contains chloroplasts which means it can photosynthesize, making it one of the few deciduous trees that do not solely rely on leaves for ...
Posted in:
Investigation Areas:
BIOSPHERE
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
I was selected as a National Geographic 2017 Grosvenor Teacher Fellow which is a professional development opportunity that provides educators a rich, immersive experience exploring the world to bring back to their teaching and communities. I and two other educators traveled with Lindblad Expeditions around Svalbard, Greenland and Iceland on the ship the National Geographic Explorer, making stops for excursions along the way.
I decided to do field work on my Grosvenor Teacher Fellowship because 1) that is what one does on an expedition according ...
Posted in:
Curriculum:
SCIENCE AND MATH
GLOBE Science Topics:
EARTH SYSTEM SCIENCE
GLOBE PROTOCOLS
Learning Activities:
ATMOSPHERE AND CLIMATE
Primary Audience:
TRAINERS
TEACHERS
STUDENTS
PARTNERS
SCIENTISTS
ALUMNI
COUNTRY COORDINATORS
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