Reviewed by Diana Wiig
Professor of Science/Mathematics Methods
As early as kindergarten, students have ideas about the seasons. However, most people retain misunderstandings and mistaken ideas of how our Earth-Sun relationship works. Attempts to change these misunderstandings are often met with failure; students are reluctant to let go of the ideas they have constructed to help them understand this complex concept. The Real Reasons for Seasons attempts to change these misconceptions by allowing students to look at their ideas and compare them with alternative explanations. In essence, students construct new ideas and explanations based on a variety of experiences presented in this book.
In the introduction, The Real Reasons for the Seasons addresses common misconceptions about seasons and explains why these ideas are wrong. Eight activities then demonstrate how these misconceptions will be addressed. The sequence of activities begins with students writing about seasons. Students start by answering a short survey designed to help them look at their own cognition about seasons, then question family members and friends using the same survey. The answers to these surveys are a good place to begin a discussion of the seasons.
The activities focus on the orbit of the Earth around the Sun, temperatures and hours of daylight around the world, and the angle of the Sun’s rays hitting the Earth. Students then look again at the survey, discuss the activities, and analyze the experiences to help explain the seasons. The resource includes a CD with video simulations, slide shows, Internet references, images and data sets, software (Starry Night by Sienna Software and simulations from Riverside Scientific), and supplemental materials. The activities incorporate many of the instructional strategies found in the National Science Education Program Standards--emphasis on student understanding through inquiry, and connections to other school subjects—-to help achieve the content standards in physical science. A background section for teachers helps them interpret what student responses may mean in their search for alternative explanations. Assessment suggestions are also featured here. The book is designated for grades six through eight and fits with the National Science Education Standards for Earth science content.
I am excited and eager to try this book with my own students, both at the college level and during our summer resident astronomy camps. This book should be on the shelf of every middle school teacher, whether they teach science or not. What a find!
Review posted on 4/6/2001
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