When I was still teaching high school, I was presented one quarter with the option of creating and teaching a science elective. Looking at what my department offered, I noticed a lack of courses that explored the earth sciences. At the time I was getting really interested in weather, and so I created a course called “Weather and Climate.”  As you might imagine, students did not exactly flock to the course. Those that did come had a rich learning experience; we structured the course around three large projects, and for our climate change unit we built a setup with an exhaust catcher, specific heat monitor, and CO2 sensor and burned a bunch of different fossil fuels. I felt it was a strong class, but was disappointed that not many students chose to take it. The next year, I expanded the scope of the class, and retitled it: “Natural Disasters.” The student response was… much better. Today I’d like to talk about some of the student-centered learning that can happen when students engage with natural disasters. Continue reading Natural Disasters in the Classroom →