VOICE FOR EVERYONE | Share your voice with KSHB 41’s Cassie Wilson
The temperature map around Kansas City this week has been full of bright red and orange colors - similar colors to the crayons used to illustrate weather lessons for Kansas City students.
KSHB 41 meteorologist Cassie Wilson visited Excelsior Springs Middle School Thursday to see how students are using this week's heat wave to think critically about weather.
Thinking outside the box like a pro- I mean how great is this lesson!?!? Mrs. Ivan used the @KSHB41 website and forecast to craft her lecture & lab today @ESSD40 pic.twitter.com/btfRZzTXC1
— ☀️ Cassie Wilson (@CassieKSHB) August 24, 2023
Katrina Ivan teaches 8th grade science at the school. She had an idea about a weather lesson but she first needed permission from the principal to take her students outside in the 90-degree heat.
The principal cleared the class for an eight-minute venture outside to perform their experiments.
The students re-purposed body temperature guns left over from the COVID-19 temperature checks a few years ago into surface temperature guns to learn about the specific heat capacity of different materials.
The students measured 11 different materials in direct sunlight and in the shade and were able to draw life lessons out of the science lesson.
"I learned that the direct sunlight really affects how hot things can get and if you wear lighter clothes is doesn’t absorb the sun as much," 8th grader Zane Pyzer said.
When life gives you lemons… make lemonade… or in this case… lesson plan! Tonight at 6 on @KSHB41 how one Excelsior Springs teacher is using this heat wave as a real time science experiment. @ESSD40 pic.twitter.com/2TSHZnWyFM
— ☀️ Cassie Wilson (@CassieKSHB) August 24, 2023
Ivan's creativity is helping her gain a fun reputation in the building - a reputation to find unique ways to connect the real world to her classroom.
When the administrators see her coming, they know to expect big and crazy ideas.
Those big ideas serve her students well.
“It’s definitely important for them to learn the science skills," Ivan said. "They need to be able to protect themselves from different weather situations and know how the weather impacts them.”
Check out this cuteness overload. In Independence, @fairmountgrit kindergarten teacher Margo Carmen had her students melting over this heat wave in a good way 🌈🖍️🌞 pic.twitter.com/jOgc0ekAjG
— ☀️ Cassie Wilson (@CassieKSHB) August 24, 2023
Fairmount Elementary School in the Independence School District is also home to a teacher looking to get creative.
Kindergarten teacher Margo Carmen used this week's heat as a learning opportunity.
In her lesson, students glued crayons to cardstock and placed some in the shade and some in direct sunlight.
After a while, they observed the difference between the two sets of crayons and illustrated their observations.
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