Hop Into Second Grade

Did you know that our world is divided into biomes of communities? Each biome has its own specific plant and animal life that have adapted to their particular environment. Explore Earth's different biomes by clicking on this website:

The World's Biomes Link

1. What are the two basic regions of the aquatic biome?
2. How much of the earth is covered by deserts?
3. What's the difference between the Arctic tundra and the Alpine tundra?
Challenge: Why are aquatic biomes considered the most important of all biomes?

Throughout our country's history, Native Americans have been treated unfairly. One of the most discraceful acts against Native Americans was the forced relocation of the Cherokee Indians, also known as the Trail of Tears. Learn more about it at:

Link to: The Cherokee Trail of Tears

1. How many miles were the Cherokees forced to walk?
2. When did this journey take place?
3. About how many Cherokee Indians died on this journey?

Challenge: What is the symbol for pain and suffering on the Trail of Tears? (Research on your own)

Did you know that the White House has 35 bathrooms? Take a tour of this presidential home at the following website and find the answers to the questions below:

Whitehouse.gov

1. How many floors does the White House have?
2. Who was the first president to live in the White House?
3. How many guests can the State Dining Rom hold for dinner or lunch?
Challenge: What is the largest room in the White House?

A Brief History of Jamestown, Virginia

Jamestown, Virginia, was the first permanent English settlement in the United States. How did James town get its start? What difficulties did colonists face? Browse through this site to find out:

Link to site

1. How did the colonists contribute to the failure of Jamestown?
2. What crop turned Jamestown into an economic success?
3. What name did Pocahontas take after converting to Christianity?
Challenge: What three objectives did king James give the London Company when he sent them to the New World?

There are many people who have had major influences in science. Listed below are questions about a few people. Please use the links to find the answers to the questions and post you answers in the blog.

Marie Curie

1.  What kind of scientific experiments did Marie Curie perform?
2. Name 2 reasons why the work of Curie is so important today.

Samuel F.B. Morse

1. What is Morse best known as the inventor of?
2. What inspired Morse to find a way to transmit messages with technology? What was that technology?
3. What words were chosen to be the first transmitted over a long distance? WHY?

Michael Faraday

1. What did Faraday help people understand?
2. Please name 3 inventions.
3. Please explain how his experiments with elecrticity and magnets effected others.

POSTED AT 08:41 AM

There are hundreds of active volcanoes around the world- and more and more people are living dangerously near them. Being able to predict when volcanoes might erupt could save many lives.  Start your study of volcanoes at this site:

http://www.learner.org/interactives/volcanoes/

1. How does magma become lava?
2. What are plate boundaries?
3. What are the most common and serious volcanic hazards?

Challenge:
What types of tools does a volcanologist use to monitor volcanoes?

Imagine what it would be like if the northern states waged war against the southern states today. Americans in the 1860's lived through just such a situation. Learn more about the devastating Civil War at:

The American Civil War Experience

http://library.thinkquest.org/3055/netscape

1. When was the Battle of Gettysburg fought?
2. When and where did General Robert E. Lee surrender?
3. Who stated "War is cruelty. There is no use trying to reform it. The crueler it is, the sooner it will be over."

Challenge:
Who was President of the Union during the Civil War?

There are hundreds of active volcanoes around the world- and more and more people are living dangerously near them. Being able to predict when volcanoes might erupt could save many lives.  Start your study of volcanoes at this site:

http://www.learner.org/interactives/volcanoes/

1. How does magma become lava?
2. What are plate boundaries?
3. What are the most common and serious volcanic hazards?

Challenge:
What types of tools does a volcanologist use to monitor volcanoes?

The universe is truly awe-inspiring, filled with wonders and mysteries. For example what holds the planets in our solar system around the sun? Why is Earth the only planet with life in our solar system? Find the answers to these and the questions below at the following site:

http://www.nasa.gov/audience/forstudents/k-4/index.html
http://kids.msfc.nasa.gov

1. What is the diameter of the sun?
2. How many Earth days long is a year on the planet Mercury?
3. What type of scientist studies the atmosphere of planets?

CHALLENGE: What is the heart of a comet called?