It's About Time!

It’s New Year: time to think about time. How do we keep track of it? Does it really fly – or does it seem to stop at times? And is it really all relative?

CONNECT:

• What is the history of time? Walk through time at http://www.nist.gov/pml/general/time/index.cfm
• Father Time is often pictured as the old year passes. Discover the story of Old Father Time at http://www.novareinna.com/festive/oft.html
• Clocks with hands are usually analog; others are digital (such as a numbers on a LED screen). Here’s a video about analog and digital: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yfyAen-bJS8
• Now bend your mind around the idea of time being relative: http://trendingsideways.com/index.php/the-theory-of-relativity-for-kids/

CREATE:

• Before there were clocks there were sundials. Find out how they work, and make your own: http://www.sundials.co.uk/
• If you’ve seen New Year’s celebrations on TV, you probably know that the new year arrives earlier in Australian than in Hawaii. Why is that? Find out at  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=widWLhIIbzs.  You can calculate the time difference between two cities using http://www.timeanddate.com/worldclock/converter.html
• You can build a clock that runs on potatoes! Follow these videos to make your own: http://www.wikihow.com/Make-a-Potato-Clock
• A year is calculated on the basis of one complete orbit around the sun. So your age would be different on other planets.  http://www.exploratorium.edu/ronh/age/ will calculate your birthday on other worlds (maybe a nice idea for parents).

CARE:

• Here are tips for better time management; you can try them out as a family: http://www.parents.com/kids/responsibility/time-management/
• Teach kids how to tell time using this interactive simulation: http://www.timemonsters.com/ or video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrxZWNu72WI
• Teaching games? Need a stopwatch or countdown? Use this website: http://www.timeanddate.com/counters/
• It can be hard to live without a watch. You can donate old clocks and watches for other children to repurpose. Check it out at http://prestwickhouse.blogspot.com/2011/05/donate-old-watches-for-great-cause.html

CAREERS:

Many jobs depend on time: food and hospitality, transportation, medicine, education, sports – think of some others.  Some jobs have time as their central concern: watch makers, jewelers, astronomers and geologist (who have a different sense of time). Find out the details at:

• http://jimsmuse.wordpress.com/2008/03/24/watchmaker/
• http://jimsmuse.wordpress.com/2008/05/01/geologist/
• http://www.noao.edu/education/being-an-astronomer.php
• You might even work at the home of Greenwich Mean Time: http://www.rmg.co.uk/about/history/royal-observatory/

Going Around in Circles

It’s the holiday time, and circles feature largely: wreaths, circular cookies  and pastries, haloes, and even the end of the year circles back to January. Let’s circle around circles….

CONNECT:

• Even in pre-history people considered circles to have magic mystical powers.  Visit these ancient stone circles virtually at http://www.megalithic.co.uk/.
• A few years ago, crop circles were very popular. Some people thought they were created by aliens. We know now that humans created them, but they are still awesome! http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/photos/gallery/crop-circles/
• When we think of circles, the image of pies may come to mind. But what about the concept of pi? That is also related to circles. Figure out how at http://www.exploratorium.edu/pi/index.html
• Amaze your family and friends about circle facts: http://www.kidsmathgamesonline.com/facts/geometry/circles.html

CREATE:

• Sing the circle song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LlXnXf6FSq8. Try making up your own song about circles.
• A round is a song that goes around and around.  Learning about singing rounds with children at http://spinninginmyteacup.wordpress.com/2008/04/20/singing-rounds-with-children/
• Hear lots of songs that you can dance to in a circle: http://www.juliewyliemusic.com/pages/dancing.html
• Have you heard of a literature circle? It’s a fun way to share reading. Learn how to start at literature circle at http://www.lauracandler.com/strategies/litcirclemodels.php. Try an online literature circle using a wiki (such as http://www.pbworks.com).

CARE:

• We’re all connected in the circle of life. Join in that circle at http://www.morning-earth.org/TreesCirclesLife.html.  You can find out more about the circle of life at http://www.fi.edu/tfi/units/life/living/living.html
• Celebrate the holidays AND Mother Earth by making wreaths from recycled materials: http://alphamom.com/family-fun/holidays/diy-holiday-wreaths/
• Make some circular cookies as gifts. Here are some kids’ cookie recipes as starters: http://www.bettycrocker.com/recipes/event-or-occasion/kids-recipes/kids-cookie-recipes?term=Kids+Cookie&nv=4294965409&ps=12&pi=1
• Circle of Care is an organization that helps families of children with cancer. Here are some activities that help children understand this disease; there are also activities that these children can play – and your family might play along with them: http://www.thecircleofcare.org/our-programs/kid-stuff-2

CAREERS:

Do you feel like you’re going around in circles thinking about careers? Here’s a circle of ideas:

http://www.iseek.org/careers/aboutclusters.html