What is Planet Diary?
 Find it at planetdiary.com
 Science current events for the
classroom, by a teacher for students!
 Engage students via natural disasters.
 Strong focus on environmental issues.
 In-depth classroom activities for rigorous
exploration.
 Extensive archives dating to 1999 (
3,000+ journal entries!)
How Do I Use Planet Diary?
 EARTH’S JOURNAL engages
students with weekly science reports.
 ACTIVITIES offer in-depth investigation
of concepts & environmental issues.
 EARTH’S CALENDAR kicks off week.
 ARCHIVES track events over time.
 LINKS encourage further research.
Earth’s Journal Option #1:
 Assign for written homework.
 Students present orally.
Use globe to build geography
“muscles”!
Include writing prompts: The
main idea is . . . This is important
because . . . I learned that . . .
One question I have is . . .
Earth’s Journal Option #2:
 Write your own Planet Diary
“Scavenger Hunt.”
 Encourages critical thinking &
concept development.
 Develops writing skills.
 Integrates math.
Classroom Activities:
 In-depth exploration of concepts
& environmental issues.
 Guided webquests minimize
unfocused online time.
 Resources: USGS, NASA, EPA,
NOAA,
NSIDC etc.
 Develop critical thinking
& data analysis.
“Next Gen” PD Activities:
 Online activity for every lesson in new
Pearson middle school science
program (= 268 activities!!).
 Full answer key.
 Strong state/regional focus.
Ready summer 2010!
Sample PD Activities for FL:
 Florida’s River of Grass
(Fresh Water: Water Underground)
Beach Erosion in Florida
(Erosion: Waves)
Tracking U.S. Hurricanes
(Weather: Storms)
Your State’s Rock History
(Geologic Time: Geologic Time
Scale)
Archives:
Database searchable by event
type, date, and location.
Trace history or pattern of events.
(e.g. Hurricane Katrina, West Nile
spread, Indonesia quakes)
Use for research (archives go
back to 1999).
Earth’s Calendar:
 Fixed & variable date phenomena
and events.
 Fixed: meteor showers, hurricane
season, & special days or weeks.
 Variable: eclipses, full moon, etc.
 Lists important historical events.
Web Links:
 Cherry-pick best of the web to
support all Planet Diary event
categories.
 Starting point for research
& further exploration.