Whats New

Earth's Seasons from Enchanted Learning. Find out about the Equinox, the Solstice, and the seasons of the year at this fine offering.

Every place on earth experiences a 12 hour day and a 12 hour night twice a year on the Spring and Fall Equinox.

Learn about Summer and Winter Solstices, and more about the Spring and Fall Equinoxes, below!

Equinox: Sun rises due east and sets due west from EarthSky Also it's one of only two days a year when day and night are 12 hours each. Another good, fact-filled equinox page with good graphics. You just can't get enough knowledge!

This is our ever changing list of recently added sites, plus an occasional oldie.
Generally, sites get added on the top and eventually get taken off the bottom.

These Oligocene carbonite sediments exposed on the Ionian Island of
Antipaxos are, to put it politely, deformed. These are "synasedimentary" slump
folds, meaning, they were formed by the deformation of these strata while they
were still, essentially, mud on the bottom of the Oligocene sea. When these
layers of muds were deposited on a slope, some small trigger (such as an
earthquake) added just enough force for them to detach, and start sliding down
slope – a sort of a sub aquatic avalanche of slippery sediments. The sediments
were in the initial stages of lithification, strong enough to hold together, but
mushy enough to fold. In sliding downwards, they deformed, they rotated, they
became a true mess, even as in this outcrop, looking as if they're in knots.
Credit: Miltos Andreadis #GeologyHere #GeologyCamera
from Fb: Geology of the World and the Environment
Going in Earth Science

Dame Jocelyn Bell Burnell, who discovered pulsars in 1967 at age 20,
will receive a $3 million Special Breakthrough Prize in Fundamental Physics.

Pulsars are fast-spinning and highly magnetized stars. See how they work here.
Credit: by Karl Tate, Infographics artist. This article also has a good video
about pulsars. Going in Astronomy and in Women's History

Here is a fine Fb video of a hummingbird moth, taken by
a lady in Two Harbors, Minnesota. Thanks, Mary Ann W. L.!

In honor of Women's Equality Day we present
First Woman to Officially Run the Boston Marathon,
about Kathrine Switzer and Bobbi Gibbs in the 1967 marathon.
Switzer officially registered using her initials, Gibbs jumped out of the bushes
at the start line and joined in. Both were disguised as men at first. Gibbs
finished with a time of 3 hours 21 minutes, Switzer was assaulted by the
head of the Marathon organization who tried to drag her off the track. Her
boyfriend tackled him and she kept running. She finished in 4:20.
Another video is about Switzer only.
Kathrine Switzer: First Woman to Enter the Boston Marathon
is more dramatic and drives home the point that the old men in charge
would not believe a woman could run 26 miles until it was rubbed in
their faces by women like Switzer and Gibbs.
Going in Women's History

A back-to-school oldie but goodie!
Saxon Math - Basic Facts Practice If kids need to drill, this site is the place to do it!
Very good and well organized site. In these times when many public schools are discouraging
math drills, sites like this one become essential for your child's math education.

"The Perseid meteor shower peaks this weekend.
Here’s how to catch the spectacular show."
When and where to look, depending on where you are on Earth.

Aztec Death Whistle

In the 1990s, archeologists in Mexico City unearthed a 500-year-old skeleton
near an ancient Aztec temple— human sacrifice with no head!
Even more chilling was what the beheaded skeleton was holding:
two small whistles, one in the shape of a skull.
When a researcher blew into one of the tiny instruments, it sounded like
“a shriek of death!” Now imagine thousands of warriors blowing these
whistles all at once! Going in Ancient History

The Snail-Smashing, Fish-Spearing, Eye-Popping Mantis Shrimp From PBS & DeepLook
This video is a good overview of these amazing animals, that can see in 12 colors compared to
our three colors ( RGB - red, green, blue). They also use polarized light to signal each other.
Going in Animals

How Elephants Listen ... With Their Feet From PBS & DeepLook "African elephants
may have magnificent ears, but on the savanna, they communicate over vast distances
by picking up underground signals with their sensitive, fatty feet." An excellent 4:32
video. Going in Animals

How Mosquitoes Use Six Needles to Suck Your Blood From PBS & DeepLook
"Seen up close, the anatomy of a mosquito bite is terrifying. The most dangerous animal
in the world uses six needle-like mouthparts to saw into our skin, tap a blood vessel
and sometimes leave a dangerous parting gift." (Sounds like fracking.) An excellent 3:17 video.
Going in Animals and Health

Mechanism of a Mosquito Bite This 2:25 video describes the mechanisms a mosquito
uses when biting their prey. Probably more than you want to know, but it's informative.
Going in Animals and Health

This oldie is in Geography! You will know all the US states' names and their proper spelling
by the time you finish.

50 States in 10 Minutes Can you type in the correctly spelled names of all 50 US
states in 10 minutes? Type them in any order, can even be all lowercase, but must
be correctly spelled. "Helpful" countdown timer tells you how much time is left, adds stress.

Nellie Bly FB video about the pioneering female reporter and journalist. An example to all
reporters everywhere. Going in Women's History

The Declaration of Independence from the National Archives This is the
introductory page. From here you can access lesson plans, history, origins of this
document, and more.'The Declaration of Independence states the principles on which
our government, and our identity as Americans, are based. Unlike the other founding
documents, the Declaration of Independence is not legally binding, but it is powerful.
Abraham Lincoln called it “a rebuke and a stumbling-block to tyranny and oppression.”
It continues to inspire people around the world to fight for freedom and equality.
Going in History

Declaration of Independence: A Transcription from the National Archives
"The following text is a transcription of the Stone Engraving of the parchment Declaration
of Independence (the document on display in the Rotunda at the National Archives Museum.)
The spelling and punctuation reflects the original." Now you can read it for yourself. Some
parts may not make sense to you unless you know the history of those times.
"the merciless Indian Savages" is offensive to Native Americans. " abolishing the free System
of English Laws in a neighbouring Province" refers to Canada. Going in History

For divergent, think Adaptive Radiation (Galapagos finches, the explosion of
new species during the Cambrian)
For convergent, think wolves/coyotes/dingos vs the Thylacine (Tasmanian tiger).
Going in Animals and Living Things

How Evolution Turned A Possum Into A Wolf Explains convergent evolution,
analogous vs homologous traits. "Totally unrelated species share a trait NOT due
to a common ancestor". This is also a story of adaptive radiation - all the marsupials
of Australia had possum-like ancestors. When the non-avian dinosaurs died off,
these possums found themselves on a vast continent with no competition; so they
filled in all those empty niches by evolving to fit them. The wolf in this story is the
Thylacine (Tasmanian tiger). You also learn the difference between plantigrade and
digigrade feet. Thylacines looked like wolves, ran like wolves, and ate like wolves.
They even had teeth like wolves. But they also had a pouch to grow their babies in.
Going in Animals and Living Things

Wombat Information Center Learn about wombats! No, it's not a bat, it's a
marsupial from Australia. "Wombats are large burrowing mammals found only in Australia.
Being rather timid and primarily nocturnal, they're difficult to observe in their natural habitat
and haven't been well studied." Learn about these koala cousins; what they eat, their habits,
their amazing digging abilities, their nocturnal lifesyle. Going in Animals

The Great Monarch Migration 4:48 video "The greatest migration on Earth sends
tens of millions of Monarch butterflies from all over North America down to this small
forest in Mexico. Seeing this overwintering site of the monarch butterfly in real life
is even more miraculous than you can imagine." Going in Animal Cams

The Age of Reptiles in 3 Acts 10:30 video covers the entire Mesozoic!
Begins in the Permian, covers Triassic, Jurassic, & Cretaceous. Very detailed
descriptions and explanations. "Reptiles emerged from the Paleozoic as humble
creatures, but in time, they grew to become some of the largest forms of life
ever to stomp, swim, and soar across the planet. This Age of Reptiles was a
spectacular prehistoric epic, and it all took place in a single era: the Mesozoic.
From Eons (BIG collection of videos) and PBS.

World’s Largest Sea Turtle a short video of a huge sea turtle feeding on the bottom.
"Scuba Divers in Maui, Hawaii made an incredible discovery on the ocean floor when they
came across what they are claiming is the biggest Sea Turtle ever captured on video or
pictures. The leatherback is the largest species of sea turtle."

Here are two sites that tell you the location of the ISS (International Space Station),
since the site we originally posted has gone to sleep.

Where is the ISS? This the ESA (European Space Agency) site. It does the job. Elegant small site.

ISS Tracker Small site that still is able to display Latitude and Longitude to 3 digits; it also shows
speed and altitude. Toggle button lets you choose "English" or metric measures.

Sumer Is Icumen In Here is an example of the evolution of the language. On the left, the original song from the mid-13th century (about 1250, give or take). On the right, modern English. "The title translates approximately to "Summer Has Come In" or "Summer Has Arrived". The song is composed in the Wessex dialect of Middle English." (Wikipedia) Also, þ = th sound: "Groweth seed and bloweth meadow." This is sung in the round.

Bullock starteth, buck f*rteth; known as a "buck snort" in the southeast USA.
It has to do with impressing the does.

Second Chances: Tilly the River Otter NatGeo video (4:00) about a rescued
orphan otter baby. Tilly has to be taught to swim. Put with a rescued boy otter,
Tilly soon has her own babies. Watch as she raises them to be competent adults.
Great cinematography. NatGeo has oodles of these videos.

Going in Animal Cams

Can you Spot The Animals Hidden in These Photos? NatGeo article.
"From leafy seadragons hidden among coral to vipers submerged in sand,
see all the ways animals conceal themselves in nature." 43 photos showing
disguised and camouflaged animals. Some hide to keep from being eaten,
some hide to hunt. Going in Animals

Helmets of Ancient Greece from Mycenaean times (upper left) to late Hellenistic times (lower right)

One for each sediment layer.
Organic Layer: Chocolate Cake
Top Soil Layer: Carrot Cake
Subsoil Layer: Walnut Cake
Parent Material Layer: Oreo Cookie Cake
Bedrock Layer: Vanilla Cake

Going in Earth Science

Sumeria Mesopotamia
Sumerian Cloisonné Ring, Iraq, ca. 3000 BCE. (Louvre, Paris)
Cloisonné is an ancient technique for decorating metalwork objects,
in recent centuries using porcelain enamel, and in older periods also
inlays of cut gemstones, glass and other materials.

Game of $urvival - Have you got the dollars and sense
to make it through a whole month with cash to spare?

Older kids could try this using names
of states, provinces, counties,
rivers, lakes, oceans, you name it!

Baby Hippo and baby Rhino are best friends! "When Charlie the baby hippo lost his mom,
he was rescued by a rhino orphanage and became best friends with a little rhino.
There was only one problem — Charlie grew up thinking he was a rhino too! Today on Odd Couples,
watch how Charlie eventually learned to act like a hippo, even though he'll always come back for
snuggles with his favorite rhino!" From Odd Couples on Facebook.

dogs looking out the window

Younger or older, students always like to see new "sites"!

to top of page to Good Sites

Good Sites! Good sites for kids. Good sites for teachers. Good sites for parents. Good education sites for all.