Resources for Teaching about Tragedy
Looking over the various resources listed that addressed hurricanes and what happened on 9/11 was an entertaining assignment. The assignment took longer than I planned because I kept getting sidetracked by links to related sights or I had to watch videos or view slideshows.
The hurricane resources were a little disappointing. I have found that finding resources that are appropriate for middle school aged children is difficult. Many resources are too young for them - primary aged material - or the resources are geared towards high school audiences. My poor babies in the middle get left out! I did see some sites that I thought were interesting or that I could adapt to meet the needs of my students. The "Why do different states have different weather?" link will be useful not only for information on hurricanes, but also as I teach lessons on the regions of the United States and how they are alike and different. I also plan to use the ideas discusssed in "Exploring cause and effect using expository texts about natural disasters." The Hurricanes site (#1) was much more useful than the Whole Child site.
I spent the majority of my time viewing resources on 9/11. Again, finding material appropriate for middle grades students is difficult. A lot of the suggestions also required resources that are difficult to access such as special commemorative magazines and newspapers. My favorite 9/11 resource was the Nick News video. I plan to use this video in my classroom Monday and have my students respond to what they view. We will also use the Fact vs. Fiction idea to review facts and opinions. Many of my students know very little about what happened on 9/11 and some of the information they know is flawed. The video will give them the facts in a kid-friendly way and open the door to discussions on a variety of topics.
The hurricane resources were a little disappointing. I have found that finding resources that are appropriate for middle school aged children is difficult. Many resources are too young for them - primary aged material - or the resources are geared towards high school audiences. My poor babies in the middle get left out! I did see some sites that I thought were interesting or that I could adapt to meet the needs of my students. The "Why do different states have different weather?" link will be useful not only for information on hurricanes, but also as I teach lessons on the regions of the United States and how they are alike and different. I also plan to use the ideas discusssed in "Exploring cause and effect using expository texts about natural disasters." The Hurricanes site (#1) was much more useful than the Whole Child site.
I spent the majority of my time viewing resources on 9/11. Again, finding material appropriate for middle grades students is difficult. A lot of the suggestions also required resources that are difficult to access such as special commemorative magazines and newspapers. My favorite 9/11 resource was the Nick News video. I plan to use this video in my classroom Monday and have my students respond to what they view. We will also use the Fact vs. Fiction idea to review facts and opinions. Many of my students know very little about what happened on 9/11 and some of the information they know is flawed. The video will give them the facts in a kid-friendly way and open the door to discussions on a variety of topics.
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