It seems that the Appalachian region of the United States has the greatest diversity of salamanders in the world. Apparently more than 70 different species live there in parts of Virginia, West Virginia and Kentucky. And in some ways, this makes the Appalachians a key place in the study of global temperature fluctuations and the possible effects of these fluctuations.Here is a great piece from Smithsonian Science:
http://smithsonianscience.org/2011/07/hellbender/
It seems that one particular type of salamander, the Hell Bender, breathe through their skin making them particularly sensitive to changes in the environment. Which makes them a particularly good point of study for scientists interested in the effects of global warming.Kids love this stuff! And an example such as this provides several different opportunities to teach. You can use a story like this to lead into a discussion of reptiles and amphibians and natural science in general. You can use it to talk about the interaction between different species and the environment. And you can use it to begin an examination of global warming patterns and the effect on living organisms.
In fact, information like this is exactly what we use in a couple of our science assemblies. Either makes for a great educational supplement but also a very entertaining time for the entire school.
Animals and The Environment deals specifically with how different environmental issues affect different species around the globe. We have two presenters for these programs. Jon is based in Michigan and works across the Midwest and on the East Coast teaching kids through school assemblies about the animals of the world and introducing them to the great “critters” that travel with him. Meantime, Dick is resident in the Chicago area and dazzles kids in Chicago land and lower Wisconsin with his thirty years of knowledge, enthusiasm and excitement, as well as his great bunch of animals and reptiles.
Our Changing Climate is a school assembly that examines the conditions we describe as “global warming” and some of the possible causes. The presenter is Jeff who is also based in Chicago but who makes regular forays into Texas, Ohio, Michigan and out East. So schools in New York or New Jersey looking for great school assemblies in this area have just as much opportunity to view one of these programs as do schools in Michigan or Ohio or Illinois.Regardless of where you live, these are interesting times we live in. Did you ever expect to hear that the North Pole was expected to be ice free one summer very soon?
It is important that our children learn about these issues. Finding teachable moments is one way to inform them. Great school science assemblies provide another!
Geoff Beauchamp is the Regional Manager of Mobile Ed Productions where "Education Through Entertainment" has been the guiding principal since 1979. Mobile Ed Productions produces and markets quality educational school assembly programs in the fields of science, history, writing, astronomy, natural science, mathematics, character issues and a variety of other curriculum based areas. In addition, Mr. Beauchamp is a professional actor with 30 years of experience in film, television and on stage. He created and still performs occasionally in Mobile Ed's THE LIVING LINCOLN.
