Erik Belcher
Hilo High School
HI

Tides and Currents

Sat, Apr 07, 2012 1:59 AM
SciGuide Review – Tides and Currents

The key points of Tides and Currents that made an impression on me were the clarity of the explanations of the physics behind tides and currents, the wealth or resources that are made available for learning or teaching, and the real-world applications of the science. What causes tides and why they vary from place to place was explained in a way that was clear and easy to understand. Links to other resources were made available for additional information. The resources provided through links of other web sites are amazing. However, if time is limited you can get a very good understanding of tides and currents without exploring all the resources and only reading the main pages. All the topics had an applications link that provided information on real-world us of the knowledge. I see many uses in my teaching practice. As a high school mathematics teacher of special education I can use topics from the physics of tides and currents to develop lesson plans to apply the math standards the students are learning in my classes. Additionally, I can use the information to teach students about ocean safety issues involving tides and currents. To improve the SciGuide – Tides and Currents I would like to see lesson plans that are written for a wider range of ages. All the lesson plans were written for high school students. It would improve the site to have some lesson plans available to elementary and middle school students. Another suggestion I have is that the links to other resources be prioritized. Although I liked have all the resources available, it would save time to have a system that let you know what resources where more important than others.