March 17, 2005

Hello again from Nettie, your PLATO Pathfinder to the Internet!

How can it be 6:00 p.m. on a Friday in Minnesota when it is 12:00 a.m. on a Saturday in London? Why does a flight from New York to Los Angeles take only 4 hours, but a flight from Los Angeles to New York takes 7 hours?

The answer is simple—time zones. Time zones affect everything we do, from the way we plan vacations to the times we can call friends and family long distance. The lessons below help to explain how time works, why we need time zones, and the advantages and disadvantages of standard time systems. With Daylight Savings Time just around the corner (April 3), now is a great time to explain to your students how time zones work.

Can Plants Tell Time?
In this activity, students recognize their own biological clocks and observe biological clocks in nature. Students explore the causes of biological rhythms and discuss the effects of changing time zones and daylight savings time on biological clocks.

Standards Alignments:
Virginia Science S.O.L.s K.1, K.6, K.8, 1.1, 1.7, 2.1, 2.5

Time Zones
This lesson helps students to explore different cultures and how time zones can have effects on the Earth and its countries. Students will gain a greater understanding of time zones and the history behind their creation. Students will also use the knowledge they gain to create a visual display of the different time zones and the cultures/environments found within them. While the focus of this lesson is on Hawaii, it can be adapted for any state.

Standards Alignments:
Geographic Standards 1, 5, 7

'Tis a Long, Long Way to Tipperary!
This lesson, supported by hands-on activities, video, and Internet will examine our reliance on latitude and longitude, not only to give us our location on maps but also to our connection to time and time zones. Students will explore the history of time-based navigation, practice finding the location of cities around the world based on their time zone, and determine the value of a time zone system.

New York Department of Education Standards:
Geography Standard 3, Mathematics Standard 3, Science Standard 4, Interdisciplinary Problem Solving Standard 7

National Science Standards 5–8:
Design and Conduct a Scientific Investigation; Use Appropriate Tools and Techniques to Gather, Analyze, and Interpret Data

Time and Time Again
In this lesson, students analyze the effects of time zone differences on how we function as a global community, focusing particularly on the turn of the millennium in 2000 as a way for students to calculate time zone differences. Students then use their knowledge to create and solve word problems involving time zones.

McREL Standards:
Mathematics Standard 1, 4, 9; Geography Standard 1, 3

Until next time,

Your PLATO Pathfinder to the Internet
nettie@plato.com