World Wetlands Day.

Thanks to FreeFoto.com for the wetland image

Welcome back everyone!

I hope you had a nice break and are feeling refreshed and relaxed, ready for a fantastic new year at school. I know I am!

Did you know that Tuesday 2nd of February is World Wetlands Day? No? Well, now you do!

But, Mrs. Parrington (I hear you ask…) what is World Wetlands Day?

Let me tell you all about it.

According to the Victorian Department of Sustainability and the Environment…

“World Wetlands Day is an international day to celebrate all wetlands world wide. It is celebrated each year on 2 February to mark the anniversary of the signing of the Convention on Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar Convention) in Ramsar, Iran, on 2 February 1971. World Wetlands Day 2010 commemorates the 39th year since the Ramsar Convention was signed. There are now 159 nations who have signed up and are committed to conservation and the wise use of wetlands.”

http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/DSE/nrence.nsf/childdocs/-8946409900BAC6344A256B260015D4AF-BC30FFF2D27FA86DCA25729E000419CD-6E3D3968F1969D28CA25753F0000F741 accessed 31/1/2010

So there you go!

To find out more, have a look at the DSE World Wetlands Day website here. The URL is http://www.dse.vic.gov.au/DSE/nrence.nsf/childdocs/-8946409900BAC6344A256B260015D4AF-BC30FFF2D27FA86DCA25729E000419CD-6E3D3968F1969D28CA25753F0000F741

There are links to other websites, activity sheets and quizes you can do (I found a folding frog) can’t wait.

Get out there and celebrate our wonderful wetlands!

Happy National Science Week!

National Science Week 2009 logo

It’s National Science Week and time to celebrate!

The theme for this year is Ignite Your Imagination!

There are lots of wonderful things happening to celebrate science, check it out!

Have a look at the National Science Week website on http://www.scienceweek.gov.au/Pages/index.aspx

Find science week events in your state or click on the “Schools” tab for ideas.

Schools have a special theme Astronomy Science Without Limits – check out the schools webpage at http://www.scienceweek.gov.au/Schools/Pages/default.aspx

The CSIRO has it’s own National Science Week page filled with events, contacts, a science week blog, even a link to Twitter!

Check it out at http://www.csiro.au/events/NationalScienceWeek.html

The ABC also has a fantastic science site. Check it out at http://www.abc.net.au/science/

There are wonderful links to Australia’s First Astronomers, a night sky quiz and HEAPS of other wonderful links.

I LOVE the moon photos, so beautiful.

Remember, it doesn’t have to be a huge deal! A small experiment, a visit to the Zoo, Scienceworks and the Planetarium, the Museum or Aquarium. Even blowing bubbles or making balloon animals are all ways to celebrate science. Go for it

Dont forget to drop me a line and let me know how you celebrated National Science Week 2009.

Celebrating 40 years since the moon landing.

Thank you to edupics.com for the photo

Last week we celebrated the 40th anniversary on man landing on the moon.

To commemorate this historic event, several organisations have created interactive activities for us to experience, learn from and mostly enjoy.

Behind the News or BTN is a terrific TV program for children created by the ABC. Last week they ran a wonderful story about the Moon Landing.

An archive of the story can be found at URL: http://www.abc.net.au/news/btn/story/s2627599.htm

Along with their story, in the Extra Info section you can find links to several other stories and interactives.

ABC Science also has their own web page you can find at http://www.abc.net.au/science/moon/

It has photos, video, quizzes and and you can listen to the ABC’s original coverage of the moon landing!

We Choose the Moon is a brilliant interactive recreation of the Apollo 11 mission.

It was created by the John F Kennedy Presidential Library and Museum.

You can find them at URL: http://wechoosethemoon.org/

or check out Google Moon at URL: http://www.google.com/moon/ for tours of the Lunar Landing sites, 3D models and 360 degree photo panoramas.

Awesome!!!