Students use bearing measurements to triangulate and determine objects' locations. Working in teams of two or three, they must put on their investigative hats as they take bearing measurements to specified landmarks in their classroom (or other rooms in the school) from a "mystery location." With the extension activity, students are challenged with creating their own maps of the classroom or other school location and comparing them with their classmates' efforts.

This template is to be used in the Connect, Explore, Engage professional learning series. Sign into WISELearn to create your own copy of this resource and update the template and this abstract.

Play with a bar magnet and coils to learn about Faraday's law. Move a bar magnet near one or two coils to make a light bulb glow. View the magnetic field lines. A meter shows the direction and magnitude of the current. View the magnetic field lines or use a meter to show the direction and magnitude of the current. You can also play with electromagnets, generators and transformers!

Generate electricity with a bar magnet! Discover the physics behind the phenomena by exploring magnets and how you can use them to make a bulb light.

In this lesson, students learn how to determine location by triangulation. We describe the process of triangulation and practice finding your location on a worksheet, in the classroom, and outdoors.

Ever wonder how a compass worked to point you to the Arctic? Explore the interactions between a compass and bar magnet, and then add the earth and find the surprising answer! Vary the magnet's strength, and see how things change both inside and outside. Use the field meter to measure how the magnetic field changes.

Students complete a series of six short investigations involving magnets to learn more about their properties. Students also discuss engineering uses for magnets and brainstorm examples of magnets in use in their everyday lives.

Students measure the relative intensity of a magnetic field as a function of distance. They place a permanent magnet selected distances from a compass, measure the deflection, and use the gathered data to compute the relative magnetic field strength. Based on their findings, students create mathematical models and use the models to calculate the field strength at the edge of the magnet. They use the periodic table to predict magnetism. Finally, students create posters to communicate the details their findings. This activity guides students to think more deeply about magnetism and the modeling of fields while practicing data collection and analysis. An equations handout and two grading rubrics are provided.

Explore the interactions between a compass and bar magnet. Discover how you can use a battery and wire to make a magnet! Can you make it a stronger magnet? Can you make the magnetic field reverse?

NUTSHELL:  In this lesson, students work in teams and use primary data sources, such as weather data and an emergency radio traffic log, to investigate the Cottonville Fire.  Using primary documents such as newspaper articles, students study how the fire was suppressed and evaluate successes and limitations to fighting the fire.  To conclude, teams are given post-fire landowner dilemmas to discuss.  
BIG IDEAS
In Wisconsin, there are two main types of wildland fire – wildfire and prescribed fire. Wildfires start without the intent of the landowner or land manager and are uncontrolled and unwanted. Prescribed fires are contained and are planned to meet the goals of a landowner or land manager.The ignition of wildland fire can be caused by human activity (e.g., debris burning and other outdoor burning, machine sparks, children playing with matches, power lines, fireworks) or natural sources (e.g., lightning, spontaneous combustion). Human activity is responsible for most wildland fires in Wisconsin.Fire requires oxygen, heat, and fuel to exist. Collectively these elements are known as the fire triangle. Under most conditions, the three elements can be manipulated to slow or stop the spread of fire.Fire behavior is influenced by topography, weather, and fuel characteristics. The fire season is determined by seasonal changes in weather and fuel.Wildland fire management has direct and indirect costs and benefits for the economy. Effective wildland fire management requires both financial and human resources.The wildland/urban interface is an area where human structures exist among wildland fuels. As people move into fire prone areas, the potential for ignition of wildland fire increases, and buildings and other human-made objects become a possible fuel source.
OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this lesson, students will be able to:
Explore the ecologic, economic, and social affects of wildfire.Examine multiple data sources to make predictions and draw conclusions about a natural phenomenon.Discuss how wildfire behaves and the factors that influence this behavior.Analyze wildfire suppression efforts and evaluate challenges in each.
SUBJECT AREAS Geography, Mathematics, Science, Social Studies
LESSON/ACTIVITY TIME
Total Lesson Time: 235 minutesTime Breakdown: Introduction--5 minutes; Activity 1--60 minutes; Activity 2--90 minutes; Activity 3 --40 minutes; Conclusion--40 minutes

Students create and use their own simple compasses, which are each made from a bowl of water, strong magnet, stick pin and Styrofoam peanuts. They learn how compasses work and about cardinal directions. They come to understand that the Earth's magnetic field has both horizontal and vertical components.

In this unit, students learn the very basics of navigation, including the different kinds of navigation and their purposes. The concepts of relative and absolute location, latitude, longitude and cardinal directions are explored, as well as the use and principles of maps and a compass. Students discover the history of navigation and learn the importance of math and how it ties into navigational techniques. Understanding how trilateration can determine one's location leads to a lesson on the global positioning system and how to use a GPS receiver. The unit concludes with an overview of orbits and spacecraft trajectories from Earth to other planets.

How does a sundial compass give us direction about people coming to the area that is now Wisconsin?

The first Europeans in the area that is now Wisconsin were likely French explorers and fur traders who began arriving in the 1600s and continued trading in the area after the French and Indian War. The Le Maire Sundial points us to this time and the history of northeastern Wisconsin.

This episode is part of The Look Back, a series made for learners in grades 4-6 that explores eras from Wisconsin’s history through artifacts. The collection is hosted by historians who model an inquiry process: sharing artifacts, asking questions, visiting archives and museums to learn more, telling the story of their findings as they go, and making connections to our lives today.

Maps are designed to allow people to travel to a new location without a guide to show the way. They tell us information about areas to which we may or may not have ever been. There are many types of maps available for both recreational and professional use. A navigator uses a nautical map, while an engineer might use a surveyor's map. Maps are created by cartographers, and they can be very specific or very general, depending on their intended use. The focus of this lesson is on how to read and use topographical maps. Students will also learn to identify the common features of a map. Through the associated activities, students will learn how to use a compass to find bearing to an object on a map and in the classroom.

In this activity, students will learn how to read a topographical map and how to triangulate with just a map. True triangulation requires both a map and compass, but to simplify the activity and make it possible indoors, the compass information is given. Students will practice converting a compass measurement to a protractor measurement, as well as reverse a bearing direction (i.e., if they know a tree's bearing is 100 degrees from you, they can determine what bearing they are from the tree). Students will use the accompanying worksheets to take a bearing of certain landmarks and then start at those landmarks to work backwards to figure out where they are.

In this activity, students will learn how to actually triangulate using a compass, topographical (topo) map and view of outside landmarks. It is best if a field trip to another location away from school is selected. The location should have easily discernable landmarks (like mountains or radio towers) and changes in elevation (to illustrate the topographical features) to enhance the activity. A national park is an ideal location, and visiting a number of parks, especially parks with hiking trails, is especially beneficial.

Students learn how to identify the major features in a topographical map. They learn that maps come in a variety of forms: city maps, road maps, nautical maps, topographical maps, and many others. Map features reflect the intended use. For example, a state map shows cities, major roads, national parks, county lines, etc. A city map shows streets and major landmarks for that city, such as hospitals and parks. Topographical maps help navigate the wilderness by showing the elevation, mountains, peaks, rivers and trails.

Students learn how to take bearings using orienteering compasses. They also learn how to describe a bearing and find an object in the classroom using a bearing.

In this lesson, students are shown the very basics of navigation. The concepts of relative and absolute location, latitude, longitude and cardinal directions are discussed, as well as the use and principles of a map and compass.