Summer 2003
The Exploratorium EduNews is sent out in an email text format four times a year to teachers, school librarians, school administrators, professional developers, and others involved in K-12 education. Each issue includes announcements about Exploratorium-produced Webcasts, print publications, new online resources, and updates about our initiatives in teaching and learning.

Please feel free to forward EduNews to your colleagues and, if they like it, they can sign up for their own free copy at: <http://www.exploratorium.edu/educate/newsletter.html>.


CONTENTS
1-DIGITAL CLASSROOM ASSETS NOW AVAILABLE ON THE WEB
2-GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE RECEIVES A PIRELLI AWARD
3-CANDY CHEMISTRY
4-"SQUARE WHEELS" MAKES NY PUBLIC LIBRARY TEEN LIST
5-SURF THE WEB AND THE WAVES
6-FEATURED PATHWAY: EYEBALLS
7-INTEGRATING ART INTO MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHING: TREASURES FROM K12 INSTRUCTIONAL MEDIA CENTER

1. ***DIGITAL CLASSROOM ASSETS NOW AVAILABLE ON THE WEB
The Exploratorium Educator community is invited to participate in the Exploratorium Digital Asset Management Project (EDAM), funded by the Institute for Library and Museum Services. For the past two years, we have been collecting and digitizing museum materials related to interactive exhibits and scientific phenomena, including images, educational activities, and other exhibit-related resources. The primary goal of the project is to increase educator access to science education resources by creating an efficient means of distributing relevant digital assets.

Over 2000 digital photographs, QuickTime movies, PDF and Word files selected for educators are now available through a Web-based interface at: <http://sagan.exploratorium.edu/Cumulus5/ed/>

You will be able to search the database by keyword, display thumbnails of the results, select the ones you want to use, put them into a collection basket, and download them onto your desktop for educational use. Commercial use is strictly prohibited without permission. To obtain high-resolution versions for commercial use, please contact <permissions@exploratorium.edu>.

The database is now in a beta-testing phase. We are asking you to send us LOTS of comments about the ease or difficulty of using the database, what you could or could not find, and features you would like us to add or improve. We also would like to know how you use the assets. For questions and comments concerning this database, please send e-mail to
<edam@exploratorium.edu>.

2. ***GLOBAL CLIMATE CHANGE RECEIVES A PIRELLI AWARD
The Exploratorium's Global Climate Change Web site <http://www.exploratorium.edu/climate/about.html> received a Pirelli INTERNETional Award for best "Environmental Multimedia Project." The Global Climate Change: Research Explorer allows the public to examine the same data that scientists and researchers look at in studying global warming.

3. ***CANDY CHEMISTRY
<http://www.exploratorium.edu/cooking/candy/index.html>
Making candy is a delicious and fun art! But it's also a fascinating and precise science. When you're making candy, whether you know it or not, you are a chemist--transforming matter from one state to another! Satisfy your sweet tooth as you learn about the science of sugar, how to
make candy at home, visit a lollipop factory, and more.

4. ***SQUARE WHEELS MAKES NY PUBLIC LIBRARY TEEN LIST
<http://www2.nypl.org/home/branch/teen/index.cfm>
SQUARE WHEELS <http://store.yahoo.com/explo/squarewheels.html>, the
Latest in our popular Snackbook series, has been selected for inclusion on The New York Public Library's "Books for The Teen Age 2003 List," which selects the best of the previous year's publishing for teenagers 12-18 years old.

5. ***SURF THE WEB AND THE WAVES
<http://www.exploratorium.edu/theworld/surfing/>
Before surfers hang ten, they often surf the Internet to get current and future surfing conditions. Find out what makes a perfect swell, how the tides and weather affect the waves, about avoiding polluted water, and where to find tide and weather information.

6. ***FEATURED PATHWAY: EYEBALLS
<http://www.exploratorium.edu/pathways/guided/eyeballs_teacher.html>
Pathways are collections of support and assessment materials for teachers who bring their students to the Exploratorium. However, the principles in the Pathways can also be used with our Online Snacks, scaled-down versions of our museum exhibits. Each Pathway has two versions: one for teachers and one for students. The teacher version includes links to state science standards and provides additional support materials as well as sample answers to the worksheet questions.

The Eyeballs Pathway compliments our Seeing collection and Web site
<http://www.exploratorium.edu/seeing/index.html>.

After more than three years of research and experimentation, the Exploratorium's revitalized collection of exhibits on visual perception officially opened to the public in 2002. SEEING showcases classic Exploratorium exhibits as well as new visual experiences created especially for this project.

7. ***INTEGRATING ART INTO MATH AND SCIENCE TEACHING: TREASURES FROM K12 INSTRUCTIONAL MEDIA CENTER
Many of the Exploratorium's exhibits illustrate the subtle and beautiful connections between math, science, and art <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1110.cfm>, especially intriguing illusions. <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1235.cfm>.

Students, reviewing examples for Thinkquest <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1181.cfm> can dream about and plan their own on-line exhibits <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1235.cfm>.

Because the Web is graphically friendly, some students, even those new to
the Web and to digital resources, can apply their unique visualization
talents to learning science <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1250.cfm>.

Use simple software <http://www.k12imc.org/pg1267.cfm> to gain insights into the different learning styles of your students.

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