Teaching science
When we added Singapore Science to our homeschool mix, we didn't have any lofty goals other than just provide us a proven structure to use for science. We liked that it offered us a noted Asian curriculum in English, but that was about it.
Our next unit has us most excited....
More after the jump
Once again, we are venturing into a subject I might know a little about.
We might add a field trip or two, to supplement the text, once we get back to China.
Among the books Myles received for Christmas was Wonderful Life with the Elements. I bought it based on this Geek Mom review, and I hoped it would be an interesting addition to our science studies. I have enjoyed this book almost as much as he has, particularly the prominence given to rare earth elements, and those elements that are used in permanent magnet alloys.
In American kids' books about magnets or magnetics, the most common images are of horseshoe and bar magnets. While these are very recognizable shapes for magnets, they don't have much use in the real world. The materials they are made of, one or another grade of Alnico, are among the oldest permanent magnet alloys developed and have only a few niche applications. Seldom have I seen a children's book delve into more recent magnetic developments.
Wonderful Life with the Elements is originally a Japanese book, so I am not entirely surprised this book meant for general consumption includes some information pretty specific to rare earth magnets. Japan is still a powerhouse in manufacturing NdFeB and SmCo magnets, while in the US the manufacture of these products has almost disappeared. But it still struck me that there might be a huge gap between the scientific and industrial literacy between Japan in the US. For instance, here are two of these kinds of pages.
During the time in 2010, when the Chinese rare earth export quota was everywhere in the news, it was painful for me reading such things as "rare earths make wind turbines turn" (no, that would be the wind) or hearing news readers stumble over the pronunciation of "neodymium." No one would expect a random person to be able to explain metallurgical details of magnets or intricacies of their applications. But I have to wonder what a reasonable level of scientific literacy would be, and hope that we are helping our kids achieve it.
Unlike the math books, the Singapore Science are not adapted for the American market. Our living in China has helped us a little with at least being familiar with some of the fruits, like durian, that are used as examples. I do sometimes have to look up details like how sugar cane is grown, and what part of the plant we actually eat, so Myles can compare it with how we use the tomato plant.
I was surprised, then, when this question came up on Myles' Systems test. Fortunately, our living in China all this time has introduced him to this popular Asian system.
Our next unit has us most excited....
More after the jump
Once again, we are venturing into a subject I might know a little about.
We might add a field trip or two, to supplement the text, once we get back to China.
Among the books Myles received for Christmas was Wonderful Life with the Elements. I bought it based on this Geek Mom review, and I hoped it would be an interesting addition to our science studies. I have enjoyed this book almost as much as he has, particularly the prominence given to rare earth elements, and those elements that are used in permanent magnet alloys.
In American kids' books about magnets or magnetics, the most common images are of horseshoe and bar magnets. While these are very recognizable shapes for magnets, they don't have much use in the real world. The materials they are made of, one or another grade of Alnico, are among the oldest permanent magnet alloys developed and have only a few niche applications. Seldom have I seen a children's book delve into more recent magnetic developments.
Wonderful Life with the Elements is originally a Japanese book, so I am not entirely surprised this book meant for general consumption includes some information pretty specific to rare earth magnets. Japan is still a powerhouse in manufacturing NdFeB and SmCo magnets, while in the US the manufacture of these products has almost disappeared. But it still struck me that there might be a huge gap between the scientific and industrial literacy between Japan in the US. For instance, here are two of these kinds of pages.
During the time in 2010, when the Chinese rare earth export quota was everywhere in the news, it was painful for me reading such things as "rare earths make wind turbines turn" (no, that would be the wind) or hearing news readers stumble over the pronunciation of "neodymium." No one would expect a random person to be able to explain metallurgical details of magnets or intricacies of their applications. But I have to wonder what a reasonable level of scientific literacy would be, and hope that we are helping our kids achieve it.
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