JGaskill

Here is what I learned today:
Two new things I learned about VOLCANOES:

1) Active volcanoes are those that have erupted at least once in the past four thousand years. 2) There are three different types of volcanoes: stratovolcanoes (Mt Vesuvius) that spew ash high into the air, blocking the sun and then covering outlying areas with ash and lava (such as Pompeii), cindercones that are usually very small and emit bits of lava through holes on the sides of the hill, and shield volcanoes that ooze lava that spreads across long distances (such as Mauna Loa in Hawaii).

The primary navigation strategy I found in my websites were navigation menus around the edges of the website. This way, the students could navigate directly to the information they need. Also included are buttons back to the homepage, which are also helpful.

An example of reliable sources can be found at the Discovery Channel for Kids website on volcanoes. [|Discovery Kids!] Here, there is a button marked sources. It cites the US Geological Survey as their source. As this organization of the federal government is dedicated to researching geological phenomena, it is safe to say that they are a reliable source.

Also found on the Discovery Kids! website is an interactive animation that gives visitors the opportunity to change the conditions of their volcano and see "first-hand" what type of volcano they've created. They can also watch and hear their virtual volcano erupt. On the National Geographic for Kids website were videos that showed real volcanoes erupting.

Book Activity #6 Part C Internet Activity: Volcanoes

After reading about Pompeii and Mount Vesuvius in Vacation Under the Volcano, you are going to do some research about volcanoes. After this Internet Activity, you will know Mount Vesuvius’s volcano type, and you will see why people chose to live near the volcano.

First, visit the “Volcano Explorer” website. The links for the four pages are on the left of the window. Use the website to answer the next two questions.

1.)	What are the three types of volcanoes? Which one is Mount Vesuvius? The three types of volcanoes are stratovolcano, cinder cone volcano, and shield volcano.  Mount Vesuvius is a stratovolcano.

2.)	Visit the “Build Your Own” volcano page. Play with the conditions to make a Mount Vesuvius.  Higher ‘viscosity’ means the lava is thick and high ‘gas’ has a lot of steam.  What are those conditions?  If you want, erupt your virtual volcano.

Mount Vesuvius has high “viscosity” and high “gas.”

Next, visit the “Facts About Volcanoes” page. The most important part of the page for this activity is “People and Volcanoes,” but you can read through the rest if you would like. Use this website to answer the next three questions.

3.)	How many people have died because of volcanic eruptions in the past 500 years?	200,000 people have died because of volcanic eruptions.

4.)	Why would people live in a town near a volcano?

The ground is good for farming.

5.)	Would you want to live near a volcano like Mount Vesuvius? Why or why not?

Answers will vary.