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Tulip Garden Update: December 3, 2004

Today's Report Includes:

Use arrows on the Mapserver map to look for gardens in Europe. You'll find a surprise!
Gardeners Digging In Before the Snow (Barely)!
Since last month’s report a whopping 136 new gardens have been reported planted! Some of these gardens are located in warm climates and will be planted in 2005 after their refrigerated cold treatments.
You can read all the gardeners comments (press the "owl button" and follow instructions under "See Database"). That brings us to a total of 245 for the season so far. Hurry and plant your garden so it will be on the final map published in the next Update Jan. 7.
“Click on the Capital City Garden” Quiz

Try this fun challenge to locate the site of each capital in North America where a Capital Garden is planted.
So far, we have 28 capital cities across North America participating in the Capital City Garden project. How many can you find? How quickly can you find them?

Study Guides for the Capitals
Use the maps for a study guide to help you locate all the capital cities. Bookmark this list of cities, states and provinces. Then print your own study sheets!
Capital cities for USA
Capital cities for Canada
Albany Educator Spreads the RED…Again
Dreaming of spring and the Albany Tulip Festival
Carol Ann Margolis, Education Coordinator for Albany Convention Center is definitely spreading the RED in New York’s state capital! She writes:
“We sure have been busy planting tulips all over the capital of New York. Thanks again to the generosity of the City of Albany and the city gardener, Judith Stacey, we are proud to have 11 of the city’s public elementary schools participating and one middle school. The elementary schools participating include: School 16, School 18, School 19, School 20, School 27, and Albany School for the Humanities, Arbor Hill ES, Giffen Memorial School, Montessori Magnet Academy, Sheridan Preparatory Academy, Thomas S. O’Brien Academy of Science and Technology. In addition, Hackett Middle School students planted tulips at the Albany Heritage Area Visitors Center….while it was snowing!”
Hackett Middle School students planted tulips in the SNOW!
Students, teachers and community members alike are looking forward to spring in Albany. When do you predict those tulips will show their first shoots?
Sooner State Joins Capital City Gardens
Students all over North America are joining in the excitement of planting capital gardens. Here is one example:

“We are so excited and pleased to be a partner in the state/capitals tulip gardening project!
We sent off our Monarchs this week too!
Thank you again for the bulbs!

Sincerely, Mrs. Connie Copenhaver & 5th Grade Team
Mustang Creek Elementary School
The Sooner State of Oklahoma State Capital Tulip Gardeners”

Willkommen German Gardeners!
Can you say, “Willkommen Kaiserslautern?”
At Vogelweh Elementary School in Kaiserslautern, Germany, Fifth graders planned the sites and dug the trenches, then helped the younger students so that every student in the school planted a bulb for our garden!
Here's a peek at their planting day.

Visit the Vogelweh Web site to see themore of the German gardeners planting Red Emperor tulips.

Now find Kaiserslautern on your map (49.45 N, 7.78E) and study their location to answer this question:

Challenge Question #5:
“Will the tulips in Kaiserslautern emerge before or after your tulips? On what do you base your prediction? And, for a bonus; how far is the German garden from your garden?”

(To respond to these questions, please follow the instructions below.)

Celebrate the Solstice
The first day of winter is coming! This year it falls on December 22. In the Northern hemisphere it is the shortest day of the year. We also call this day the winter solstice – and some say it is a day when the sun seems to stand still in the sky. For many people it is a welcome day because afterwards the days lengthen, bringing spring!
Read more about this Celestial event:

You'll be amazed to watch the increase in sunlight while we wait for spring to arrive in the garden. Why not keep track of the daylight increase and the angle of the sun. Start December 22 - grab your meter/yard sticks and head outside to answer this:

Challenge Question #6:
“Use your body, or something on the school yard to answer this: How long is the sun's shadow on the shortest day of the year? How do you think this will change in 1 month, in 3 months?”

(To respond to this question, please follow the instructions below.)

Try This!
Don't miss this chance to start keeping a record to compare shadow length data from month to month. Do you have a spot in your room where the sun streams in through the window? This activity helps to demonstrate how the earth and sun may appear from a view in space.

Spotlight on Inquiry Strategy
Following the Sun, the record keeping experiment described in this update will generate lots of creative thinking in your classroom. Discussing ideas, data, "ahas," and possible explanations are vital for inquiry-based learning and reflect the way scientists work. Here are some tips to help you lead discussions that foster scientific thinking.
Teacher Tip: Mapping the Tulip Gardens
Jo Leland, who for years managed the Official Journey North garden in Texas is getting smart after all these years: "We'll be tracking tulips on a specialized map that shows where all current gardens are located," says Leland. "This will simplify things for the younger kids and save time (our most precious commodity) for everyone.

Read on to find out what she did:

Pearls of Planting Wisdom
Alton Central School’s 60-excited first graders planted tulips. Here's what they wrote:
I liked planting tulips! - Marisa
I liked putting my hands into the dirt and getting dirty! - Wyatt
I learned the skin is called the tunic! - Talisee
The tulips are going to grow nice! - Katelyn
The tulips are going to look very nice! - Kylieh
It was fun!- Hunter
Planting tulips was fun! - Colin
I learned that the tulip bulb is planted with the basal stem down in the soil and the roots grow from it. - Cammie
The point is facing up and it was really, really fun! - Luke
The tulip bulb has to be 17.8 centimeters deep! - Olivia
I learned that they sleep all winter! - Kolby
I learned that they die when they don't get water! - Tanner
Getting dirty was fun! - Tyler G.
It was fun! - Tyler B.
The “Spirit” of Planting
Lynbrook South Middle School took time to consider what planting means for many people in the world today.
“We read a Native American prayer named "Earth, Help Us Remember" to get in the 'spirit' of our planting. We worked hard in the cold morning but gained an appreciation for those who have to survive by planting vegetation for food and shelter.”

How to Report to Journey North

Don't forget to report when you have PLANTED your Journey North Garden

As soon as you plant YOUR garden, be sure to let us know! In next month's update, we expect to have many garden locations to report to you.

Simply press the "Owl" button to report from your site.Wait 5 minutes then refresh the map page to see your site pop up on the map. (From the same button, you can also "Go to the Sightings Database" and read comments from all gardeners.)

How to Respond to Today's Challenge Question

IMPORTANT: Answer only ONE question in each e-mail message.

1. Address an e-mail message to: jn-challenge-tulip@learner.org
2. In the Subject Line of your message write: Challenge Question #5 (or #6).
3. In the body of the message, answer ONE of the questions above.

The Next Tulip Garden Update Will be Posted on January 7, 2005.

Copyright 2004 Journey North. All Rights Reserved.
Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to jn-help@learner.org

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