Mystery Class Reminder: February 2, 2002 Today's Report Includes: Let the Mystery Games Begin! On Your Mark, Get Set,...GO! Monday is the Day! Teacher Tips--Advice From the Pros! How to Participate (Please Read Carefully) Here's What You'll Do Let the Mystery Games Begin! The start of the Winter Olympics is just around the corner, and so is the start of Mystery Class! Right now there are 10 secret Mystery Classes hiding around the world, just waiting for you to find them. You'll have to pace yourself though. Over the 11 week marathon, you'll follow the changing weekly sunrise and sunset data, and the clues for all 10 locations. As you cross the finish line, you'll try to answer the BIG question: "Where in the world do you think our 10 Mystery Classes are located?" Join in the international search, and try to uncover the secret Mystery sites. The Mystery Class project is about to begin! On Your Mark, Get Set,...GO! Monday, February 4th is your first event in this year's Mystery Class project. Check your local newspaper on Monday and retrieve the sunrise and sunset times for that date. Be sure to record these times for your hometown. Then, on Friday, February 8th, we will post the first sunrise/sunset data for the 10 Mystery Classes that are hiding around the globe. Be sure to record these too. Continue to record your local sunrise/sunset data every Monday and record the secret classrooms' data every Friday. As you enter the home stretch after 11 weeks, be ready to unlock the secret of their locations. For more details to help you get started, take a look at the detailed Mystery Class information provided below, or see pp. 95-100 in the Teacher's Manual. Teacher Tips--Advice From the Pros! We always welcome insights from practicing Journey North teachers. Take a look at these instructive ideas from veteran Mystery Class teachers: Teacher Tips--Mystery Class How to Participate in Mystery Class Materials Needed: Mystery ClassDatasheet (11 copies) Mystery Class Graph 2002 (Download in either a PDF or Word): PDF Word Alternatively, Make Your Own Mystery Class Graph (2 per student) 11 colored pencils or markers (one color per Mystery Class and one color for your class) A source for local sunrise and sunset times Here's What You'll Do (Please Read Each Step Carefully) 1. Every Monday, between February 4 and April 15, record the time the sun rises and sets in your hometown. Your local newspaper should provide this information, or you may find it in a calendar from your area. Alternatively, look up sunrise/sunset times on the following web sites: Locations Worldwide Locations in U.S.Only 2. Calculate photoperiod by counting the number of hours and minutes the sun is up. For example, if the sun rises at 6:50 a.m. and sets at 17:30 p.m., the photoperiod for that day is 10 hours and 40 minutes. 3. Record the sunrise and sunset times and the photoperiod for each Monday at your hometown on a Mystery Class Datasheet. Then plot the photoperiod of your hometown on a Mystery Class Graph. ** Remember! Do NOT send your local sunrise & sunset data to Journey North! 4. Every Friday, we will post the sunrise and sunset data from our 10 Mystery classes. Notice: The data you receive on FRIDAYS will have been collected on the same MONDAYS your readings were collected. Many teachers divide their class into 10 groups, and give each group responsibility for a Mystery Site. To provide practice for your student groups, use your local photoperiod as an example. 5. Using the remaining 10 copies of the Mystery Class Datasheet, record the data from each Mystery Class site on a separate Datasheet and calculate the photoperiod. Then plot the photoperiod from each Mystery Class on your graph. Use a different colored pencil for each Mystery Class. (You may want to make a large, poster-sized graph for your class, where student groups could plot their respective sites.) 6. Beginning in March, clues about the geography and culture of each site will be included with the weekly data reports. On April 26, 2002, students will race to tell us where they think the 10 Mystery Classes are located. 7. May will be "Meet the Mystery Class Month". Each of the 10 secret Mystery Classes will introduce themselves on-line and you'll have a chance to correspond with them....whoever and wherever they are! Have fun and good luck! The Next Mystery Class Update Will be Posted: February 8, 2002 Copyright 2002 Journey North. All Rights Reserved. Please send all questions, comments, and suggestions to our feedback form