Chapter 15: Exploring Regional Climates with 360-Degree Photo Spheres

In a push to prepare middle school students to be scientifically literate it is helpful to reflect on how words and ideas get their meaning in the first place. Cavell (1981) argued, “…the saying of something when and as it is said is as significant as the meaning and ordering of the words said” (p. 34). For science educators, that means that a concept or an idea really gains its meaning when placed and studied within a particular context. The explosion of 360-degree photo spheres available provides an incredible opportunity to place a number of earth and science concepts in a physical context, while educating from a distance. In this lesson, students will use photo spheres to explore the factors influence regional climates and to engage in scientific practices authentically with actual landscapes. Through the ability to move through an image, zoom in and out, adjust perspective, and even move to adjacent satellite images and photo spheres, students are able to engage and explore virtually as an active process. Moreover, as opposed to a single static photograph, there is the opportunity for discovery as students move through the virtual landscape. It is also worth noting this lesson has a complimentary elementary lesson available in Teaching and Learning Online: Science for Elementary Grade Levels (Allaire & Killham, 2022).