Earth's Mysterious Atmosphere: Atlas 1 Teacher's Guide with Activities.

This atmospheric studies teacher's guide for use with middle school students blends lessons in chemistry, physics, and the life, earth, and space sciences in an attempt to accomplish the following: to nurture students' natural curiosity and excitement about science, mathematics, and technology; to encourage career exploration in science, mathematics, and technology; to foster critical and problem-solving skills; and to demystify science and demonstrate its relationship to other fields of study. The guide is divided into four sections, each of which follows the format of a detective case: (1) "The Scene: the Mysterious Atmosphere" explores the structure and composition of the Earth's atmosphere and its relationship to the planet, land, water, and sun; (2) "The Crime: Harming the Atmosphere" discusses greenhouse effect and ozone; (3) "The Suspects: Natural and Anthropogenic Causes" explores possible natural and human-caused sources of harmful change; and (4) "The Detectives: Working to Solve the Mysteries" gives students information about how scientists are working to answer questions about the atmosphere and how the students can become involved now and in the future. The 14 lesson provide background information for both students and teachers, hands-on activities, materials, procedure, open ended questions, reproducible activity sheets, suggestions for group or individual activities in other discipline areas, extension activities, and home activities to provide the opportunity for parent involvement. A glossary and resource section (lists of 16 related organizations, 11 publications, 6 videotapes, and brief information on NASA educational resources--Spacelink computer information service, satellite videoconferences, NASA Central Operation of Resources for Educators, and Teacher Resource Center Network) are included. (MCO)