Nature is a powerful force

The recent earthquakes and tsunami to strike Japan have a really humbling effect. In a matter of seconds, the life that you have for yourself can be turned upside down, shaken to the core and ripped away from you with no remorse.

In my grade three classroom, we are doing a unit called "How the World Works" and we are studying a central idea that states, "the natural world and human society are interconnected and change over time." The more we study this, the more I realize that even though we are interconnected, we need the natural environment, but nature would survive just fine (probably even better) without us. We rely on nature, but it relies on nothing other than itself - the reason a lot of it changes, is because of what *we* do. It's adapting to us, but it certainly doesn't need us. I'm in awe at the sheer power and force that the world possesses, and this is something that I hope to impart upon my students. Their worlds consist of video games, when am I going to get the latest gadget/toy to keep up with my friends, this math problem is too hard - I don't know what to do - tell me the answer. By hearing about events such as those happening in Japan or Libya (Ok, this one not so much at the grade three level but older grades...) I only hope that it puts into perspective how truly lucky our kids are and that they need to respect and appreciate where they live. It saddens me to think of all of those poor people in Japan that have lost absolutely everything. Homes destroyed, farmland destroyed, lives destroyed. And yet, with the power of the human spirit, they will rebuild and carry on. And when the Earth is ready again, it'll do the same thing all over. That's pretty humbling. But hey...it's How the World Works.