This request came in from WUWT reader Michael, who’s concerned that “My daughter’s fifth grade class is currently being indoctrinated regarding “human caused” climate change.” and he wants to know what film might be a good response.
My daughter’s fifth grade class is currently being indoctrinated regarding “human caused” climate change. Her teacher sent home a note informing parents that she will be screening CNN’s Planet in Peril, which she described as “fairly objective”.
Is there a good film I could recommend the teacher to show to provide balance to my daughter’s class. Any other assistance with a response to her teacher would be most appreciated. Below is the email from my daughter’s teacher.
Thanks,
Michael
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Hello Parents,
I want to make you aware of a documentary we are watching in 5th grade. It is produced by CNN and is called “Planet in Peril.” This video is meant to introduce students to the idea that the earth is warming and that all effects of this warming has a ripple effect. In my view, it is fairly objective, and attempts to examine whether this problem is man-made or not.
My intent is to make students aware of the scientific research that is out there, and encourage them to do their own research on an aspect of this science that interests them.
Please communicate any concerns you have about this as soon as possible. I am happy to make any adaptations for your child tailored to your concerns.
Thank you,
Mrs. A
5th Grade General Studies
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My first thought would be this video from Dr. David Evans,
Another would be the 50 to 1 video:
I’m sure readers can suggest other videos.
Lost cause. Anyone who could write “In my view, it is fairly objective, and attempts to examine whether this problem is man-made or not.” in regard to “Planet in Peril” is clearly incapable of making rational judgments (on any subject!).
Give her some credit for the ‘red flag’ note, which gave the parents time to step in, and here’s hoping they did. Political indoctrination of any sort aimed at children in their own ‘safe’ classrooms must be fought. She gave the parents of her students (students of WHAT? History? Geography? Science?) an opportunity to do so. At minimum, this note self-acknowledges the inappropriateness of the showing, and that is telling.
milodonharlani says:
May 12, 2014 at 3:56 pm
“Hide the Decline”, I love it!! “Draggin the Line” is one of the oldies I do with the band I play with. Bunch of us old geasers play old time rock and roll and lots of folks are still around that like to dance to it. Will now try these new lyrics.
Thanks,
Jim G
Maybe “Unstoppable Solar Cycles”, izzit.org
These nutters should be held accountable for the lies told to these innocents as fact. Disgusting.
I’m not sure you have to show an entire movie. Just some one off links. One of the things I do with the uninitiated is to take them to the WUWT sea ice page and show them a couple of the arctic ice graphs. They inevitably go “so it true….” at which point I say, sure….but let’s scroll down to the antarctic. They inevitably look at those graphs and then have a WTF moment.
I usually follow that with a Wood For Trees intro and graph CO2 versus temps over the last 20 years. That usually results in another WTF moment. Basically ten minutes, 3 graphics, and serious doubt it raised.
“Steve Oregon”
That video is a prime example of pseudo-intellectual snark on American TV. But it is quite smartly devised by Bill Nye’s support team. Since he loses every debate, imagine a debate he can win!
Another example of the bogus “97%” meme.
From personal and first hand experience: one of the biggest challenges in teaching is boredom. Teachers frequently risk entering controversial areas in an attempt to raise student interest. In this case parents have been given advance notice, with what appears to be a sincere invitation to put forward alternative points of view. I would take that at face value.
Not sure I would be looking for a ‘film,’ though. Since she has explicitly stated the goal of students looking for themselves at research, it might be most effective to get something straight ‘from the horse’s mouth.’ Say, video of formal testimony by the likes of Drs. Linzen, Chisty, or Spencer.
I wold give the teacher the benefit of the doubt. The power of the media being what it is, the chances are fairly good she has never seriously considered skeptical viewpoints. If she is really fair minded, she will commend a student who understands due diligence. Review Dale Carnegie before contacting her….
: > )
When I was a kid in the 1960s there was an animated cartoon that occasionally appeared early Saturday morning on local WCBS in NYC when they would show really old cartoons. Black & white (i.e. grayscale), music, no voices. Animal characters. Some of the animals build a big Halloween pumpkin face and set it up in front of the Moon, scaring the rest of the animals. After a while the rest of the animals discover the fraud, and chase the fraudsters. I’ve looked very hard for this cartoon online, and have explored Wikipedia articles on animated cartoon companies and lists of their cartoons from the early 20th Century. No luck so far. Anybody remember it?
There is a pretty good selection of videos here:
http://www.co2science.org/video/dvdarchive.php
And, their publications are worthwhile as well.
10:10. no Pressure.
http://youtu.be/PDXQsnkuBCM
This is a few years old now, but it may yet be helpful: http://climatelessons.blogspot.co.uk/2010/07/wiping-floor-with-albert-gore-sensible.html
Puzzling about moderation?
Seems to me that we need a tailor made counter measure. Topher’s 50:1 is excellent but maybe a little too detailed for the younger audience. My suggestion as an interim step would be for parents to get hold of Ian Plimer’s book “How to get expelled from School”. While not a movie, it does provide responses to inaccurate statements on the climate being delivered by teachers.
I was once invited to a meeting to help review a new school science curriculum. Most attending the meeting were teachers or educationalists. I was one of the only scientists there. At the outset of the meeting the education professor conducting it stood up and said something like “As we are short of time, I propose we skip over the routine material at the start and go straight to discussion of the important topics in the last section.” The “routine material” she proposed to skip described all of the science. The last section consisted of political drivel that I had completely ignored when reviewing the document.
You could demand Mrs A stop scaring your 5th grade daughter. Its a problem I’m going to face in the next year or two, I’m certainly going to be pushy about not having her watch horror films until she is old enough to deal with them, and to see them in context as fiction.
I would guess that Penn and Teller’s BS Global Warming and George Carlin’s bit(“The planet is fine, the PEOPLE are ) would get a fifth grade teacher fired.
Tiny Tim, The Ice Caps Are Melting.
The kids might enjoy it, or go Eech, but its short and the follow up discussion could consider the possibility that forcing children just like them to watch such dreck 50 years ago may be the cause of the current fearful few who compromise the Cult of Calamitous Climate.
Achtung!
I find that the chart of “no global warming for 17 years – 9 months” is very effective.
I had the 17 years – 8 months version sitting on my table at Starbucks recently when a stranger walked by and said “I’ve seen that”. I was so stunned and amazed that all I could do was smile and mumble uh huh. I have posted a copy a few times at that Starbucks and at one other.
I also showed the chart to my niece and her father at a recent Easter family get together, and had to explain it. My sister has arguments with her husband over global warming, she’s on my side. Funnily, while explaining the chart, I got a headache and I rarely get headaches, could have been because of the alcohol as I rarely drink.
Here is a version with better slides & brightness of the Bob Carter video:
downloadable here:
DVD image here (NTSC for USA, Japan): http://www.climatedvd.com/Video/BobCarter-13-6w3.zip
DVD image here(PAL for most of rest of world)):http://www.climatedvd.com/Video/BobCarter-13-6w3PAL.zip
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Mrs. A,
I would recommend this 10 minute clip of physicist Richard Feynman. It will make most 5th graders into scientific skeptics.
John
Great suggestions all!
HAVE HER WATCH Inconvenient truth. And then show her the inconsistencies point by point. That, in fact, was the movie that opened my eyes. Show, here, Mike Moore says this, “Polar bears…” and here you can check what’s really happening. Chart of CO2 and Temperature shows this… and then show the mistakes in the chart, and leaving out facts (Medieval WP) and then show the lead and lag and order in which things occurred. CO2 follows, not leads. There is so much eye opening that can be learned by bringing her to the center of the lies. Teach her how to seek”Truth”
Recommend: Global Warming Primer 2nd Edition from National Center for Policy Analysis
Recommend providing each student with a copy of:
The Skeptics Handbook
and
35 Inconvenient Truths: The errors in Al Gore’s movie