What Shutdown?

While I normally don't post to this blog, this topic is directly related to the primary users of the blog, World Cultures students, and they deserve to read what is being written and commented about them.  We are currently studying natural disasters as they relate to humans and geography.  Using primary data sources, students often access USGS sites.  They are, quite honestly, the most accurate in the world.  Since the Republican-led Congress decided to shut down the Federal Government, USGS sites have been inaccessible to students.  As a class, we brainstormed what to do, decided we would just move on, and return to USGS sites once the Government was funded and running again.  For a couple of seventh graders this was not an ideal solution.  In less than three hours, they were running up to me eagerly let me know they had found not one, but two workarounds that would allow them to continue accessing most USGS data.  Using Google's cache link, they were able to access most of the NationalAtlas site.  Also, a couple of students showed me the WayBack machine at web.archive.org.

Between the two sites, students could access enough information that our discussions, presentations, and curriculum could continue.  I'm sure there are bloggers, among them Will Richardson, who would smile at this post.  I'm humbled that my students wanted to continue learning even though their Republican adult role models are doing their best to insure the students would have to dig extra hard for the information they needed.  I wonder which party my students will be more sympathetic towards in the next Mock Election?