Free classroom resource explores Columbus aviation history, world regions and cultures

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

For More Information, Contact:
Stephanie Calondis Geiger, Columbus Council on World Affairs – (614) 229-4599

Free classroom resource explores Columbus aviation history, world regions and cultures

(COLUMBUS, OH) – To coincide with the Bicentennial exploration of our city’s past, the Columbus Council on World Affairs is distributing an original resource for use in middle school and high school classrooms.

This lesson plan, a game called “What Took You So Long?”, is based on the 1964 flights of Columbus native, Jerrie Mock, and Joan Merriam Smith of Long Beach, California. Though they were not officially racing they were both eager to be the first woman to pilot a plane around the world. By 1964 men had already orbited the earth in outer space and it had been 27 years since Amelia Earhart’s attempt to circle the globe with her navigator, Fred Noonan. Still, no woman had ever piloted an airplane around the world. The title of this resource also refers to the many phone calls and cables Jerrie Mock received from her husband along the way urging her to proceed with haste even when it wasn’t feasible or safe. Jerrie actually completed her flight first, but in this game, Joan’s team members have a chance to “change history.”

To download this lesson plan, teachers and/or parents should visit: http://columbusworldaffairs.org/resources/classroom-resources/.

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