Whenever the teaching concept is that “the persons affected become persons involved”, geowindow can be used practically. It can be used as followed:

  • Media for modelling and presenting: Decorating the exhibition table at the end of the project days to the topic “ground water” or visualizing a specific subject during a pupil’s presentation, geowindow imparts knowledge and contributes to the achievement of new scientific knowledge.
  • Black box experiment: Assuming that a teacher creates a tsunami in full view of all the pupils without revealing the interior of the model at first sight. What valuable collection of pupils’ ideas to the topic of tsunamis and their forming can be put up for discussion?! How meaningful can be a following reflection to the single ideas? Wouldn’t there be any learners who would like to test his or her ideas with geowindow!
  • Experiment in class: for example to the topic “Rivers – the Rhine from the source to the mouth” – several experiment windows can be linked with one another. Each window represents one characteristic river section through a relevant drop. What grain size is sedimented in which window? How much sediment is created from that process in the respective windows? How does the sediment layers look like? What happens in the Lake Constance? … and in the North Sea?
    The experiment can only succeed, if all are working together. Small groups are responsible for their windows and describe in plenary what is happening in their section.  Afterwards, the products are exhibited together with information maps and the geotagging of the respective river sections.
  • Tool for learning in free work: If geowindows are prepared correctly, they are suited to the addition and deepening of diverse topics like isostasy, the forming of fold mountains, bioturbation, or shorelines. They visualize important elements to the different thematics through small experiments. Alternatively, finished models can be used for the assignment of terms in the geowindow.
  • A tool for observing: The subject „Polar Climate Zone – Building in the Permafrost” can be well used in this field. How do streets and houses have to be built in permafrost areas? Is it even possible to construct a pipeline in such an area? Appropriate photos from the areas complete the insights.
  • A tool for quantitative working: for example for the analysis of denudations through the formation of frost flowers. An experiment helps to calculate the transport route and the transported volume of an erosion process depending on the slope.
  • A tool for long-term study: For several weeks, an experiment to salt tectonics or to elevation processes can be designed. Another example is an experiment with the geowindow to the comparison of growths between different soil qualities, which completes the subject “soils”: One geowindow is divided into two sections and both of them would be exposed to the same conditions but with different soil qualities in them.