Curated OER
Landfills and Contamination
Students discover the dangers of landfills to our environment by investigating leachate. In this environmental lesson, students create a model landfill experiment in which they observe the effect of rain on a landfill over the course of...
Curated OER
Debate: "Indoor Air vs. Outdoor Air Pollution: Which Is the More Serious Threat to Public Health?"
Students work in teams to synthesize their air, asthma, air contamination, and environmental health knowledge as well as additional research to represent a particular point of view persuasively. They create a handout and presentatin...
Curated OER
Current Groundwater Contamination Research
Students research the effects of groundwater pollutants on life. They name and describe 1 environmental factor that has an effect on our drinking water. Students read the Water-Groundwater and Pollution Article. They discuss and...
Curated OER
Getting the Lead Out
The article for this lesson no longer accessible through the links in the lesson plan, but can be found in the National Center for Biotechnology Information website. After reading it, environmental science students answer questions and...
Henry Ford Museum
Human Impact on Ecosystems
An environmenta science unit includes three lessons plus a cumulative project covering the ecosystem. Scholars follow the history of the Ford Rouge Factory from its construction on wetlands and how it destroyed the environment to its...
Curated OER
Lead Contamination In Our Environment
Students identify the sources of lead in their local community and how to prevent further contamination. As a class, they watch a video about the effects of lead on the body and use the internet to discover any new technology that can...
Curated OER
Interactions Everywhere!
Young scholars examine interactions within the environment and environmental engineering careers. They discuss and view photos of natural and manmade environments, explore various websites, create a web to identify interactions between...
Kenan Fellows
Making Connections with Water Quality
What's in your water? And, why is water quality so important? Enhance your class's level of water appreciation through a lesson that demonstrates the necessity of water quality. Environmental enthusiasts explore the EPA's Clean Water...
Kenan Fellows
Sustainability: Learning for a Lifetime – The Importance of Water
Water is essential for life—and understanding the importance of clean drinking water is essential in understanding sustainability! Show your environmental science class the basics of water testing and treatment through a week-long...
Curated OER
Who's Down the Well?
Students identify several sources of contaminants to groundwater. They discuss the movement of possible contaminants through that groundwater from outside sources. They describe how environmental engineers analyze contaminants to...
Curated OER
What You Don't Know CAN Hurt You! Part 2
Middle schoolers use technology to locate and collect information from Internet sources in order to research indoor air pollution problems. They design a poster to raise the interest and awareness of others, and are proactive in...
Curated OER
Issue Players and Their Positions
Learners identify Environmental Health Problems caused by both living and nonliving things. They summarize Issue Components (event, problem, issue, players, and positions) involving environmental health issues such as contamination in...
Curated OER
Ethics Activity: Issue Analysis
Students analyze environmental health issues with respect to the players, their positions, and associated values, after being introduced to the concepts of events, problems, and issues. They apply the skills of issue analysis to...
Curated OER
Radioactive Isotopes
Students describe an isotope and radioactive isotope in a written essay. They describe how a specific country or region was affected by radioactive contamination and attempt to sympathize with those affected by these radioactive...
Curated OER
Nutrition: It's In Your Hands
Fourth graders use this lesson to focus on their health, nutrition and the state of the environment. In groups, they examine the various types of land, water and air pollutants and compare and contrast a food chain with and without a...
Curated OER
Mining Riches
Students research and map how various mining ventures have changed local geographies and populations. First they read the article provided--Examining the Environmental and Social Impact of the Mining Industry.
Curated OER
Lead Critical Reading
Students read opposing views on the lead contamination issue, identify the facts and opinions in each article, and infer the opinion of the author. They create an essay expressing their opinion on the issue complete with citations.
Teach Engineering
Get the Word Out at McDonald's!
To get the word out that the Great Pacific garbage patch (GPGP) contains millions of pounds of non-biodegrading plastics, individuals research the GPGP and write an article for a newsletter. Researchers present their facts in a way that...
Curated OER
Our Future - Nuclear Power?
Students comprehend that there are risks involved with using nuclear power. They write persuasive paragraphs for and against nuclear power. Students analyze the environmental issues and risks with nuclear power.
Curated OER
Toxicology and Living Systems
Students investigate how toxic chemicals affect biological systems. They determine the toxic dose of a chemical that inhibits seed germination in a Brassica rapa. They investigate the effect of environmental tobacco smoke on human lung...
Curated OER
Landfills: Building Them Better
Middle schoolers investigate the three methods of waste disposal. They listen to a teacher-led lecture, answer discussion questions, and write a letter to the E.P.A. from the viewpoint of an environmental engineer.
Curated OER
Final Project Presentations: Water Quality
Students synthesize the information they have been researching on water quality to evaluate the potential health risks in a region with arsenic contamination. They prepare and present a persuasive speech that incorporates visuals.
Curated OER
Groundwater: Cleaning Up
Students research the various aspects of groundwater contamination that threaten health and human safety. They create a model and display that informs other about the health and safety risks. Students illustrate ways in which these...
Curated OER
Bioremediation
Students design and conduct investigations that illustrate the effect bioremediation has on organic matter and determine environmental applications. They, in groups, present their findings to the class.