Curated OER
Fossil Fuels: Facing the Issues
Students explore energy by researching fuel usage on Earth. In this fossil fuel lesson, students define fossil fuels, the energy created by burning them, and the impact on the environment when using them. Students conduct pollution...
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Soil Porosity, Moisture Content, pH, and Density
This lab activity does not have to be done with AP environmental scientists. It can also be done with middle to high school earth scientists. The procedures aren't complex. Learners determine the density of dry and wet sand in order to...
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Moving without Wheels
Students observe a simple water cycle model to better understand its role in pollutant transport. This activity shows one way in which pollution is affected by the water cycle; it simulates a point source of pollution in a lake and the...
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Eek, It leaks!
Middle schoolers construct model landfill liners out of two-inch strips of garbage bags within resource constraints. The challenge is to construct a bag that will hold one cup of water without leaking. This represents similar challenges...
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Our Keystone FFA Spring
Students identify where their water sources and explore a watershed on a map. For this watershed lesson students walk a wetland, and identify sources of pollution.
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To Protect Your Streams, Protect Your Mountains
Young scholars build and experiment with a watershed to understand the effects of pollution. In this movement of water lesson, students work in groups creating rock formations and change the viscosity of the liquids falling down the...
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Sewage Spill into Biscayne Bay
Students use a hypothetical case study to learn about environmental health issues associated with water, recreational water, and sewage. They use an inquiry-based learning module to generate questions, draft a research plan, and generate...
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Watersheds and Wetlands
Students simulate a chemical spill. In this watersheds and wetlands activity, students build a watershed and observe what happens when it rains. Students add wetlands to their watershed models and examine the effects of water pollution.
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Keep the Environment Clean
Students discuss ways our environment becomes polluted. They make a list of ways to keep it clean.
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Planet Protectors
Students explore ways to protect the earth. In this environmental issues and technology lesson, students investigate the water quality in their community and compare their findings to the water quality in other geographic...
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Engineers for a Sustainable World
Young scholars experiment with making a water filtration system. In this engineering lesson plan, students get into groups and are challenged to use only eight items to create a water filter. When finished, young scholars compare and...
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Design a Service Learning Activity
Learners work together to design a service learning activity for their community that would benefit the Tijuana estuary. Using the internet, they research the elements of a service learning project and plan their's accordingly. They...
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Runoff: Intro to Watersheds
Students are taught that a watershed is, what types of basic land cover are impermeable and permeable to water. They trace the flow of water around their school and around their home. Students determine what watershed their school is a...
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How Much Water is in That River?
Students practice measurement using the Hudson River. They calculate the discharge measurement at a location on the Hudson River using ingenuity and a topographic map.
Kenan Fellows
Use of Dichotomous Keys to Identify Stream Organisms
What kind of organisms are living in the stream? After an explanation on how to use a dichotomous key, groups of three to four use the keys to identify macroinvertebrates from a local freshwater stream. Using the the concept of...
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Pollution Solution
Young scholars explore the topic of oil pollution and how it affects the global ocean. They discuss oil spills in recent history and use problem solving skills to decide what strategies could be used to actually clean up an oil spill....
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On the Move
Students explore different pathways and consequences of pollutant transport via the weather and water cycles. They observe and record weather information and produce their own weather report for the class.
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Watershed Model
Learners view a presentation of water and land and how we need to protect our water resources. In this water lesson plan, students discuss how we rely on water, and complete activities in all subjects related to water.
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There's a Watershed in my Backyard!
Students explain what the term watershed is by creating a model. In this science, geography lesson, students demonstrate how the water moves in a watershed. Additionally, students learn about point source and nonpoint source pollution....
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Move To a Healthier Aquatic Balance
Fourth graders examine aquatic orgnaisms and how enviromental chages affect them. This factors include: temperature, Ph, oxygen, nutrients, and pollutants. They also explore habitat quality (erosion). Students compile data and create...
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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...
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Stream Watch
Students discuss why it is important to take care of streams, what is non-point source and point source pollution, what are some causes of pollution in streams, and what can we do to prevent some of these causes of pollution? They steam...
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The Lorax
Students read The Lorax and discuss how human actions can affect the environment. They conduct a simple experiment to see how much air pollution is in the air that they breathe.
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Wonderful Wetlands
Fourth graders create a model of Utah wetlands using clay, sponges and soil. They identify the value the wetlands have to plants and animals. They simulate rainfall to observe how wetlands help filter silt and pollutants from the water.