3-5-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
Cherry River Elementary School, Richwood, West Virginia, USA
Description / Cherry River Elementary School is located in Nicholas County, West Virginia and is one of several sites of controversial mountaintop windmills. This project was created so students could research and debate the pros and cons of the environmental and economical concerns. (This project has not been numbered.)
Objective / This project is important for creating conscientious citizens who know and understand important issues in their community. It is imperative for students to evaluate how technology progress affects the environmental conditions of their community.
Grade Level / Upper Elementary School
Generative Topic or Essential Question: What topic(s) are important for your students to understand? / Are windmills an effective form of renewable energy?
Which of these kinds of development (social, economic, or environmental protection) are most important for our community? Why?
How do windmills affect life in other parts of the world? What have other countries done regarding the environmental aspect of windmills?
Activities
Phase 1: Introductory Performances
Activities to set the stage: What do they
know? What else do they need to know to
begin the project? / Introduction to Gigapan
Class Introduction Activity
Procedures and routines will need to be set at the beginning of the project (or year) for group work to be successful.
Opinion survey of community members (done in TechSteps)
Phase 2: Guided Inquiry
• Activities to engage students in learning
(field trips, visiting experts, vocabulary sets, map work, interviews, research….) / Research parts of windmill, how they work, and effects on community and environment
Presentation on windmills by a local engineer- how they work, why they are important, etc.
Presentation by EPA official and local conservation officer on environmental effects on migrating birds and bats, the habitat of other species, etc.
Field trip(s) to visit windmills and take gigapans
Research on windmill use around the world
Phase 3: Culminating Performances
Activities in which students share knowledge in culminating event, as well as reflect on project and learning. / Pro/con debate presented to school/community by class
Podcast the debate and project results
Uploading and sharing/discussion of Gigapan pictures with international peers
Opinion letters written to local newspaper.
Planning
Understanding Goals: What do you want students to understand about those topics? What should they be able to do?
(Standards) / Science National Standards
NS-A Science as Inquiry -Students to combine processes and scientific knowledge with scientific reasoning and critical thinking to develop their understanding of science.
NS-U Unifying concepts and processes- Students think about and integrate a range of basic ideas which builds an understanding of the natural world.
NS-E Science and Technology – Students make connections between the natural and designed world, linking science and technology. [Id problem>Propose Solution>Implement> Evaluate>Communicate]
NG Science
- 3-5-ETS1 Engineering Design
- 3-5-LS2 Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
- 3-5-PS3 Energy
- 3-5-ESS3 Earth and Human Activity
NCSS 3. People, Places and Environment
NCSS 4. Individual Development and Identity
NCSS 8. Science, Technology and Society
NCSS 9. Global Connectedness
Interdisciplinary:
How does this unit fit with other topics? What, if any, cross-cultural links can be made? / Technology Students will evaluate how technology progress affects the environmental conditions of an area, and compare our community to other communities with the same latitude and longitude.
3a. Use technology tools to enhance learning, increase productivity, and promote creativity.
3b. Use productivity tools to collaborate in constructing technology-enhanced models, preparing publications, and producing other creative works.
5a. Use technology to locate, evaluate, and collect information from a variety of sources.
5b. Use technology tools to process data and report results.
5c. Evaluate and select new information resources and technological innovations based on the appropriateness to specific tasks.
6a. Use technology resources for solving problems and making informed decisions.
6b. Employ technology in the development of strategies for solving problems in the real world.
Global Competency Through this project, students communicate and engage with others with different opinions and insights to gain the understanding that issues they face at home are often the same issues faced by contemporaries in other parts of the world.
Investigate the World
Recognize Perspectives
Communicate Ideas
Take Action
Ongoing Assessment: What would be acceptable evidence of their understandings? /
- Students will be able to state how windmills work and how/why they are used.
- Students will have formulated an opinion as to whether windmill energy is good for their local community, and be able to back up their opinions with research and facts.
- Students will present the pro/con debate to the school and community and will keep a portfolio of all work completed during the project.
- Based on their project’s research, students can give presentations to local officials as part of advocacy and public awareness on the topic of windmills.
- Students will also participate in a self-assessment survey (on Survey Monkey) as a learning outcome that measures what went well, what they could have done differently, how they worked together as a group, what they are proud of, and what they would like to do in the future. This can be compared to an opinion survey done at the beginning of the project to measure how attitudes and thoughts/feelings changed as a result of the project.
Materials and Resources: List the physical and digital resources required to teach the unit. / Facing the Future: Energy
Wind Energy doesn’t work