Title: Oh Deer

TITLE: OH DEER!

AUTHOR: Patty Dalton, 5th Grade Teacher, Reno, Nevada

GRADE LEVEL: 4-6, Science-Environmental Education

OVERVIEW: This lesson in environmental education is necessary to show children the interdependence of animal life with their environment.

PURPOSE: With our planet in the serious condition it exists today, children need to see the plan of nature so that they can understand the need to preserve and protect our resources.

OBJECTIVES: Students will be able to:

1)  identify and describe food, water and shelter as three essential components of habitat.

2)  describe the importance of good habitat for animals.

3)  define "limiting factors" and give examples.

4)  recognize that some fluctuations in wildlife populations are natural as ecological systems undergo a constant change.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS: Project Wild, Western Regional Environmental Education Council

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:

·  Describe the fundamental necessities of animals: food, water, shelter and space in a suitable arrangement.

·  Demonstrate to students that without these essential components, animals cannot survive. Do this by playing "Oh Deer!"

·  Have students count off in fours, with all those sharing the same number gathering in certain corners of the classroom. (This game is best played outdoors but may be adapted to inside play.)

·  Mark off two parallel lines on the playground or floor that are about ten to twenty yards apart.

·  Have all the "ones" behind one line and all the rest behind the other line. The "ones" will become the deer.

·  The other students will become the components of habitat: food, water, shelter and space.

·  When a deer is looking for food, it should clamp its hands over its stomach. When it's looking for water, it puts its hands over its mouth. When it is looking for shelter, it holds its hands together over its head. When it is looking for space, it should hold its arms straight out at its sides. A deer can choose to look for any of these needs during each round, but it cannot change what it is looking for in that round. It can change in the next round if it survives.

·  The students who are the components of habitat may choose which they will be at the beginning of each round. They will depict that component in the same manner as the deer.

·  The game starts with all players lined up on their respective lines and with their backs to the students at the other side. The teacher asks all students to pick their sign. When they are ready, count: "One...two...three." At the count of three, the students turn and face each other showing their signs.

·  The deer run to the habitat component they are looking for and take that component back to the deer side of the line. (This represents the deer's successfully meeting its needs and reproducing as a result.) Any deer that fails to find the component it was seeking dies and becomes part of the habitat, joining the students on the habitat side.

·  The teacher keeps track of the number of deer at the beginning and ending of each round. Continue play for fifteen rounds.

·  At the end of fifteen rounds discuss the activity; encouraging the students to talk about what they experienced and saw. The herd grows in the beginning, then some must die as the habitat is depleted. This fluctuation is a natural process unless factors which limit population become excessive.

·  Discuss what excessive limiting factors are: drought, fires, deforestation, uncontrolled hunting.

·  The teacher should make a line graph of the number of deer alive at the end of each round to show that it is naturally cyclical.

·  Have the students summarize what they have learned from the activity.

·  If the game is played again, be sure to include the limiting factors. For example, if there is a drought no student on the habitat side can choose water as their symbol.

·  A new graph can be made to show the difference made in the natural cycles.

TYING IT ALL TOGETHER: When students have played the "Oh Deer" game it helps them to understand the interdependence of animals on their environment. Hopefully, they will see that as human beings they can be a part of the limiting factors which effect our environment. With this knowledge they may become more responsible in taking care of our ecological systems.

http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci35.txt

TITLE: DESIGNING AN ECOLOGICALLY SOUND CITY

AUTHOR: Dianne S. Vance; Park City Middle School, Utah

GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT LEVEL: 5th grade Science. The class will be set up in cooperative learning groups of four or five students.

OVERVIEW: To make students aware of the need to respect their environment, and its natural resources, to apply that knowledge to develop an "ecologically sound" city.

OBJECTIVES: Using an outline the learner will design an "ecologically sound" city. The city is required to include the following:

1.  Laws for the city to help make all citizens aware of their ecological responsibilities.

2.  Power source for lights and heat. These power sources do not have to be the same.

3.  One river that runs through of around the city.

4.  Some method for waste disposal.

5.  Two productive industries.

6.  Homes for the population.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS:

Books

Deep Ecology: Living as if Nature Mattered by Bill Devall, Saving the Earth by Will Steger, Student Environmental Action Guide: 25 Simple Things We, Can Do by Student Environmental Coalition, 50 Simple Things Kids Can Do to Save The Earth by The

Earth Works Group, Design for a Liveable Planet: The Eco-Action Guide to Positive Ecology by Jon Naar, Ecology for Beginners by Stephen Croall and William Rankin, The Global Ecology Handbook: What You Can Do About the, Environmental Crisis by The Global Tomorrow Coalition.

Videos:

Water A Dwindling Resource, Ecology Today with Dan Rather

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:

Outline: Group Number: Name of City: Population of city: State the laws of your city that will help your citizens be "ecologically" responsible: Describe the power source that your citizens use for heat: Draw a picture of that power source: Describe the power source that your citizens use for light: Draw a picture of that power source: Describe the method that your citizens use for waste disposal: Draw a bird's eye view of your "ecologically sound" city. Use a legend in the corner to define industries, homes, etc.

TYING IT TOGETHER:

Each group will design and build a model of their ecologically sound city by using their master plan. They will then share the model with the class and justify their master plan.

http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci38.txt

TITLE: WETLANDS/MIGRATION

AUTHOR: Stephen T. Ferguson; Williams/Cone, Topsham ME

GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT: 2-6

OVERVIEW:

Coastal wetlands are an important factor to insure the success of bird migration. Ponds, lakes and marshes provide food and shelter for traveling birds . Without the wetlands birds would not have the energy to make the trek from areas as far south as Panama in the case of the Belted Kingfisher. At the time of the European settlement of the United States there were 215 million acres of wetlands. Today there are less than 100 million. Besides providing habitats for waterfowl, wetlands help relieve flooding, filter pollutants and are an integral part of the biosphere. Through increased education of their importance and beauty children will become responsible stewards of the remaining 100 million acres of wetlands.

PURPOSE: To increase awareness for the need to protect our nation's wetlands.

OBJECTIVES:

1. Students will be able to operationally define migration.

2. Students will be able to visualize the dependence of wetlands for Migrating birds.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS: chalk or a stick.

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:

1.  This activity will be best accomplished on a sandy section of the playground or a parking lot. The teacher will draw a large sized hopscotch course. The course can be drawn on the pavement with chalk or drawn on the sand/dirt with a stick The squares should be approximately 3'x3'. The hopscotch course should contain 10 squares.

2.  Have the students line up at the beginning of the course. Tell the students that they are birds starting there journey northward. Tell the students that each of the squares represents a wetland between Florida and Maine ( it will be more dramatic using a migration path which includes your state. Specific migration patterns and bird species can be obtained from a bird field guide.). Students are then challenged to migrate northward on the course. They do not have to step on every square, however they must not go outside the course.

3.  All students should be successful in the first migration. Now, tell the students you are a developer. You will destroy 2 wetland areas in order to build condos. Put an "X" on two of the squares. Tell students to make the migration once again. The students may not set foot on the destroyed wetlands. If they do, they die and thus may not participate in any further migrations. After all students have run through destroy two more and repeat the procedure. Repeat this until all students fail to make the migration. Try to "X" off the squares in such a way that not all are destroyed but are so far apart students can not make the jump. This will help with the debriefing.

TYING IT ALL TOGETHER:

At the end of the activity ask students the following questions:

1. Explain why some birds died earlier than others?

2. Why did the rest of the birds die?

3. Explain how this game represents migration.

4. Why did the birds die even though some wetlands remained at the end of the game?

5. Why is it important to save wetlands in all states?

6. How do migrating birds depend on wetlands during migration?

EXTENSION:

Have students investigate any developments in their community that threaten wetlands.

Have students use field guides to investigate birds which migrate to and from their community.

Footnote:

1. William A. Niering, Wetlands, ( New York, 1988), p. 19.

http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci45.txt

TITLE: ENDANGERED SPECIES-CAN WE HELP THEM SURVIVE?

AUTHOR: Howard C. Kimmel, Ririe Elementary School, Ririe, ID

GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT: 4-6

OVERVIEW: The topic of endangered species and their impact on society is both of high interest and controversy. This lesson is part of a unit designed to address this while specifically working with higher level thinking skills.

PURPOSE: The purpose of this lesson is to allow the student to select a specific endangered animal, identify it's attributes, and suggest how changes in it's physical and behavioral characteristics would improve it's chances for survival.

OBJECTIVES: The student will be able to:

1.  Identify species that are designated as "endangered."

2.  Identify the physical and behavioral characteristics of selected species.

3.  Use the Productive Thinking Model (fluency,flexibility, originality, and evaluation) to work towards a solution to the identified problems.

4.  Use the SCAMPER technique individually and in a group to suggest solutions to the problems.

5.  Illustrate an example of the end product of their work.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS: A chart or student handout detailing the SCAMPER technique is needed. Illustrations of animals that have been designated as endangered from magazines or other sources would be helpful for suggestions and motivation.

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES:

1.  Introduce the lesson by selecting an endangered animal and identifying its physical and behavioral characteristics. Discuss the factors that the students feel have contributed to causing this animal to be designated as "endangered."

2.  Introduce (or review) the SCAMPER technique.

3.  Use the SCAMPER technique together to attempt to adapt the selected animal in ways that the students think will improve its chances for survival.

4.  Allow the students to work individually or in groups to follow the same procedure:

a.  select an animal

b.  identify its characteristics

c. discuss what factors have caused it to become endangered

d.  use the SCAMPER technique to adapt the animal

e.  make an illustration of your SCAMPERed animal to share with the class

TYING IT ALL TOGETHER: When the students have had sufficient time to complete the activity, ask them to return to their seats and share their results with the class. Ask each individual and/or group to describe how and why they SCAMPERed their animal. Let them share their illustration with the class (or post them, if space is available). Solicit suggestions and comments from the class to help further improve the adaptations suggested for each animal.

SCAMPER checklist:

S (Substitute) - Have a thing or person act or serve in another's place

C (Combine) - Bring together or unite

A (Adapt) - Adjust to suit a condition or purpose

M (Modify) - Alter or change in form or quality

(Magnify) - Enlarge or make greater in quality or form

(Minify) - Make smaller, lighter, slower, less frequent

P (Put to other uses) - Use for purposes other than the ones intended

E (Eliminate) - Remove, omit, or get rid of a quality, part, or whole

R (Rearrange) - Change order or adjust; create another layout or scheme

http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci58.txt

TITLE: WATER MAGIC

AUTHOR: Cindy Miller, Precott High School, Prescott, AZ

GRADE LEVEL/SUBJECT: K to 4, Science, Arithmetic,Language, Health; Analysis, Comparing, Similarities and Differences, Drawings, Evaluation, Experimenting, Observation

OVERVIEW: This activity will introduce new vocabulary and will serve as a building block to future lessons on the water cycle. Students will use experiences from their everyday lives to practice the above skills.

PURPOSE: This activity is designed to help students understand that water picks up natural and man-made substances as it moves over and through the earth. Students will observe and experiment with water in three physical forms.

OBJECTIVES: Participants will be able to:

1) observe water in different physical forms

2) theorize what happens in the evaporation process, and

3) observe residues left after water evaporates.

RESOURCES/MATERIALS: Refrigerator, small plastic glasses or a jar, water source, rulers, balance scale, tea kettle, hot plate and mirror.

ACTIVITIES AND PROCEDURES: