3rd-5th Grade
Subjects:
Library / Technology, Philanthropy, Science and Social Studies
Key Words/Concepts click to view
| ELA: | Communicate; Narrative Writing |
| PHIL: | Environmental Stewardship; Helping; LEAGUE Event Lesson: Earth Day; Need; Stewardship |
| SCI: | Natural Resources; Water |
| SOC: | Common Good; Core Democratic Values; Geographic Features; Maps |
Focus Question(s):
What is each person's responsibility for environmental stewardship?
NOTE: Prior to this lesson, use the Blue Sky Activity in which students envision a better world. If you already have a Blue Sky display, revisit it before beginning this lesson.
Purpose:
The purpose of the lesson is to help learners understand the importance of watersheds and ways in which water pollution occurs. After understanding the importance of the watersheds, they will recognize that wise usage of their local watershed is an example of environmental stewardship.
Duration:
One 60 minute class period plus time to set up demonstration
Objectives:
The learner will:
- define watershed and identify their local watershed.
- name local pollutants that may get into the watershed and affect groundwater.
- brainstorm ways to protect the local watershed.
Service Experience:
Although this lesson contains a service project example, decisions about service plans and implementation should be made by students, as age appropriate.
Brainstorm project ideas that the class might do to help conserve and take care of the Earth's water resources during the Earth Day Event.
Materials:
- Self-sticking notes and pencils
- (Optional) a recording of the song "Under the Sea" from The Little Mermaid
- Projection of Attachment One: Water Usage Table
Instructional Procedure(s):
Anticipatory Set:
While the music “Under the Sea” from The Little Mermaid is playing, have the students write five specific ways that they use water. They should use one self-sticking note for each response. When the music stops, tell the students to put their responses on a prepared chart under the category in which it fits best. The chart should have different categories of water use, such as recreation, health, and household. If someone else has the same response, have them put the sticky notes on top of each other. Read over their responses and discuss why water is important to us. Share the information found on Attachment One: Water Usage Table to raise awareness about the quantity of water we use for some common actions.
- Ask the students where they think their water comes from. (They may indicate a well or nearby lake.) Ask them if they think the water they use is clean. If so, how does it get clean? Listen to their ideas to determine their prior knowledge about the water cycle and water treatment. Make sure students understand that water is a resource we share with everyone in the whole world and with everyone over time. The water we have on our Earth is the same water the dinosaurs had on their Earth.
- Tell them there is an important word related to water that they have probably never heard of. In fact, many adults don't even understand this important concept. Ask if anyone has heard of the term watershed. Provide a simple definition for a watershed. (See http://www.epa.gov/owow/watershed/whatis.html for an illustration and definition.) A watershed is an area in which all the water drains into the same place. The people, animals, and natural resources within a watershed are bound by their shared water. The Earth is made up of numerous watersheds, and the water in each watershed tends to stay in that watershed.
- Tell the class they are going to make a quick model of a watershed. Give each student or group of students a sheet of (recycled) paper. Tell the students to crumple their papers and then open them again, but not to flatten. This paper represents the land within the boundaries of a watershed. The paper should still be crumpled enough to have portions that resemble mountain ridges or hills and valleys.
- Tell the students to use a blue marker to mark streams or rivers on their papers, and also have them mark where they think the water will collect as it runs downhill. (This could represent a lake.).
- Have them color with brown marker some areas that represent soil and farmland.
- Using red markers, have students draw in some pollutants that may be found in their watershed, such as soap from washing cars, pesticides from lawns, and animal waste from a nearby farm.
- Tell the students you are going to add water to their system and you want them to observe what happens. Walk around with a sprayer and spray a very light mist of water over each paper watershed model. (In a real watershed, all the water runs into the same place.)
- Questions to consider:
- Why does water flow down into the creases?
- What happened to the ink from the markers as the water flowed? Where did it end up?
- How is this a problem if the inks represent pollutants?
- Use the following website to find the boundaries and water resources in your watershed: http://cfpub.epa.gov/surf/locate/index.cfm. As you look at this map, explain that the health of a watershed is determined by many factors, including the use of land throughout the watershed and what pollutants these uses may put into the watershed.
- Ask the students to name some of the land uses within your community and your overall watershed. Think of factories, farms, and small businesses within the area. Ask the students, “Do you think these uses could affect the water quality of our watershed?”
- Tell the students that any pollutants that get into the water system of your watershed stay in the watershed as they are recycled through the water cycle. Discuss how each of the land uses within your watershed could lead to pollution going directly into the drainage areas and also indirectly into streams, rivers, lakes, and groundwater. Runoff from crop and forest land, failing septic systems, construction sites, irrigation drainage systems, lawn chemicals, and automobile exhaust can all contribute to polluting the watershed.
- Explain to learners that the responsible use of the watershed is an example of environmental stewardship. We share the Earth, and we need to take care of it for ourselves and for those who come after us. Ask the students to explain why it is for our common good to take care of the water in our watershed.
- Brainstorm project ideas that the class might do to help conserve and take care of the Earth's water resources during the Earth Day Event.
Assessment:
Have students write at least one way their watershed could become polluted and three reasons why it is important to protect their watershed.
LEAGUE Learning Link(s): (click to view)
Have an idea for a Learning Link?
If your Link is accepted for publication on the Web site you will be credited with your name, school, and city.These "LEAGUE Learning Links” provide ten quick and easy 5-minute mini-lessons to help promote The LEAGUE’s vision and scheduled events in your classroom. You can choose from among these mini-lessons and use as many of them as you would like and in whatever order best meets your needs and the interest of your students. The purpose of these mini-lessons is to provide a deeper understanding of philanthropy (the giving of ones, time, talents, and treasures for the common good) and to promote those philanthropic acts that have been identified as supporting The LEAGUE events. These mini-lessons will also help ensure a deeper understanding of character traits, civic engagement, and promote student leadership. It is recommended that students be encouraged to play as much of a role as possible and appropriate in presenting these lessons to their classmates.
- READ: Karin and Stacey were best friends who did everything together. Unfortunately, their teacher assigned them to different work teams during their Earth Day Event. “I don’t think I want to participate if we can’t be on the same team,” Karin told Stacey.
“Neither do I,” Stacey agreed.
As the day of the Event came closer, their classmates encouraged Karin and Stacey to participate. “Ah, come on,” they begged. “It will be fun.”
Finally Karin and Stacey agreed to participate. After the Event was over, their teacher asked the class to share some of the things they learned during the Event. Karin and Stacey agreed that they had fun even though they were not on the same work team. “We were so busy working that we didn’t have time to think about not being together,” Stacey admitted. “Besides that, we got to know some of the other kids in our group better.”
DISCUSS: Why do think Karin and Stacey felt it was important to be on the same work team? What do you think are the benefits of being on a different team from your best friend? What could we say to someone who feels the way Karin and Stacey did about working with friends during our Earth Day Event? Why is it important that as many of our classmates as possible choose to participate in our Event?
- READ: Do you know the difference between a raft and a boat? Like boats, rafts are used to carry people or objects across the water. Rafts are typically used in emergency situations. Once passengers are safely on the shore, a raft is no longer needed. Some rafts are abandoned or dismantled, while others are stored until needed again. A boat is used regularly for work or recreation. Boats are seldom abandoned or stored after one use. Owners take boats out repeatedly and over a longer period of time. While each craft provides a similar service, a boat is more substantial and versatile, and a raft is more temporary.
DISCUSS: In what way might our Earth Day Event be seen as a ”raft experience”—a one-time event to solve an emergency situation? What do you think we have to do to make our experience more of a ”boat experience”? In what ways might both experiences be useful and important?
- READ: One day Miss Jackie, the school custodian, was ill. As the day wore on, the third-grade students noticed the hallways looked messier than usual. Because Miss Jackie was seldom absent, no one had ever seen the halls quite like that before. The third graders hadn’t realized that Miss Jackie was picking up after them. They knew they should be picking up after themselves and putting trash in the waste baskets. The next day the hallways were clean and free from litter once again. But it wasn’t because Miss Jackie was back. Two students stayed after school to clean the halls. Nobody liked the mess, but only two students did something about it.
DISCUSS: How would you feel if you saw litter on your hallway floors? Why do you think the hallway floors in this school usually didn’t have much litter on them? Why do you think those students picked up trash that was not their trash? What are we doing something about during our Earth Day Event?
- READ: One day Jered was riding his bike. He wasn’t watching very closely, and he ran into a fire hydrant. He got a small cut on his arm, and many of the spokes on front wheel of his bike were broken or badly bent. He tried to straighten the spokes and ride his bike again, but it didn’t ride smoothly. The wheel bumped along, sort of lopsided. Jered told his father about the accident. His father told him that for a wheel to work, all the spokes had to be straight and strong. Jered and his father replaced the broken spokes and straightened those that were bent. Once again Jered was happy that he was able to ride his bike.
DISCUSS: During our Earth Day Event why is it important that everyone work together like the spokes on a wheel? Will our Earth Day go smoothly if everyone is not working together? What are some things we could do to avoid a “bumpy ride” during our Event?
- READ: Dayton and his family visited his grandpa and grandma every summer. They lived by the ocean. Dayton loved to play by the beautiful, crystal-clear ocean. One day Dayton noticed that the ocean looked dark and dirty. He ran back to the house to ask his grandfather how this happened. His grandfather told him to look up at the sky. Dayton saw that the sky looked dark and dirty too. His grandfather then told him that the ocean was still beautiful and clean, but that the sky’s reflection had only made it look different. Dayton felt much better knowing that as soon as the sun came out, the ocean would look clean and beautiful again.
DISCUSS: During our Earth Day Event why is important to remember that things are still beautiful even if they don’t look that way now? What are we doing during our Event to help “the sun come out” again? What could we say to kids who think that whatever we do for our Earth Day Event won’t be enough?
- READ: Did you know that across the globe lightning strikes the ground an average of 6,000 times every minute? Did you know that it causes at least half of all forest fires? Any idea what else causes many forest fires?
DISCUSS: Some destruction on our Earth is natural—lightning strikes, volcanoes, flooding, etc. What are some other ways our Earth might be subject to destruction? What can we do during our Earth Day Event to help reduce human-made destruction? What are some things we are planning to do that will help “clean up” some already evident destruction? How will doing this help make our world a better place to live?
- READ: Cassidy and Kennedy were twins. They had been invited to a sleepover at Tamara’s house. About an hour before Tamara’s mother arrived, Cassidy packed her bag. Kennedy decided that she could pack later. When Tamara’s mother arrived, Cassidy was ready to go but Kennedy wasn’t. Kennedy rushed to throw some things in her suitcase. She didn’t want Tamara’s mother to have to wait for her. Once they arrived at Tamara’s house, Kennedy realized that she had forgotten some important things she needed for the sleepover. She even had to borrow her sister’s toothbrush! Kennedy promised herself that she would be better prepared next time.
DISCUSS: Why is it important to plan carefully for our involvement in our Earth Day Event? What are some things we can do to make sure that we are ready? How can we help others get ready for our Event?
- READ: Amanda saw a flock of seagulls flying around the restaurant’s dumpster. The lid had been left open so the birds were feasting on leftover human food. Seeing this, Amanda thought about what her teacher had told the class. Mrs. Bright had said that birds often got sick from eating human food, and some even died. Amanda decided to see if she could close the lid. It wasn’t easy, but when she was finally able to close it, she felt really good. She felt that she had done something for one flock of birds. Even though she didn’t think it was much, she helped to make the world a safer and better place for a few living things.
DISCUSS: In what ways will our Earth Day Event help to make the world a safer and better place for living things? Is it OK to feel good about doing something small for our environment? Why or why not? Why is it important to be involved in our Event even though we might think that we’re not doing much?
- READ: James Robert Ford took three years to cover his Ford Capri car with 4,500 toy cars. The newspaper called the creation “a work of art made out of toys.” Lewis Meyer made a sea monster out of bottle caps. He attached the sea monster to the hood of his truck. He then entered his truck in the 2006 Kentucky Art Car Contest. While it is not recorded if he won anything, one thing we do know is that there were fewer bottle caps lying around on the ground in his community. “It’s a work of art made out of trash … not much else you could do with those caps,” one of the judges commented.
DISCUSS: In what ways were these two projects alike? How where they different? As our Earth Day Event approaches, how might our Event be considered a “work of art”? In what way are we trying to “clean up” the environment? How could we make a display of what we do so others can see and appreciate what we have done?
- READ: The block where Samantha lived decided to have a garage sale. To announce it, they put up posters and signs all around the neighborhood. They were placed on trees and utility poles signs. They were placed at bus stops and newspaper stands. They seemed to be everywhere! After the sale was over, Samantha noticed that no one came to remove the posters and signs. After about three weeks, some of the posters had been blown away by the wind and rain. Samantha decided to do something about it. She rode her bike around to collect the posters and signs. She placed them in the trash and recycle bin. Samantha thought things looked much better in the neighborhood.
DISCUSS: Why do you think Samantha decided to remove the old posters and signs and put them in the trash? What in our school or neighborhood would look so much better if someone took some time to take care of it? What could we do during our Earth Day Event that will make things look much better?
Post Service Reflection: (click to view)
Reflection plays a very important role in promoting student learning. The following suggested activities are ways to help students reflect on their learning after they have participated in a service event. Choose one or more of the activities most appropriate to the service event and your students.
ACTIVITY ONE: Have each student write a paragraph about his or her personal LEAGUE Event experience using one of these prompt analogies:
This LEAGUE Event was:
Like baking a cake, because…
Like hugging a friend, because…a
Like reading a good book, because…
Like running a race, because
Like planting a flower, because
ACTIVITY TWO: Holding one end of the yarn, toss the yarn ball to a student and have that student use one word or phrase, describe/summarize his or her personal LEAGUE Event experience. After the student has responded, have that student hold the end of the yarn and toss the yarn ball to another student--continuing to unravel the yarn ball-- repeating the process until everyone is part of the web created by the yarn. Passing is permissible. (Note: Point out to the students that the web represents the interconnectedness of people and their experiences.) If time permits, have the students “retrace” the yarn ball tosses. This time the student with the yarn ball rewinds the yarn onto the ball while sharing what he or she feels might be the effects of the event or what more they would like to do before tossing it back to the student who originally tossed it to him/her. Continue this process until the yarn ball is back in your hands.
ACTIVITY THREE: Collect a bag of inexpensive small toys. (These could be borrowed from a Kindergarten classroom.) Place these toys in a large brown bag. Assign students to groups of four or five. Have a member of each group select from the bag, without looking at any of the toys. Have each group explain to the other groups how this toy might represent what they did, how they felt, or suggest in some way what impact they might have had as a result of the event project. Allow the groups time to meet and brainstorm together for a few minutes before making their presentation.
ACTIVITY FOUR: Have the class determine how much money they “saved” others by offering their volunteer service(s) or donations during this Event. To calculate the volunteer services amount, have each student identify the number of hours they were involved in the activity and multiply this number by the minimum wage for your State. (The Federal minimum wage can also be used which is approximately $7.00 per hour.) To calculate the donations amount, have the students count the total amount of money raised during the fundraiser. Celebrate the grand total savings to others that the students have provided during this Event.
Bibliographical References:
Lesson Developed and Piloted by:
Heather deKoning
New York City
P.S.132 The Conselyea
Brooklyn, NY 11211
Handouts:
Water Usage Table
|
Water Usage
|
Number of Gallons Used
|
|
Flush a toilet
|
5
|
|
Full bath in tub
|
36-50
|
|
Wash hands (with water running)
|
2
|
|
Brush teeth (with water running)
|
2-10
|
|
Dishwasher
|
60
|
|
Wash clothes
|
50
|
|
Drinking water
|
2-12
|
|
Cooking
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10
|
|
Washing the car
|
100
|
**On the average in the U.S., a person uses 100 gallons of water a day
**A dairy cow must drink 3 gallons of water to produce 1 gallon of milk
**An ear of corn needs 26 gallons of water to grow
**A meal at a fast food restaurant can take 1,400 gallons of water to make (burger, fries and drink)
From the Saginaw Bay Watershed Middle School Curriculum Guide Lesson “Some Ways We Use Water.”
Groundwater Pollution Demonstration Instructions - Optional
TEACHER NOTE: Complete steps 1-5 before class and demonstrate steps 6-7 during class time.
Supplies: two clear 2-liter bottles, water, two cups of sand, coffee filter, scissors, red food coloring, one-cup measuring cup, utility knife, drill or nail
Using two clear two-liter bottles, create a model of the water table.
- Use a utility knife to cut off the bottom two inches of a two-liter bottle. Recycle the top.
- Drill six holes in the bottom of the bottle. This can be done with a low-speed drill or a hot nail.
- Cut off and recycle the top two inches (five cm) of the second bottle.
- Cut a coffee filter to fit into the first bottle. Cover the coffee filter and the bottle bottom with two inches (five cm) of sand.
- Fit the bottle bottom with holes into the second bottle. You now have a working model of ground water and pollution.
- To demonstrate how rain water becomes ground water, pour one cup of water on the sand. The water will filter through the sand and collect at the bottom of the bottle.
- Put five drops of red food coloring on the sand to represent pollution. Slowly pour another cup of water on top of the food coloring. It will filter through the sand and appear in the bottom of the bottle.
The ground water has been polluted.
