Be the Solution to Water Pollution

Abstract

For our Noyce Scholarship Project we have chosen to apply our newly acquired modeling techniques to create a several day long exploration-based lesson on water pollution. We choose this topic because the study of pollution is relevant both to the Living Environment and Earth Science curriculum as dictated by the New York State Standards. We have integrated many activities in order to create a lesson that will effectively educate all students on the subject of water pollution, regardless of their background knowledge or learning style. We first created a basic model for water pollution using Agents Sheets™; this model simulates the spread of pollution from an industrial source, as well as the effect of the diffusion of pollution on aquatic life within the lake. This model would serve as an introduction to water pollution and would allow students to explore factors relevant to pollution such as: lake size, and shape, pollution diffusion rate, and fish resiliency. The students would receive a worksheet that would accompany the simulation to guide their exploration. This project addresses the following NYS Standards: Living Environment Performance Indicator 1.1 Earth Science Key Idea 2: Key Idea 6: The primary file is a lesson plan, accompanied by supplemental files. In the supplemental zipped files, you will find: Student worksheets Lesson plan Powerpoint presentations