PROJECT BASED LEARNING: DEFORESTATION

“I speak for the trees, for the trees have no tongues” – The Lorax, Dr. Seuss

Cady Hope Couch, Kaylee Harlemert, Olivia Morris

Project Overview

The Question

•How can the clearing of trees (deforestation) affect our community?

•The students will answer this question and also decide how they can stop the deforestation in their community.

Four Steps of the Project1. The students will discover the benefits from trees to humans

and from humans to trees. They will also have a better understanding of trees as habitats.

2. The Lorax by Dr. Seuss – The students will learn about the pros and cons of cutting down trees.

3. The students use their knowledge to predict future of continued deforestation in the community. They will being planning a community tree planting day.

4. Open house where the students will present their solution, ideas for the tree planting day, and their proposals to the governor.

ScienceKaylee Harlemert

Day 1: DeforestationStandard:

• Technology and Engineering 4.6: Apply a creative design strategy to solve a particular problem generated by societal needs and wants.

Objectives:

• TSWBAT summarize what deforestation is and how it effects their community

• TSWBAT create a solution to deforestation in their area

Lesson Overview:

• Hook: What items are from trees? (classify items)

• Discussion: How do we benefit from trees? How do they benefit from us?

• Discuss oxygen/CO2 exchange, shade, animal habitats, products trees produce

• Learn about deforestation (What is it? What causes it? How could it hurt your community?)

• What can you do to help? (group work, come up with a solutions and share with class)

• Exit ticket (explain deforestation in your own words and how it effects your community

Assessment:

• TSWAT summarize deforestation is in their own words (Formative)

• TSWAT create a solution for deforestation for their own community (Summative)

Day 2: Food Web Standard:

• Flow of matter and energy 4.3.1 Create a food web that illustrates the energy relationships between plants and animals and the key issues or assumptions found in the model .

Objectives:

• TSWBAT create a food web that illustrates relationships between plants and animals in Tennessee.

Lesson Overview:

• Hook: What did you have for dinner last night? (Write on board)

• Which of these foods come from plants?

• Which of these foods don't come from plants?

• Review vocab: omnivore, herbivore, carnivore, producer, consumer, decomposer in small group discussion (picture of plant, animals, etc. and have them discuss/debate what categories they fall under)

• Food chain game on Brain Pop (http://www.brainpop.com/games/foodchaingame/ ) • Questions discussed as a class: Could a missing part in the food chain mess up the ecosystem? What might happen if parts of the ecosystem

don’t have what they need to survive? Was your hypothesis correct?

• Food web worksheet (independent work-assessment) http://www.brainpopjr.com/science/animals/foodchain/activity/

Assessment:

• TSWAT create an food web that would occur in a forest in Tennessee.

Day 3: Effects on EcosystemStandard:

• Interdependence 4.2.1 Analyze the effects of changes in the environment on the stability of an ecosystem

Objectives:

• TSWBAT analyze the effects deforestation has on the stability an ecosystem

Lesson Overview:

• Review: What is an ecosystem? (everything has a role and depends on each other), watch video (90 seconds) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dIT5W936FWA

• How do trees benefit plants, animals, and nonliving things (moss, fungi)? (protection, shade, food, etc.) What kind of animals/insects/nonliving things live in/below trees? • Get into groups and draw a food web that could occur in a tree

• What happens if the ecosystem is imbalanced? (hypothesize)

• Questions discussed as a class: Based on what you learned yesterday, could a missing part in the food chain mess up the ecosystem? What might happen if parts of the ecosystem don’t have what they need to survive? Was your hypothesis correct?

• Exit Quiz: • Is a tree a producer, consumer, or decomposer? Why do you think that? Do you think deforestation could effect an ecosystem’s stability? Why?

Use 3-4 pieces of evidence to prove your point

Assessment:

• TSWBAT analyze the effects of deforestation on an ecosystem using 3-4 forms of evidence

Day 4: Community Tree Planting Day

• As a class, one of the solutions to deforestation was planting trees in the community

• Making a difference: Planting trees on the school property

• Vocab: reforestation• How they could help on a larger scale

• Discussion • How can the planting of trees restore the ecosystem?

• Talk about the founding of National Arbor Day

• Review: Crossword puzzle (while they are waiting for their turn) http://www.projectplantit.com/Site_Downloads/Teachers_Downloads/Teachers_Guide.pdf

Language ArtsCady Hope Couch

Day 1:

Day 2:

Day 3:

Day 4:

Social StudiesOlivia Morris

Standards and ObjectivesStandards

• 4.41 Describe the principles embedded in the Constitution, including: purposes of government listed in the Preamble, separation of powers, branches of government, check and balances , the amendment process, principle of judicial review, recognition of and protection of individual rights in the 1st Amendment

• 4.3 Create a visual display using multiple forms of media to identify with pictures geographic terms including bluffs, swamps, isthmus, gulf, sea, bay, and cape.

• 4.68 Create a visual display using multiple forms of media to name the states and territories. that existed in 1850, their locations, and major geographical features, including mountain ranges, principal rivers, and dominant plant regions.

Objectives• TSWBAT create a video using images

and audio to correctly define geographical vocabulary terms

• TSWBAT draw and explain the differences between a map of America in 1850 and now.

• TSWBAT compare and contrast maps of deforestation.

Day 1: GeographyStandard:

• Create a visual display using multiple forms of media to identify with pictures geographic terms including bluffs, swamps, isthmus, gulf, sea, bay, and cape.

Objectives:

• TSWBAT create a video using images and audio to correctly define geographical vocabulary terms

Lesson Overview:

• Vocabulary Overview: bluffs, swamps, isthmus, gulf, sea, bay, cape, cove, forest, deforestation.

• Vocabulary Hunt- match the word and definition. There will be 5 sets of cards that are numbered to create groups.

• Students draw pictures of the vocabulary words they found during the hunt.

• Students, in groups, create a video using the images they have drawn and describe the terms.

Assessment:

• The students will create a 10 minute video correctly defining 10 geography terms.

Day 2: Forests then and nowStandard:

• Create a visual display using multiple forms of media to name the states and territories. that existed in 1850, their locations, and major geographical features, including mountain ranges, principal rivers, and dominant plant regions.

Objectives:

• TSWBAT draw and explain the differences between a map of America in 1850 and now.

• TSWBAT compare and contrast maps of deforestation.

Lesson Overview:

• Previously, the students have been studying the 1850’s. They will create a map of USA in the1850’s. The maps will include states and territories, and many geographical features including mountain ranges, rivers, plant regions, and forests.

• The students will then create a map of modern day USA including similar items: states, mountains, rivers, plant regions, and the forests today.

• The students will present their drawings in small groups and describe the changes, specifically change in the sizes of forests

• The teacher will present two maps of the world, one before trees were beginning to be cut down and another after much deforestation had occurred, and the students will write a short essay comparing and contrasting the two maps.

Assessment:

• The students will draw two maps and present a 5 minute description to their small group.

• The student will compare and contrast maps of deforestation in a 10 sentence essay.

Day 3: Governmental Roles

Day 4: Current Legislation