Following the Water

MS-ESS2-4. -Develop a model to describe the cycling of water through Earth's systems driven by energy from the sun and the force of gravity. MS-ESS2-6. - Develop and use a model to describe how unequal heating and rotation of the Earth cause patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates. MS-ESS3-3. - Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment. MS-ESS3-4. - Construct an argument supported by evidence for how increases in human population and per- capita consumption of natural resources impact Earth's systems.

Learning Target

Students will make observations about the water in their region.
Students will evaluate their own potential for having an impact in places beyond their local region.

Success Criteria

I can compare various regions regarding their proximity to water.
I can assess the impact of pollution (specifically plastics) on a local as well as global scale.

Questions to Ponder

How close do you live to water?
Where does the water near you go?

Following the Water

The Chesapeake Bay watershed spans more than 64,000 square miles. It can be found in parts of six states—Delaware, Maryland, New York, Pennsylvania, Virginia and West Virginia—and the entire District of Columbia. More than 18 million people live in the Chesapeake Bay watershed.

This activity uses the Free Google Earth Application to locate water near the places you live and identify the path it follows toward its ultimate destination.

Part A - Where you Live

Question - How close do you live to the nearest water?
Explore - Open Google Earth from the Dock. Search for your town in the Search Box. When your town appears, use the controls to search the surrounding area.
Describe - What is the terrain like where you live? - city (streets, parking lots, etc.) or rural (trees, fields, etc.) Zoom out and observe the surrounding area.
Collect Data - Go to the Tools Menu and choose Ruler. Change the length units to Kilometers (km.) Click once in the center of your town and a second time on the closest water to where you live. Exactly how far is the water from where you live?
Explore - Find the closest river or creek to your town and start following it until you run out of water. A good rule is to zoom out if you ever get lost!
Describe the path of the water. Where does it lead? What is its final destination?

Back to Teams

Answer the following Questions

How far is the nearest water to your town?
What are some of the positive and negative aspects of your proximity (how near or far) to water?

Part B - The City

Question - How does the water near a large city compare to where you live?
Explore - Open Google Earth from the Dock. Search for Baltimore, MD in the Search Box. Use the controls to search the surrounding area.
Describe - What is the terrain like in Baltimore? - city (streets, parking lots, etc.) or rural (trees, fields, etc.) Zoom out and observe the surrounding area.
Collect Data - Go to the Tools Menu and choose Ruler. Change the length units to Kilometers (km.) Click once in the center of your town and a second time on the closest water to Baltimore. Exactly how far is the water the center of the city?
Explore - Find the closest river or creek to Baltimore and start following it until you run out of water. A good rule is to zoom out if you ever get lost!
Describe the path of the water. Where does it lead? What is its final destination?

Back to Teams

Answer the following Questions

How do Part A and Part B compare to each other? What are the similarities and differences?
What are some of the positive and negative aspects of the city's proximity (how near or far) to water?

Part C - The Path of Plastic

Watch the video - Where is the biggest Garbage Dump on Earth?
Discuss - Considering your observations from Part A and Part B, what impact might the weather have on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
Discuss - Considering your observations from Part A and Part B, what impact might you have on the Great Pacific Garbage Patch?
Brainstorm - Think about some of the materials you use on a regular basis. How might you minimize your own contributions to the amount of plastic in the ocean? What would you say to others?

The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

There is a tremendous amount of garbage floating around in our oceans. As you found out from the Follow the Water Activity, most of it comes from trash thrown out on the land. Check out this video about the man who discovered the Great Pacific Garbage Patch.

Pacific Garbage Patch.pdf

Tell Somebody About It!

Use what you have learned in the Following The Water activity to tell the world about the kind of impact they could have on the world's oceans through our local water.

Learning Target

- Create a comic strip to show people what kind of positive and negative impacts they could have on their local and far-away environment.

Success Criteria

your finished product should include:
- a claim about how trash from the land (especially plastic) can impact the ocean environment
- evidence from any of the resources we have used in the Following the Water activity
- reasoning (science facts) from the text or other sources

Meteorology