Natural Resources & Human Rights
The Hydosphere, the Geosphere, the Atmosphere
Embedded Files
Here is a blank template of the slideshow students will be presenting. Students need to choose their own topic, choose the groups, choose the roles are going to play in that group, and get to researching. It is all lined out here for your students! Be the guide on the side, not the sage on the stage!
Choose your topic:
The project is for students in groups of three. Before you decide who is in your group, decide what you are interested in. You shouldn't just be in a group because someone is your friend… You should be in a group based on common interests. So, let the students choose what interests them first... like one of these:
Why is California having such a long drought?
How did the Hoover Dam change the USA?
How did the water get poisoned in Flint, Michigan?
How does Southern California get its water?
What is "Day Zero" and how do we stop it?
What causes air pollution in the San Joaquin Valley?
How does the quality of our air compare to other US cities?
How does our agricultural practices impact human rights in the Central Valley?
How can people be convinced to get rid of their lawns and grow indigenous plants?
Choose your group members:
The project is for students in groups of three. Students will be doing some research and presenting to the class in a slide show. Now that you know what you are interested in, get some people who are interested in the same thing and decide who is doing what.
Partner 1
Graphs & Maps
This person does one pink slide and the blue slides. This is mainly creating graphs and showing maps. (Graphs must be created, not googled!)
Partner 2
Facts & Citations
This person does one pink slide and the green & yellow slides. This is mainly gathering facts.
Partner 3
Presenter of Slideshow
This person makes sure there is continuity in the slides and will present the entire thing to the class.
Research & Collaborate
Make one copy of this slideshow for each group. It is the template for their presentation. Give students time to work together to create the slides and then sign them up for presentation dates. The rest of the class is their audience. Remind students not to change the background color as that's how other kids can recognize what the slide is supposed to be about. Fonts, animations... all that setting stuff can be left as is.
There is a BIG giant report on the Tulare Lake in California.. when fully filled, it is one the largest fresh water lake west of the Mississippi... but it is often unfilled due to agricultural demands, drought and a growing population. However, this big technical report has some really great graphs to discuss with your class. Show the graphs from the document and ask your class "What do you notice?" and "What do you wonder?"
Present
Student's presentations should be between 15-20 minutes. Students should not read from the slides but use them as talking points. It is best for your class to create their own rubric. The audience members should have something in their hands to do while watching the presentation, such as checking off the parts of the rubric.
I suggest having two presentations per day, and no more. If you have too many presentations in one day, the audience starts getting a little tired, and then you ended up with a rude behavior from those audience members. Just friendly advice…
Page updated
Google Sites
Report abuse