Project URL: www.teachersnetwork.org/teachnetusa/dmaggio/greatlakes.htm
How
it works:
These activities use real-time online information to solve simulated
"crimes." Students look up data that includes ship
tracking via GPS information, lake conditions (water currents and
temperature), and weather systems. For one module, the students
find information about different invasive plant and animal
species and then create a brochure about the plant or animal they
choose, including how it got here, where it is found today, and how it
is harmful to native plant and animal species.
Standards addressed:
Students learn about the composition and structure of the Earth's
atmosphere (e.g., temperature and pressure in different layers of the
atmosphere, circulation of air masses);
factors that affect the number and types of organisms an ecosystem can
support (e.g., available resources such as quantity of light and
water, range of temperature, and soil composition; disease;
competition from other organisms within the ecosystem; predation);
ways in which organisms interact and depend on one another through
food chains and food webs in an ecosystem (e.g., producer/consumer,
predator/prey, parasite/host-- relationships that are mutually
beneficial or competitive); and concepts such as axis, major
parallels, seasons, rotation, revolution, and principal lines of
latitude and longitude.
Materials used:
A computer with Internet connection, and various maps are
needed.
The
students:
Crimes on the Great Lakes is designed for students in seventh through twelfth grade.
Students need to be able to interpret data found on the Internet and
put the data into another usable form.
Overall value:
This program places the information that is being looked for into
a simulated situation where the data is needed. It also utilizes the
students imaginations to make the situations "real." The
students gain valuable knowledge that meets State standards while
actively enjoying themselves
Tips:
Teachers must do some preparation of materials and familiarize
themselves with the data required. Some of the situations require
teacher input because of the real-time nature of the program.
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About the teacher:
David Maggio is an eighth-grade science teacher in the Cleveland
Municipal School District. He has worked with the Alliance Project, is
a Master Teacher for the National Teacher Training Institute, and has
a Master's Degree in Instructional Technology.
E-mail:
mr_maggio@yahoo.com
Subject
Areas:
Science
English
Technology
Grade
Levels:
7-12
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