Pitman High AP “APES”
august 18, 2014 -–may 31, 2015
APES test =
May 6th, 2015 (approximately) -
8am
Welcome to Advanced Placement Environmental Science and thank you for choosing to make this course part of your
2014-2015 school year. Together we’ll
make this year a success!!
Course
Description
In a word,
this course is interdisciplinary, involving the fields of geology,
ecology, biology, ocean and atmospheric sciences, climatology, chemistry,
physics, toxicology, geography, economics, politics, and ethics, to name a few.
This course is designed to be the
equivalent of a college introductory environmental science course, both
in the wide range of topics studied, and in the depth, specificity and detail
of course material.
Course
Goals
The goals of the AP Environmental Science course
are to (1) provide students with the scientific principles, concepts, and
methodologies required to understand the interrelationships in the natural
world, (2) to identify and analyze environmental problems or challenges (both
natural and human-made), (3) to evaluate the relative risks associated with these
problems, and (4) to examine alternative solutions for resolving and/or
preventing them.
While this course explores many different topic
areas, the following themes serve as a foundation for the course:
1. Interconnectedness: the Earth itself is one (very large)
Interconnected System.
2. Sustainability:
the environment functioning indefinitely without decline due to overuse.
3. Energy Conversions: they underlie all Ecological
Processes.
4. Environmental Challenges (“Problems”): these often have a
Social & Cultural context.
5. Human beings affect/alter natural systems: Human Systems rely
on Natural Systems
6. Environmental Science as a Process: Experimental Design,
Critical Thinking
____________________
How
Can You Succeed in AP Environmental Science?
Perhaps the most important prerequisite
is a student’s interest, initiative, and motivation in the class. The degree to which a student becomes involved in AP
Environmental Science is often indicative of the letter grade that is earned.
If you are willing to devote the time, energy, and focus, you will likely do
quite well in the course.
For some students, this course marks the fifth,
sixth etc., AP course which they have taken. For others, AP Environmental
Science is the initial AP science course they have enrolled in and/or the first
AP course in any discipline which they have taken. The diversity of students
in the course is one of the unique and outstanding aspects of APES. This diversity very frequently contributes to
an outstanding “class discussion” component of the course. I encourage you to ask questions, offer
comments, and to share your ideas and perspectives on the environmental science topics that we explore. Many of the
topics & issues explored in the course do not necessarily have “right” or
“wrong” answers; there are typically many “shades of gray” and a spectrum of
potential options. It is my hope that you will feel sufficiently comfortable in
this class to actively participate on a regular basis. _____________________
Laboratory
Experiments and Field Investigations
Laboratory experiments and field investigations
are designed to complement the “indoor classroom”, lecture-discussion portion
of the course. Examples of lab and field work may include the following:
-Ecosystem Dynamics -Soil
Analysis -Ecological Succession -Air Pollution
-Population Studies -Ozone
Testing -Carrying Capacity -Solid Waste
-Energy Consumption -Toxicity
Testing -Water-Quality -Water Inventory
-Salmon Raising? -Urban
Planning -UV Light Intensity
These labs
and others are intended to encourage and promote students to:
1. Think
critically about environmental systems
2. Develop
and conduct well-designed experiments
3. Utilize
appropriate techniques and instrumentation
4. Analyze
and interpret data, including statistical and graphical presentations
5. Think
analytically and apply concepts to the solution of environmental problems
6. Form
conclusions and to evaluate their quality and validity
7. Propose
further questions for study, and
8.
Communicate accurately and meaningfully about observations and conclusions.
Lab and field investigations/experiments will
typically include a lab summary report or other written/typed “deliverable”
upon completion of the lab.
Textbook
G. Tyler Miller, Jr. & Scott E Spoolman’s Living in the Environment, 18th
edition, published by Brookes/Cole. You will not necessarily need to bring your textbook to class daily. If you
are/when you are going to bring it to school, please have a durable and
protective cover on it. A thin, nylon book sock/sleeve offers little
protection for the text corners, so please reuse something like a brown paper store bag. Please do not use
sticky (e.g., contact paper) wrapping and thanks for not placing tape directly on text pages and/or inside the cover. Damaged
books, including clearly crumpled/bent textbook corners, may
require payment from the student for repair. --Thanks.
Grading:
Students will
be evaluated through performance on the following:
Chapter/topic
Exams, Quizzes, two Quarter Finals and a Semester I Final Exam, Question-Sets,
Laboratory and Field Reports, Written & Oral Reports and other written
work.
Letter grades
--- scale:
A = 90- 100% B = 80-89%
C = 70-79% D = 60-69% F = 59% and below
-“Grading” continued on next page
1. Exams: chapter/topic exams over 1, 2, 3, or 4
chapters at a time - - please see our Course
Timeline; 35-85 Multiple-Choice (M/C) at 2 points each, generally;
Free-Response Questions (FRQs) will typically be given every 1-3 chapters and
are worth 30 points. You may also see fill-in-the blank test questions. Please
Note: Make-Up Exams may be of a different format than the scheduled exam. Exams
will comprise approximately 65-70% of the total course pts.
2. Quizzes: announced, unannounced, no-notes, open-note;
generally 5-15 questions, 10-30 points, given once (or twice) a week. Please
“be good to yourself” by keeping up with the assigned reading and asking
questions.
3. Laboratory and Field work Reports/Write-ups: 20-50 points each,
generally. Some of these will be more formal/expanded, while some will be
rather brief.
4.
Chapter Question Sets: typically 20-25 points;
generally due the day of that topic exam
5. Article/Essay/Reading questions, opinion pieces, summaries, and
responses.
(~1-page)
6. Quarter Exams: Cumulative First Qtr. Final Exam: Tues., Oct. 19th ,2012:
100 M/C =
200pts. and a Third
Qtr. Final Exam: March 15, 2013: 100 M/C questions = 200 pts.
7. Semester Exam: Semester I Cumulative Final Exam: December 21, 2012.
(200-250 M/C
questions; approximately 17-20% of semester grade.)
8.
Other assignments and projects: Special reports
and oral presentations.
9. Post-May AP Exam Assignments: assignments
between May 2 and June 9.
10.
Bonus Point Opportunities: to be announced in
class
Example: Tuolumne River Trust river clean-up September
29th, 2012 9am-Noon. Legion
Park, Modesto.
“Homework”,
Taking Notes, “Being Present”, “The Approach”
As will be the case in many of
the science (and other) courses that you will take in college, “homework” is
primarily READING (and thinking about what is read) in AP Environmental
Science. A “typical” reading assignment
for a given day is 6 to 9 pages in our text. While our text is quite
comprehensive and generally viewed as one of the best textbooks available for
an introductory, college-level Environmental Science course on the market, all
course & exam content of significance is NOT necessarily in the textbook. You will see information on exams and quizzes which is NOT from the text. In the event that you are not able to be in class due to illness, an
appointment or other reason, it may be helpful to have several friends in the
course whom you could easily contact to touch base with regarding class notes
and other material that you might have missed.
Being attentive, listening, contributing, asking questions, sharing
your perspective and opinion on topics and issues, offering comments,
observing, thinking, pondering, weighing and taking notes is definitely
recommended. By taking notes on text readings, class lectures and discussions,
videos, and other sources, you will be creating what should be a very
valuable STUDY GUIDE to prepare for all exams and quizzes,
including the International May AP Exam on Monday, May 6, 2013.
– Taking
Notes is definitely recommended.
The May AP Exam: Monday, May 6 (approximately), 2015 - Morning Exam
It is my hope and expectation that students
enrolled in AP Environmental Science will take this exam. If you are willing to
put forth the effort and devote the necessary time, you will be putting
yourself in a desirable position in terms of being very successful on the May
AP Exam.
The AP Environmental Science Exam is three hours
in length and consists of two parts:
Part I: 100 Multiple-Choice Questions
in 90 minutes = 60% of score
Part II: 4
Free-Response Questions in 90 minutes =
40% of score
The AP Environmental Science Exam is created by
the Test Development Committee, which is supported by the College Board and the
Educational Testing Service. This group is made up of 10 people (3 E.T.S.
consultants and 7 individuals who serve a four year term on the committee.)
Part
I. Multiple-Choice Questions: The number
of M/C questions taken from each of the 7 major topic areas in the course
outline is reflected in the percentage next to each topic. For example, you can
expect to see 10-15 M/C questions dealing with Topic I, Earth Systems and
Resources. You will see “Question Sets” (2-5 questions which draw upon the same
set of 5 choices), “stand alone questions”, as well as a few “Roman Numeral”
format questions.
PART II. Free-Response Questions: The FRQ section emphasizes the application of principles in more
depth than a M/C question can involve. You will need to organize answers to
questions, demonstrating reasoning and analytical skills, as well as the
ability to
synthesize material from several sources into
cogent and coherent written responses. You should note that Environmental
Science AP FRQs are best described as written responses in which the student
specifically and comprehensively addresses the question stems. Given this,
Environmental Science AP FRQs are NOT five
paragraph “classic” essays. Unless specifically called for in the question,
there is no need for an introductory paragraph, concluding paragraph, or
restatement of the questions.
There are 3 types of FRQs:
1. Data analysis/Calculation-based/Lab-based or Lab-design: (1 FRQ)
2. Document-based (could
involve a Lab-design and/or a Calculation): (1 FRQ)
3. Synthesis and Evaluation: (2 FRQs)
The data analysis/calculation-based FRQ provides
you with one or more data sets, or
numerical
values and then asks you to respond to specific questions regarding this data.
In a
lab-design FRQ you are asked to set up an experiment based on information
given.
The
document-based FRQ presents you with a news article, an advertisement, a
pamphlet, or other document, and asks you to apply knowledge of environmental
science in responding to 2-6(a, b, --- a, b, c, d, e) question stems related to
the document.
The
synthesis/evaluation FRQ is a series of 2-5 question stems which do not include
a data-set or a document. Most FRQs consist of 3 (a, b, c) or 4 parts
(a, b, c, d), while two part, five part, and six part FRQs are not as common.
The Course and The May AP Exam
As previously stated, students enrolled in
AP Environmental Science are expected to
take the May AP Environmental Science Exam.
We will meet as a class approximately
180 times, with about 162 of these class
meetings taking place prior to the May AP
Exam.
Over the course of the academic year, we will thoroughly explore every
major
Environmental Science topic. Given the format of the May 6th AP Exam (only 100 M/C
and 4 FRQs), it is not possible for this exam to be as detailed and comprehensive as the
“sum” or “product” of the 143 class
meetings which we will share this year prior to the
May 2nd Exam. You will have 3 hours to take
the May AP Exam, responding to questions
dealing with those major Environmental
Science topic areas which we have spent 143
hours or so of
class time exploring, plus all of the
hours devoted to text readings, note-
taking, and preparation for exams, quizzes
and assignments outside of class throughout
the year.
The May AP Exam is One part of this course; - This three hour exam is important for
multiple reasons, but it is not necessarily
“The End” or “The Summit”. Your consistent
interest,
involvement, focus, and effort in this course will put you in fine position for
doing a superb job on the May Exam.
Our class
meetings, daily readings and other assignments/homework, notes, discussions,
labs, field-work, simulations, video
segments, and other class work will prepare you for
our chapter/topic exams and quizzes. This
effort, work, and dedication will also prepare you
for the May AP Exam.
The Course will take care of the Exam. … The journey is the destination …
Again, thanks
for choosing to be a part of AP Environmental Science. I am very glad that you
are going to be with us and hope that this course proves relevant, meaningful,
practical, and applicable this year and for the rest of your life.
rock on!
AP Environmental Science
In-Depth Course Syllabus**
**Dates on This syllabus are
approximate and Fluid**
Unit 1: Introduction to Environmental Science
Aug. 20-
Sept. 6 [13 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 1 - Environmental Problems,
Their Causes, and Sustainability
§ Major
Concepts:
ü What
is environmental science
ü Sustainability
ü Ecological
footprints
·
Ch. 2 - Science, Ecological
Principles, and Sustainability
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Hypothesis
and theory
ü Experimental
design
ü A
review of matter, energy, systems, and feedback
·
Ch. 3 - Ecosystems: What are they
and how do they work?
§ Major
Concepts:
ü 10%
rule
ü Biological
levels of organization
ü Food
webs
ü Primary
productivity
ü Nutrient
cycling
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Q’s Ch. 1-3
o
Newspaper scrAPEbooks – 25
quarterly enviro-themed articles.
o
$100K Philanthropy Committee.
o
Readings by Olmstead, Muir,
Pinchot, Black Elk – Comparative Essay
o
Biogeochemical cycles graphic
organizer
Activities
o
Calculating Ecological Footprints
with report
§ www.footprintnetwork.org.
complete an authentic and an "ideal" portrait. Students will share
their results with the class and discuss why the baseline for ANY American is 3
Earths worth of resources.
o
Borneo Cat Drop
o
Carbon Cycle Experience
Labs
o
Experimental Design Lab using
radish seeds (1 class periods to create, 1 class to analyze one week later)
§ Focus
is on proper experimental design and data collection. Students will write a
formal lab report.
o
Food Web Lab (1 day in class)
§ Students
will understand concepts and terminology involved in food chains, food webs,
keystone species as well as productivity pyramids and bio magnification. It will also allow students to understand the
impact of perturbations to the systems.
o
Bury Garbage for Lab in March
Tests
o
Reading Quizzes
o
Exam Ch. 1-3
o
FRQ (Free Response Question) Exam
#1
Unit 2: Biodiversity and Evolution
Sept
7 – Oct 10 [24 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 4 - Biodiversity and
Evolution
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Evolution
and natural selection
ü Speciation
ü Endemism
ü Extinction
ü Biodiversity,
species richness
ü Generalists
and specialists
ü Indicator,
keystone, and nonnative species
·
Ch. 5 - Biodiversity, Species
Interactions, and Population Control
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Species
interactions
ü Coevolution
ü Population
growth, age structure diagram
·
Ch. 9 – Sustaining Biodiversity:
The Species Approach
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Extinction
types/rates
ü Endangered
/ threatened species
ü The
value of biodiversity
ü Causes
of species loss – HIPPCO
ü Environmental
Laws
ü Protection
·
Ch. 10 – Sustaining Terrestrial
Biodiversity: Ecosystem Approach.
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Old
growth forest / deforestations
ü Sustainable
forest management
ü The
edge effect
ü Sustainable
rangeland management
ü Parks
and nature preserves
ü Biodiversity
hotspots
ü Restoration
projects
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Q’s Ch 4,5,9,10
o
National Park Report
o
Environmental Laws student
presentations
o
Local Endangered Species research
brochure & Oral Report
o
Invasive Species “Most Wanted”
posters
Activities
o
Parking Lot biodiversity using
Shannon-Weiner Index calculations.
Labs
o
Wooly worm evolution lab (1.5
Class)
§ Students
will become familiar with how adaptations affect survival and reproduction and
how this ultimately affects gene frequency.
Students will analyze data with a Chi square test.
o
Arthropod Diversity Lab (1 day
outside, 2 classes for lab analysis)
§ Students
collect insect from various sites around campus using quadrant sampling
techniques. Areas are assessed for
vegetation type and cover, humidity, temperature, development etc. Homemade Burlese funnel will be used to
analyze number and type of arthropod collected.
o
Ecosystem Column Lab (1 day
set-up , 8 weeks of observation)
§ Students
will explore several types of ecosystems during an 8 week period using recycled
and stacked 2-liter bottles. Students
will investigate and report on abiotic and biotic factors in each chamber,
sustainability maintenance, water quality monitoring, soil testing and
interconnectedness between various chambers within the column.
Tests
o
Ch, 4, 5, 9 & 10 Exam
o
FRQ Exam 2
o
Reading quizzes.
Unit 3: Human Population
Oct 11 – Nov 7 [20 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 6 – Human Population and its
Impact
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Human
Population Growth
ü Fertility
Rates and Replacement levels
ü Age structure
diagrams
ü Demographics
ü Life
expectancies.
·
Ch. 17 – Environmental Hazards
and Human Health
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Risk
ü Disease
ü Carcinogens/mutagens
ü PCB’s/mercury
ü Toxicology
ü LD-50
dose response curves
·
Ch. 22 Sustainable Cities
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Urban
growth & sprawl
ü Pros
and cons of urbanization
ü Transportation
ü Land
use planning
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Q’s 6, 17, 22
o
Face the Nation research project
o
Population Math problems
o
Research Hilmar Cheese Discharge,
Geer Road Landfill or Kettleman City Toxic Dump.
o
Case Study: Mercury Poisoning
& Sequoia Nat’l Park
Activities
o
Age structure diagrams using US,
Japan & Mexico population data.
o
Cemetery Demographics
Labs
o
LC-50 of energy drinks (1 class)
§ Students
will use their favorite energy drink to determine LC-50 for each drink on brine
shrimp and/or blood worms. Students will
write a formal lab report.
Tests
o
1st Quarter Final
o
Ch 6, 17, 22 Exam
o
FRQ Exam 3
o
Reading Quizzes
Unit 4: Our Atmosphere
Nov 8 – Nov 30 [17 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 7 – Climate and Biodiversity
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Climate
vs. Weather
ü Wind
& air currents
ü Greenhouse
effect
ü Rain
shadow effect
ü Biomes
/ climatograms
·
Ch. 18 – Air Pollution
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Layers
of the atmosphere
ü Primary
and secondary pollutants
ü Nitrogen,
sulfur, particulates, ozone, VOC, smog
ü Acid
deposition
ü Indoor
air pollution
·
Ch. 19 – Climate Change and Ozone
Depletion
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Global
Warming - causes, effects
ü Ozone
layer depletion
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Questions Ch 7,
18, 19
o
Research Central Valley’s Air
Quality, asthma rates and medical cost– report out.
§ Use
valleyair.org & State of the Air App and www.lung.org
Activities
o
Student & Staff survey about
people’s knowledge and beliefs about global climate change.
Labs
o
Modeling the Greenhouse Effect (1
Class)
§ Students
construct miniature greenhouses with varying levels of plastic cover and gas
content and monitor temperature compare to a control. Students share data with class
o
Ozone Pollution ( 1 Class)
§ Students will create Shoenbein Paper and then place it
in various locations on campus, to be analyzed the next day.
o
Particulate Pollution (1 class)
§ On
same day as ozone pollution lab, students will create particulate collection
devices. Results analyzed next day.
o
Acid Deposition Lab (home)
§ Students
will construct a device to monitor local precipitation for pH.
All
four labs will be written-up as one formal lab report.
Tests
o
Ch 7, 18, 19 Exam
o
FRQ Exam #4
Unit 5 – Our Water Resources
Dec 3
– Dec 21, winter break, Jan 7 – Jan 31 [
33 Class Meetings]
·
CH. 8 – Aquatic Biodiversity
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Zones
– vertical
ü Estuaries,
wetlands, intertidal zones, open sea
ü Lake
types
ü Watersheds
/ runoff
·
Ch. 11 – Sustaining Aquatic
Biodiversity
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Over-fishing
/ types of fishing
ü Introductions
of fish and crabs
ü Marine
reserves/wetland protection
·
Ch. 13 – Water Resources
§ Major
Concepts
ü Sources
of water: Ground, surface, ice, ocean, air
ü Water
shortages, drought, groundwater depletion
ü Dams
& reservoirs, flooding
ü Desalinization
ü Sustainable
water use
·
Ch. 20 – Water Pollution
§ Major
Concepts
ü Point
vs nonpoint pollution
ü Eutrophication
ü Ocean
pollution
ü Septic
tanks
ü Sewage
treatment
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Q’s CH 8, 11, 13,
20
o
Coral Reef Paper Model
Activities
o
Tragedy of the Commons fishing
excursion (1 class)
o
Hetch Hetchy Debate
o
California’s Peripheral Water
Tunnel Lobbying Groups Activity
Labs
o
Freshwater Pollution in Ponds.
§ Student
teams construct 4 ponds (control, organic pollution, acid pollution, salt
pollution and monitor for one week.
Students will then investigate sources of organic & salinization
pollution in the area. Possible letters
to local ag producers on how to mitigate effects.
o
Salinization Lab #2 ( 1 day
set-up, 5-10 days growth, 1 day analysis)
§ Students
will determine effect of salt on germination of common crop seeds. Use results to write a report on the effect
of salt concentration on seed germination and link information to salinization
issues facing
o
Watershed Lab (Field Trip TBD –
most likely in Sierra Foothills)
§ Water
quality tests using probeware (DO, nitrates, phosphates, pH, turbidity,
E.coli), Soil quality tests, (pH, N, P,
K), plot sampling and tree-ID.
o
Groundwater and canal water
comparison (if canals are flowing)
§ Water
quality tests using probeware (DO, nitrates, phosphates, pH, turbidity,
E.coli), Aquifer recharge pits (in
town).
o
Wastewater Treatment Lab
§ Students
will build a miniature sewage treatment system and investigate issues of
cost/benefit ratios.
Tests
o
1st Semester Final
(cumulative)
o
Ch. 8, 11, 13, 20 Exam
o
Reading quizzes
o
FRQ Exam 5
Unit 6: Our Land Resources
Feb 1-13,
Presidents’ Holiday, Feb 19 – Mar 8 [23 Class Meetings]
(Flexible dates due to Baby Hollister)
·
Ch 14. Geology and Nonrenewable Minerals
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Plate
Tectonics
ü Weathering
ü Volcanoes
earthquakes and tsunamis
ü The
rock cycle
ü Mineral
resources (high and low grade)
ü Mining
types and depletion time
·
Ch. 12 – Food, Soil, and Pest
Management
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Under
& malnutrition
ü Types
of Agriculture (pros & cons)
ü Green
revolution and organic farming
ü Aquaculture
ü Erosion/desertification/salinization/waterlogging
ü Pesticide
use and integrated pest management
·
Ch. 21 – Solid and Hazardous
Waste
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Types
of Solid Waste
ü Hazardous
Waste
ü Waste
Management
ü Reduce,
reuse, recycle
ü Landfills
/ incinerators
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Questions, CH 12,
14, 21
o
Research local Superfund sites
o
Plate Tectonics Features (Google
Maps, mrhollister.com)
Activities
o
GMF debate – 2 class days with
court hearing
§ Students
assigned roles (activist, farmer, lawyer,e tc).
Students critically examine arguments for and against Genetically
Modified Foods. Judges will decide best argument and class will write a
reflection essay explaining how their thinking may have changed during the
debate.
o
SWAG bag - Personal Solid Trash
Inventory collection and analysis
v
Personal trip required to
California State Mining & Mineral Museum in Mariposa and Snelling Dredge
Tailings. Research historic Gold Rush
town site within 75 miles of Turlock (other than Columbia and report back).
Labs
o
Plate Tectonic Convection
Mechanisms and resultant landforms (1 Class).
§ Students
will use plastic shoe boxes and hot/cold water to mimic convection flow of
plates. They will then use various
crustal analogues to research effects of crustal shortening, extension and
sliding.
o
Soil Classification Lab –Soil
sample from home (1 -2 Classes).
§ Students
will use soil triangles, perform percolation test, test for N, P, K, and pH and
use a hydrometer to determine soil texture.
They will then write a consultant letter to a local grower describing
their findings and making recommendations for managing the land to grow a
common field crop (corn, alfalfa, etc) or tree crop (almonds, walnuts,
peaches).
o
Cookie Mining (1 Class)
§ Students
buy supplies and mine for chocolate chips, then analyze cost vs profits in a
mining operation.
Tests
Ch 14, 12, 21 Exam
FRQ Exam 6
Unit 7: Energy Resources
Mar
11 – Apr 10 [ 17 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 15 – Nonrenewable Energy
§ Major
Concepts
ü History
of energy use
ü Oil:
Pros, cons, issues
ü Natural
gas, coal
ü Nuclear
Power
·
Ch. 16 Energy Efficiency &
Renewable Energy
§ Major
Concepts
ü Energy
conservation
ü Solar
energy
ü Hydropower
ü Wind
power
ü Biodiesel
ü Geothermal
ü Fuel
cells
Assignments
Reading
Guide Q’s Ch 15 & 16
Investigate
TID’s energy portfolio and prices compared to outside providers.
Energy
Calculations
Fracking
Articles
Labs
o
Home Energy Audit
§ Students
investigate amount of electricity that they use in their home and design a plan
to reduce consumption. Investigate links
between electricity use and effects on the environment. Present Findings to Class.
Tests
3rd
Quarter Exam (cumulative for quarter)
Ch 15 & 16 Exam
Essay Exam 7
Unit 8: Sustaining Human
Societies
Apr
11 – May 1 [15 Class Meetings]
·
Ch. 23 – Economics, Environment,
Sustainability
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Capital
(natural, human, manufactured)
ü Optimum
resource use/cist-benefit analysis
ü Poverty
& microloans
·
Ch. 24 – Politics, Environment
and Sustainability
§ Major
Concepts
ü Environmental
policy
ü Lobbying
ü Public
land management
ü Environmental
groups and education
·
Ch. 25 – Environmental
Worldviews, Ethics and sustainability.
§ Major
Concepts:
ü Environmental
Ethics
ü Global
positions on the environment
ü Environmental
literacy
Assignments
o
Guided Reading Q’s 23-25
o
Research – evaluating US policy
on the environment during current and past 4 presidents.
City Planning Map
Students
are given a map of pristine environment.
They must work in teams to design a city for 50,000 that is
sustainable. Students present their city
plans to the class and analyze each plan.
