Name:  Thomas Cutonilli

Type of Lesson:  Webquest

Lesson Plan Title:  Earth History

Discipline and Topic:  Regents Earth Science, Technology

Target Population:
Grade Level:  High School (10th - 12th grade)
Population Characteristics:  This lesson is designed for a typical class of twenty to twenty-four high school students with a mixture of ability and experience.  Typically, some guidance will be required and students are benefited by pairing weaker students with stronger students.
Lesson Groupings:  Students will work in groups of three in predetermined roles.  Students will research information based on their role and will compile their information with their group members to develop a presentation for the class.  Students will work individually on their concluding activity.

Curriculum Links:  This lesson is a webquest designed to get students to think actively using a real-world simulation about the Earth's past and apply the principle's that governed Earth's past to its future based on the changes that are now occurring in the Earth's environment.  Students will be assigned a task to be accomplished, choose which role they are to play in this simulation, be required to research a specific period in Earth's history, and, as a group, report on that period to the class.  the class will use the the information from the presentations to compose a concluding essay on what they believe Earth's future will be.  This lesson will follow lessons on the geologic time scale and the concepts of the greenhouse effect and global warming.  Students will also have previous experience research using the internet (including how to evaluate websites), producing Powerpoint projects, and writing essays.  This lesson is designed to deepen understanding of the concepts covered by presenting a real-world problem to be solved using information from Earth's past as a guide to apply to possible outcomes for Earth's future.  Geologic History is one of the last topics covered in Earth Science, so this lesson applies many of the concepts learned throughout the curriculum into a culminating activity such as this.

Meets New York State Science Standard 4, Key Idea 1, performance indicators 1.2h, 1.2i, 1.2j; Key Idea 2, performance indicators 2.1k, 2.1l, 2.1o, and 2.2c
Meets New York State Math, Science, and Technology Standard 5, Key Idea 3; Standard 6, Key Idea 5; and Standard 7, Key Idea 2

Objectives:  Students will be able to...

• Conduct research using the internet to discover information about the Earth's history.
• Draw conclusions about the future of the Earth based on similar examples from Earth's past.
• Prepare and present a presentation on their assigned time period.
• Work collaboratively and effectively with others in completing an assigned task.
  

Media Literacy Objectives:

• 7. Routinely and efficiently use online information resources to meet needs for collaboration, research, publications, communications, and productivity.
• 8. Select and apply  technology tools for research, information analysis, problem solving, and decision making in contentt learning.
• 9. Investigate and apply expert systems, intelligent agents, and simulations in real-world situations.
  
• 10. Collaborate with peers, experts, and others to contribute to a content-related knowledge base by using technology to compile, synthesize, produce, and disseminate information, models, and other creative works.

Materials and Timing:  Laptop computer with internet access and printer for each student, concluding activity worksheet.

This lesson can be done in five class periods (one full week).

Scope and Sequence:

DAY 1

1. Teacher will start the lesson by having students recall previous class lesson/discussions on the formation of the Earth, the evolution of Earth's atmosphere, plate tectonics, the geologic time scale, the greenhouse effect, and global warming.
2. Students will be instructed that they will work in groups to complete a task for a real-world simulation/problem (webquest) and present their results to the class in the form of a Powerpoint presentation.  Teacher will present to the students what the problem is and direct the students to the webquest online using a computer/internet with projector.
   
3. Students will be assigned into groups of three and instructed that they will be rquired to work together to complete the assigned task.
   
4. Teacher will pass out the concluding activity worksheet and the teacher will go over the task, roles, resources, concluding activity, and evaluation with the class using a computer/internet with projector.
5. Individual groups will be assigned a geologic time period and the group members will decide amongts themselves which roles they will play.
6. Groups will use any remaining time to begin their research.

DAY 2

1. Students will work in their assigned groups and roles to conduct research on their assigned time period.
2. Teacher will assist with any questions from group members and check for progress.
3. Teacher will actively check for the reliability of the resources students will be using as they work in their groups.

DAY 3

1. Student groups will wrap up their research and begin to put together their Powerpoint presentions on their assigned time periods.
2. Teacher will assist students as needed in this process and make suggestions when necessary.
3. Groups will be instructed to save their presentations to a common class folder for use in the presentation of their projects.

DAY 4

1. Groups will present their Powerpoint presentations on their assigned time period to the class.  each group member is expected to contribute and present themselves "professionally" and as an expert in their chosen role.
   
2. During the presentations, students will take notes for the questions on the concluding activity worksheet.  Students will use these notes for the essay to be written.
3. Upon completion of the presenations, students will use the remaining time to develop/construct their essays using the classroom laptop computers.  Teacher will assist students as needed.  Essays will be completed for the following class day.

DAY 5

1. Students will post their essays to the class blog.
2. Students will read and respond to at least two other essays using any information learned from the activity to support their comments.
   
3. Class will discuss the results from the essays as a group activity and draw overall conclusions on the fate of Earth and humans.  A summary on the concept of the Law of Uniformitariansm will conclude the activity.
   

Supplemental Materials:  Class will require a projector for the group presentations.

Evaluation of Students:  Students will be evaluated both formally and informally.  A completed worksheet and concept map as well as student participation will be considered.  Grading will be based on the following rubric:

Objective	0 Points	1 Point	2 Points
Conduct research using the internet to discover information  about the Earth's history	No sources were included from research	One to three sources were included from research Sources included not documented properly	More than three sources were included from research Sources included documented properly
Draw conclusions about the future of the Earth based on similar examples from Earth's past	Conclusion activity not done No comments made on student essays	Conclusion activity completed Commented on two or more student essays Conclusions drawn not supported with evidence researched	Conclusion activity completed Commented on two or more student essays Conclusions drawn supported with evidence researched
Prepare and present a presentation on their assigned time period	Group does not have presenation completed by due date Presenation hastily prepared and disorganized - leaves audience confused No links provided	Group presenation completed and on time Presentation not performed smoothly and in a "professional" manner Links provided not appropriate or not working	Group presenation completed and on time Presentation performed smoothly and "professionally" Links provided appropriate and working properly
Work collaboratively and effectively with others in completing an assigned task	Did not work with others to complete the assignment Did not utilize time effectively Did not contribute to the group presentation	Relied on others for most research Contributed to the group presentation	Worked well within group Contributed significant research for the group task Contributed to the group presentation

Evaluation of Lesson:  I have never implemented this lesson; webquests are a new concept for me.  I believe that the potential for this lesson (or at least webquests in general) is great - I believe they could be very motivating for students and they give students some real-world experience in solving real-world problems using information obtained from the internet.  In doing a webquest, students use a variety of cognitive and practical skills that are applied to several different styles of learning.

The amount of time students will need to research and produce a Powerpoint presenation may need adjustment based upon the students' level of experience.  This lesson will be deemed as successful if the conclusion essay can successfully associate and support with evidence the relationship between life at any time on Earth is dependant upon the environment, and that any changes in the environment result in changes in the life on Earth.

This lesson acts as an anchor for much of what a student learns in Earth Science by showing how a variety of processes/forces (weather, climate, geology, energy transfer) interact with one another, and any change(s) can result in changes in the life that has existed (or possibly will exist) on Earth.  In addition, the technology used is used in a manner that is not only motivating or fun, but adds to the learning experience of the student.


Conclusion Activity Worksheet