FINAL+PROJECT+DETAILS

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE: Year-End Final Project

This project will be worth 10% of your grade this semester, so don’t put it off until the last minute!!!
 * Environmental Challenges Around the World**

In the last three weeks of the semester, you and a partner will be responsible for teaching a full class on one of Earth’s biomes, the current environmental status of that biome, the environmental challenges and threats faced by the people (and other living things) inhabiting that biome, and the actions currently being taken to protect that biome.

This will be a multimedia presentation to the class, and should include the following elements:

- **A pre-reading of some kind on your biome** o Can be about a particular ecosystem, species, event, threat, challenge, or the biome itself o Should be a news media article from a credible source. o Off-limits: MSN, Yahoo, Wikipedia, Ask.com, People Magazine, So-and-So’s personal website, o Suggestions: NY Times science section, EPA, USDA, or other government website, Sciencenews.org, Sciencedaily.com, popsci.com, local or national newspapers, National Geographic, Discover Magazine, Time Magazine, etc. o YOU WILL HAND THIS OUT TO THE CLASS 2-3 DAYS PRIOR TO YOUR PRESENTATION

- **A audio/visual component** o A short video or an audio clip o Should be non-fiction, unless you make a good case for showing/playing a segment of fictional material. o Some suggestions for video: YouTube, How Stuff Works, National Geographic, Discovery Channel, Animal Planet, documentaries, TV specials, etc. Your video could also be home-made, as long as it is appropriate and serves the purpose of educating your audience. o Some suggestions for audio: National Public Radio website features audio clips on numerous subjects, the journals Nature and Science features a weekly podcast, o THIS COMPONENT WILL NEED TO BE APPROVED BY MR. HOLLOWAY!

- **A handout for members of the class to keep** o Should contain a summary of the major points of your presentation o May contain images, as long as you are not sacrificing space that should be used for information o Should be no longer than one page o May be formatted as an outline, a bulleted list, a series of short 2-3 sentence blocks of information, a graphic organizer, or a skeleton outline in which members of the class can take notes.

- **A lecture lasting at least 30 minutes** o PowerPoint, Prezi, or similar format o MUST contain images relevant to your biome and the challenges it faces o MUST NOT contain slides packed full of text that you stand and read for the class o MUST conclude with 3 - 5 questions that you ask the class to answer about your biome (like our warm-up questions, but at the end of class).

Project Grading Rubric: (5 = A; 1 = F)

· Description and maps of the **locations** of this biome around the world · Description and pictures to illustrate the important **biotic components** of this biome and it’s many **foodwebs**: plants, animals, fungi, microbes, etc.  · Description and pictures to illustrate the important **abiotic components** of this biome: water, snow, and ice, precipitation, soils, seasons, climate, geologic features, etc. ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   || · Description and pictures to illustrate the **Ecosystem Services** that this biome provides · Description and pictures to illustrate the **natural resources** present in this biome, as well as **how humans utilize these** **resources** · Description of the **threats** faced by this biome, the **causes and consequences** of this threat, as well as the overall **affect of** **humans** on this biome · Description and pictures to illustrate a particular **case study** related to this biome and it’s threats (for example: drought in  Sudan, drilling in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, or over-fishing tuna stocks in the Pacific Ocean) · Description and pictures to illustrate the **steps that are being taken to protect this biome**, and a description of whether or not these seem effective ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   || · ** Audio/Visual piece: ** Engaging, educational, relevant, and lasts no more than 10 minutes. · ** Pre-reading: ** Engaging, educational, relevant, and substantial (no blurbs or summaries – should be a full-length article at least  2 printed pages long.   · ** Handout: ** Covers all the major points in short summaries, lists, bullet points, and/or descriptions. Should also provide space for   students to take notes in order to expand upon your main points.   · ** Questions: ** 3-5 post-presentation questions for the class to answer. These are meant to check for understanding of the main   points of your presentation, not to check for memorization of trivial facts. ||   ||   ||   ||   ||   ||  · ** Participation: ** All members of your group participated equally in the creation and delivery of this presentation.    · ** Preparation: ** all materials are collected in advance of your presentation, and ready to go at the beginning of class on the   scheduled date.   · ** Delivery: ** Your delivery of this presentation is smooth, well articulated, and interesting. You speak with confidence about the subject, and are able to answer questions about it. You do much more than just read the slides to the class. · ** Length: ** Your presentation should take the entire class period, but it should be neither rushed (too long), nor dragged out (too  short). ||  ||   ||   ||   ||   || __ FINAL GRADE: __ __ Score / 10 : __ ||
 * **Project Component:** || **5** || **4** || **3** || **2** || **1** ||
 * **__ABOUT YOUR BIOME: Weight – 30%__**
 * **__ABOUT THE CHALLENGES AND THREATS: Weight – 40%__**
 * **__ABOUT YOUR SUPPLEMENTAL MATERIALS: Weight – 20%__**
 * **__ABOUT YOUR PRESENTATION: Weight – 10%__**
 * Total Score: _______________