Objectives
- Students will recognize the relationship between deforestation of a watershed and its effect on the biosphere.
- Students will make observations and analyze data to determine whether a relationship between deforestation and environmental factors is inverse or positive.
Vocabulary
- watershed
- turbidity
- erosion
- deforestation
- qualitative and quantitative data
- inverse relationship
- positive correlation
About the Lesson
In this lesson, students will explore a watershed simulation in which they can increase the amount of ground cover and observe the effects on the turbidity of the water and populations of living things. A guided lesson video (optional) is also available for this activity. The video is targeted at students and designed to help guide them through the interactive exploration and the concepts covered within. (It may also be helpful for teachers who may be using the activity for the first time.)
As a result, students will have a better understanding of:
- The effect of stream erosion on water quality.
- The effect of deforestation on a watershed's ability to support life.
- Positive correlations and inverse relationships.