Humans and the Environment
Great Green Wall of China
Since we all depend on the health of the environment, responsible citizens need to understand how humans affect and are affected by the environment. You will choose and study two groups of people living in the same or similar environments, and compare and contrast how those groups interact with their environment.
Directions to Students
In a cohesive paper or presentation, you will:
- State a position on two groups’ uses of the environment that includes
- An analysis of how the two groups’ uses are similar or different.
- Provide background on the position by:
Explaining one or more plausible alternatives to the groups’ uses of the environment that addresses costs and benefits.
- Provide reason(s) for your position that include:
- An analysis of one or more significant similarities or differences related to groups’ uses of the environment.
- Make explicit references within the paper or presentation to three or more credible sources that provide relevant information AND cite sources within the paper, presentation, or bibliography.
Essential Questions
"An essential question is a question that helps you think about why a particular topic is important."
Choose one group of people and the environment in which the group lives.
- Examine the human interaction of the group with the environment by researching the following:
- how the environment influences the developm,ent of a culture including
- how people affect their environment as they meet their needs.
Develop an essential question examining human itneractions with the environment.
Do you need additional information? Use these words and phrases to search Nettrekker, Proquest Magazine Index, E-Library, an online library catalog, print encyclopedias or the World Wide Web
- Great Green Wall
- China
- Gobi Desert
- yellow dragon
- deforestation
- ecology, ecological
- dune stabilization
Primary Sources & Links
Dewey Numbers
If you want to browse the
shelves in the library to locate information about China or deforestation look for these numbers:
- 333.75 Deforestation
- 915.17 Gobi Desert
- 931 Ancient China
- 951 China, Beijing
Print Resources
- Central Asia: Between Peril and Promise- A major exporter of oil and natural gas, Central Asia occupies a prominent place in the global economy. While the region has great potential for wealth, most Central Asians remain among the poorest people in the world. This unit explores the extraordinary range of challenges facing Central Asia and encourages students to reflect on what might be done to solve them. Includes 10 Images on CD-Rom
- 10,000 Shovels: China's Urbanization and Economic Development- 10,000 Shovels examines China's breakneck growth through a short documentary that integrates statistics, video footage, and satellite images. The documentary focuses on China's Pearl River Delta region while the accompanying teacher's guide takes a broader perspective, exploring many current national issues. Includes DVD: Ten Thousand Shovels�
Handouts:
GLEs
- 5.4.1: Analyzes multiple factors, generalizes and connects past to present to formulate a thesis in a paper or presentation
- 3.2.1: Understands how human actions modify the environment and how the environment affects the humans in Washington State and world history
- 5.4.2: Creates annotated bibliography or works cited page using an appropriate format.
Page prepared by
Trish Henry
thenry@mead.k12.wa.us
