Introduction to Earth Science Systems and Problem Based Learning By: Cynthia A. De La Garza

1. Introduction to Earth Science Systems and Problem Based Learning • By: Cynthia A. De La Garza • EDTC 6341.01

2. Focus Goal • This lesson is geared towards high school students 11-12th grade in their Environmental Systems Course. This lesson is an introduction on what is Earth Science Systems, PBL Model, and about Hurricanes. Students are asked to work in groups collaborating, researching, sharing ideas, and at times on their own. This lesson is interactive and allows them to improve their interpersonal skills and well as individual skills of research. • TEKS: • B5, C2C, C2I, C2K, C3A, C3B, C3C, C3D, C3F, C6A, C6E, C8A, C8B, C8C, C8D, C8E,

3. What is Earth Science Systems? • The earth is made up of different systems that work together as a whole. These four systems are four major parts called “spheres” These spheres are: • Lithosphere, containing the planet’s rock • Hydrosphere, containing the planet’s water • Biosphere, contain the planet’s living organisms • Atmosphere, containing the planet’s air • These four spheres are all closely connected and in some areas of the earth they are blended. The earth’s spheres are so closely connected that a change in one sphere can cause an effect on another sphere. Effects can be positive or negative. Such as a fire (event) burns downs trees (biosphere), the barren soil (lithosphere) becomes more susceptible to erosion, and the highly erodible sold gets washed into streams (hydrosphere) where it chokes aquatic organisms. But this event can also be positive because the seeds from some trees they must experience extreme high temperatures in order to germinate.

4. What is Earth Science Systems? • Understanding the interactions between the earth’s spheres and events enables people to predict the outcomes of events. Being able to predict outcomes is helpful to developers who need to know environmental effects of a project before they start construction. The understanding of interactions that occur within the earth’s systems also helps people prepare to natural disasters. Studying the interactions between and among an event and earth’s spheres is called Earth System Science (ESS). In ESS there are ten possible types of interactions that could possibly occur within the earth’s system. The four types of interactions between an event and each of the earth’s spheres: • Event Lithosphere • Event Hydrosphere • Event Biosphere • Event Atmosphere

5. What is Earth Science Systems? • Double headed arrows symbolize that the cause and effect relationship of these interactions can go both ways. This means that and event can have an effect on the biosphere and the biosphere can have an effect on the event. Please review the below diagram that illustrates the Earth System Science

6. What is Earth Science Systems? • There are also six interactions that occur among the earth’s sphere: • Lithosphere Hydrosphere • Lithosphere Biosphere • Lithosphere Atmosphere • Hydrosphere Biosphere • Hydrosphere Atmosphere • Biosphere Atmosphere • Double headed arrows symbolize that the cause and effect relationships of interactions can go both ways. For example the lithosphere can have an effect on the hydrosphere and vice versus the hydrosphere can have an effect on the lithosphere.

7. What is Earth Science Systems? • The diagram below illustrates the six types of sphere interactions

8. Problem Based Learning • Problem Based Learning (PBL) is a way of learning by using real world information by investigating of a subject matter. PBL activities start with a poor structured problem that serves as a commonality to a team engagement. PBL activities are complex issues, conflicts, puzzles, decisions, or circumstances from real world experiences that require both basic skills and questioning, gathering information, and reflection. There are eight required steps to the PBL Model.

9. PBL Model • Read and analyze the scenario and situation • You must check your understanding of the scenario. Don’t start thinking about solutions or looking for more information. • List your personal understanding, ideas, or hunches. • You may already have an understanding about the cause of the problem or ideas about how to solve the problem. You need to list these ideas and information and you may also list many alternative conceptions that may need to be addressed. • List what you know. • Make a list of everything that you know after reading the scenario. You do not need to conduct any research at this point, just draw from your prior knowledge and the information that is included in your scenario. • List what you do not know. • Prepare a list of questions that you think need to be answered. These questions will guide the research that you will need to conduct.

10. PBL Model • 5. List what needs to be done. • Plan the investigation that you will be conducting. This may require questioning experts, getting online data, or visiting a library to find questions that you developed in Step 4. When working in a team you must divide the duties. • 6. Develop a problem statement. • Your problem statement is a one-two sentence idea that clearly identifies what you are trying to solve, produce, respond to, test, or find out. Remember as new information is be discovered your problem statement may be revised. • 7. Gather information. • You will gather, organize, analyze, and interpret you information that you have fathered from your multiple sources. With your team members, exchange ideas, think about solutions, consider the pros and cons or potential courses of actions. As you gather more information, the problem statement may be revised. • 8. Present findings. • Prepare a report or a presentation in which you make recommendation, predictions, inferences, or other appropriate resolutions of the problem. You must be prepared to support your positions during your presentation.

11. Galveston Hurricane of 1900

12. Galveston Hurricane of 1900 http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/environment/environment-natural-disasters/hurricanes/us-galveston1900-vin/

13. Galveston Hurricane of 1900 • Scenario • At the end of the 19th century Galveston, Texas was booming town with a population of 37, 000 people. With its easy access to the Galveston Bay along the Gulf of Mexico made it the center of trade and the biggest city in the state od Texas. Galveston was build on a low flat island, a little larger than a sandbar, along the Gulf Coast. The residents had proposed that a seawall be built to protect the city, but their concerns were dismissed by the majority of the populations and the city’s government. Many residents protested their concerns for a seawall but it was never built and development activities on the island increased its vulnerability to storms. Sand dues along the shore were cut down to fill low areas in the city, which removed what little barrier there was to the Gulf of Mexico.

14. Galveston Hurricane of 1900 • The Hurricane made landfall on September 8, 1900 in Galveston, Texas. It’s estimated wind speed was 145 miles per hour at landfall, which made it a Category 4 storm. It was the deadliest hurricane in US history, and the second costliest hurricane in US history. • The hurricane caused great loss of like with an estimated toll of death of 6,000-12,000 people. The Galveston Hurricane of 1900 is the deadliest natural disaster ever to strike the US. • The storm’s origin’s are unclear, because of the limited observation towards the end of the 19th century. The 1900 storm is believed to have begun as a tropical wave moving off the western coast of Africa. The storm passed through the Leeward Islands on August 30, recorded as a tropical depression reports from Antigua. Three days later, Antigua reported a severe thunderstorm passing over, followed by hot, humid, calmness that often occurs after the passage of a tropical cyclone.

15. Galveston Hurricane of 1900 • By September 1, the US Weather Bureau observers were reporting on a “storm of moderate intensity” southeast of Cuba. Continuing westward, the storm make landfall on southwest Cuba on September 3. On September 5, it emerged into the Florida Straits as a tropical storm or a weak hurricane. • The storm was reported to be north of Key West on September 6, and in the early morning hours of Friday on September 7, the Weather Bureau office in New Orleans, Louisiana issued a report of heavy damage along the Louisiana and Mississippi coasts. • On September 7, large swells from the southeast were observed on the Gulf and clouds at all altitudes began moving in from the northeast. These observations are consistent with a hurricane approaching from the east. The Galveston Weather Bureau put out a hurricane warning. • By early afternoon on Saturday, September 8, a steady northeastern wind had picked up and by 5:00 pm the Bureau office recorded sustained hurricane force winds.

16. Galveston Hurricane of 1900 • That night, the wind direction shifted to the east and then to the southeast as the hurricane’s eye began to pass over the island just west of the city. By 11:00 pm the wind was southerly and diminishing. On Sunday morning, the storm continued on, later tracked into Oklahoma, then over the Great Lakes while sustaining winds almost 40 mph and passed north of Halifax on September 12. • The hurricane left millions of dollars of destruction in its wake. In addition of the death of thousands of people and property, Galveston lost its allure as a shipping firms moved their businesses to Houston. Galveston is now protected by a huge levee system to guard against future storms. As a result of the storm a six mile long seawall was created and has since been extended and the island was raised by pumping sand from the floor of the Gulf of Mexico. All buildings and roads were also constructed with elevated foundations in the city. The city of Galveston has is much better prepared as a result of the tragedy associated with the hurricane of 1900.

17. Assignment • You are expected to be a problem solver for this assignment. You will begin by thinking about what you already know and then building your knowledge with your team members by following the PBL Model. • Groups will consists of 4 students • You are required to focus on • What you know • What is unknown • Develop as a group your problem statement • Conduct your research • Prepare for a presentation (multimedia 10 minutes long)

18. Rubric • The purpose of a rubric is to help the teacher rate how you express your personal understanding of the material you have learned. Please complete the following questions.

19. Rubric

20. Rubric

21. Assessment • Why was Galveston Hurricane of 1900 the worst hurricane in the history of the US? • Why was the city of Galveston so affected by the waves coming in from the Gulf of Mexico? • Why was the city of Galveston so unprepared for this Hurricane? • Describe the different categories that a hurricane could be? • Why did Galveston lose its allure for companies to use it as the center stage for trading? • Before a hurricane is categorized as a hurricane what is it called? • In what directions does a hurricane rotate in? • Why is the center of a hurricane called the eye? • Why do you believe that the citizens of Galveston did not leave the city once the city was notified of the hurricane? • Do you have a personal experience of a hurricane? And if so, what were your emotions about that experience?

22. Reflection • Creating this lesson was a stressor in itself. Having to make sure that all steps were completed was important so that my possible students would find it easily understandable. I hope that my lesson plan is on the right track of successful using the PBL Model. I find that the PBL Model can be very helpful in the classroom. If I was still teaching I would definitely incorporate this in my lessons on a regular bases. But as a practicing school counselor I can see how some of the steps from the PBL Model can be used with my students. Having them talk about what they know about their issues what they do not know about the issues can help them

23. Works Cited • Hurricanes: Galveston Hurricane of 1900. (2013, July 11). Retrieved from http://video.nationalgeographic.com/video/environment/environment-natural-disasters/hurricanes/us-galveston1900-vin/ • 1900 Galveston Hurricane. (2013, July 11). Retrieved from http://www.ask.com/wiki/1900_Galveston_hurricane • Galveston Hurricane of 1900. (2013, July 11). Retrieved from http://esseacourses.strategies.org/private/learner.module.php?course_id=430&coursemodule_id=1039&cycle=A&cycle_label=4