Water, Water Everywhere, but Do
I Want To Drink It?
Teacher Page
A Web Quest for Biology I
Designed by
Keith W. McLain and Peter “The Old Man” Rost
Keith_McLain@interact.ccsd.net
This assignment is designed from the CCSD
biology syllabus and in coordination with the PASS program.
Water is an essential element for life. In this web quest you will learn about how water is transported, managed, and protected in the Las Vegas valley.
This lesson is designed for Biology I
students.
The students would need to know how to use
a computer and internet. They
should also have some general knowledge of water.
Biology Syllabus Standards:
2.1 The Student will describe the characteristics of the major aquatic
biomes.
2.5 The student will diagram the biogeochemical cycles.
3.7 The students will explain the polarity of the water molecule and its
resultant properties.
Nevada State Standards:
L.12.C.4 Students know the unique hydrologic
characteristics of Nevada’s bioregions.
This lesson will also emphasize: inference-making,
critical thinking, creative production, creative problem-solving, observation
and categorization, comparison, and teamwork.
The above will be accomplished by having the students produce independent power point presentations on pre-approved water topics.
http://www.h2ouniversity.org/html/index.html
http://water.usgs.gov/education.html
http://www.epa.gov/nerlesd1/chemistry/pharma/index.htm
http://epa.gov/nerlesd1/chemistry/pharma/images/drawing.pdf
http://www.epa.gov/nerlesd1/chemistry/pharma/poster-overview.htm
Student’s Directions:
1. You will be visiting the above web sites in any
order that you wish.
2. As you explore the different we sites, look for
specific information that correlates with discussions that we have had for the
past week.
3. You should look for answers to the class generated
inquiry questions or you may create new questions/answers as you discover additional
information.
4. After you have completed the question/answer
portion of this web quest and had it approved by the teacher you will initiate
production of your power point presentation.
5. Power Point Presentation
a. All topics need to be pre-approved by the teacher.
b. The liberal use of animation and graphics is
encouraged.
c. Avoid the use of long sentences. Use an outline format.
d. A “rough draft” of your presentation must be
submitted to the teacher and the appropriate changed made per his suggestions.
e. The final draft must be approved before classroom
presentation.
Additional Teacher Directions:
1. This project should take about a week to
accomplish.
a. If necessary this project could be broken into
several days at a time to accommodate computer scheduling.
2. There will be a classroom discussion at the start
of the project.
a. Student misconceptions, as well as, conceptions
will be addressed.
3. Class appropriate time will be given in the
computer lab for the students to work on web quest and follow-up PowerPoint
presentations
a. If needed, a break could be placed between web
quest and PowerPoint generation.
Students will need to use a computer in
order to accomplish this project.
Evaluation
The web quest will be evaluated on the
quality of student-generated questions and responses.
The PowerPoint will be evaluated based on
the standard class “PowerPoint Grading Rubric” that has previously been
presented to class.
Students will delve
into the wonderful world of water with an emphasis on the Las Vegas
valley. Language/communication
skills will be reinforced. Public
speaking and presentation abilities will also be enhanced.