This curriculum unit is designed to make younger students aware of their environment. I teach fifth grade science at Troup Magnet Academy of Sciences where I find that most of my students lack the necessary background in science to begin to understand concepts as the “greenhouse effect” and “acid rain” which are the two main environmental issues that I plan to present to my students. Therefore, within this unit I will give the students an introduction to earth science so that they can grasp the previously mentioned concepts.
Upon the completion of this unit, the students will be aware of the earth’s atmosphere, how our planet preserves itself, and some of the current problems that they will have to start confronting in order to provide a safe environment for themselves and their families. Hopefully, they will become advocates of current environmental issues and force their parents and other adults to realize that we all must do our part in helping to save our planet.
The curriculum unit, “Environmental Studies: An Approach to Educate and Save Our Planet”, will include the following components:
I. Introduction to Environmental Studies
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(A) The Four Major Layers of the Earth’s Atmosphere
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(1) Troposphere
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(2) Stratosphere
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(3) Mesosphere
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(4) Thermosphere
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(a) Ionosphere
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(b) Exosphere
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(B) The Heating of the Earth’s Atmosphere
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(C) Examples of Natural Cycles Which Occur on Our Planet
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(1) The Carbon Cycle
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(2) The Nitrogen Cycle
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3) The Water Cycle
II. The Greenhouse Effect and Its Gases
III. The Acid Rain Controversy
I plan to include as many scientific investigations as possible in my lesson plans so that the students can witness that the environmental problems presented within this unit actually exist, and that they should be concerned about them. Therefore, the focal point of my lesson plans will be geared towards “hands-on” experiences in order to reinforce the objects and concepts which are presented within this curriculum.
Planet Earth is enclosed or surrounded by a mixture of invisible gases called atmosphere. Nitrogen (N) and oxygen (O) alone make up approximately 97 percent of the gaseous mixture of air. Other gases such as argon, carbon dioxide, neon, helium, krypton, hydrogen and xeon make up the remaining one percent. Since these gases make up such a small component of air, they are know as trace gases.
Scientist measure trace gases in units called parts per million or ppm rather than by percentage. For example, neon makes up about .0018 percent of air. But scientists find it much easier to express that number as 18 parts per million, or 18 ppm. This means that in a sample of one million molecules of air, eighteen of the molecules are neon. The chart below will express the percentage that each gas makes up in the composition of air.
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GAS
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PERCENTAGE IN DRY AIR
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Nitrogen
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78.08
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Oxygen
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20.95
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Argon
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0.93
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Carbon Dioxide
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0.03
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Neon
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0.0018
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Helium
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0.0005
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Krypton
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0.0001
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Hydrogen
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0.00005
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Xenon
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0.000009
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The atmosphere is divided into four distinct regions or layers on the basis of its physical properties. The lower atmosphere or the one closest to the earth is called the troposphere and it extends about seven miles upward from the earth’s surface. Above the troposphere lies the stratosphere which extends from seven to twenty-two miles above the surface of the earth. Above the stratosphere lies the mesosphere which rises from twenty-two to fifty miles above the earth’s surface. Above the mesosphere lies the thermosphere. Some scientist prefer to subdivide the thermosphere into two distinct regions the ionosphere and the exosphere.
