NGSS 5-ESS3-1 Human Impact on Earth Systems 5th Grade

This 5th grade project consists of two parts for the NGSS Performance Expectation of:

5-ESS3-1. Obtain and combine information about ways individual communities use science ideas to protect the Earth’s resources and environment.

In Part 1, students learn about how humans affect the Earth systems of the Chesapeake Bay by exploring maps, graphing, and reading articles over the course of a few days.

In Part 2, students use multiple resources to learn about how communities are working to help solve the pollution issue in the Chesapeake Bay. Students will read about how people living near the Chesapeake Bay are working to restore oyster reefs and improve water quality. They will also build their own oyster reef models.

This resource is a non-editable PDF. Part 1 includes 12 pages of student activities, along with a teacher's guide, answer key, 5 research articles, 5 audio files of recordings of the articles, a video to introduce the phenomena, and a tutorial video. Part 2 includes a 16 pages of student activities, 3 audio recordings of the articles, answer key, and a tutorial video.

Materials for Part 1:

• Color Pencils
• Rulers
• Computers and headphones (optional)

Materials for Part 2, per lab group:

• Plastic container
• Shell-shaped pasta
• Clay
• Sand
• Pitcher, beaker, or cup to pour water
• Rocks, real shells, or other hard materials
• Computers (optional)

Prior Knowledge:

• Students should be familiar with the four Earth systems (Hydrosphere, Atmosphere, Biosphere, and Geosphere) before this lesson. An introductory lesson for those can be found here.
• Students should also be familiar with ways that Earth systems can affect each other. A lesson can be found here.