Save+the+Bay

[]


 * Reviewed by Elizabeth Anderson**

This module's purpose is to teach children the effects of an oil spill. It is a short module requiring only a few supplies (there is a list at the bottom of the web page). First, students will see that oil and water do not mix. There are some questions for the students to answer and some resources for them to read. Also, there is another activity involving observing a bird feather to see what happens when it is dipped in oil, demonstrating to the children why oil spills are so hazardous to birds. There is no age range listed on the webpage, but I would guess from the content that it was probably intended for elementary or middle school age children.

I did a similar experiment in high school (only involving a pan instead of a bottle to hold the oil. I found it boring since I already knew about the effects of oil spills. Also, the directions for how to perform the experiment were confusing. I think that younger children, middle school age or younger, would find this much more interesting. This module does a really good job of bringing in all the causes and effects of oil spills, including social causes (driving cars, etc.). The questions asked in the module are likely to lead to the sort of thinking about the environment that we want to cultivate. Research is involved in this module, which will probably lead to environmental and media literacy. Some of the sources listed are a little older, but they are likely to still be relevant. If done right, this module has great potential for teaching children to think about the environment and the effects of their own actions.

The module was designed by the [|Gulf Marine Aquarium]. The module does not seem to be biased in any way; most of the questions are open-ended and would probably make children think more about the environment and their own actions.

We could probably do this module at RPI with few or no changes. The main changes that would need to be made would be reviewing the suggested resources and seeing if any needed changing. Bringing in sources discussing the BP oil spill in 2010 would make the module more interesting and relevant for children today. (The module is from 2000 and lists resources for the //Exxon Valdez// spill.)