Performing environmental surveys on your school building and campus is a way to make science content relevant to students and to discover and address environmental problems at your school. This presentation reviews a case study where students learned about air pollution through school air quality surveys. Four different surveys will be covered: an indoor carbon dioxide survey, an indoor particulate survey, an outdoor PM 2.5 survey, and an outdoor lichen survey. You will come away with knowing what supplies you need for each survey, how to evaluate the data, recommendations for scaffolding skills and content, and possible summative options, including a presentation to administration on environmental problems students discovered.
Standards: HS-ESS3-1. Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity.
Science & Engineering Practices: Planning and Carrying Out Investigations, Analyzing and Interpreting Data, Constructing Explanations and Designing Solution
