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| Overview |
| Grade Level: 6-9 |
| Background Information:
Pristine wild areas are becoming increasingly scarce as we use
land for a variety of economic reasons including urban growth, logging,
mining, fishing, ranching, and energy generation. When national
parks and wilderness areas were set aside, some as much as a century
ago, they were to retain the native ecosystem so that generations
of Americans might experience America's wild places. Today there
are mounting pressures to use the land for it's economic resources.
In many cases, people don't value land unless there is some 'economic'
use for it. Today, some people are turning to "ecotourism," or tourism
in places of natural or ecological interest, to provide an economic
value simply for letting the land be. In many states, tourism in
wild places is a major revenue generating industry. In this activity
students will research a national park or wild area near you and
develop a plan for ecotourism.
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| Content Standards |
| Related National Standards:
This lesson addresses the following National Content Standards
found at: http://books.nap.edu/html/nses
Content Standard F: As a result of their activities in grades
5-8, all students should develop understanding of:
- Populations, resources, and environments
- Causes of environmental degradation and resource depletion
vary from region to region and from country to country.
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Content Standard F: As a result of their activities in grades
9-12, all students should develop understanding of:
- Natural Resources:
- The earth does not have infinite resources; increasing
human consumption places severe stress on the natural
processes that renew some resources, and it depletes
those resources that cannot be renewed.
- Environmental Quality:
- Many factors influence environmental quality. Factors
that students might investigate include population growth,
resource use, population distribution, over consumption,
the capacity of technology to solve problems, poverty,
the role of economic, political, and religious views,
and different ways humans view the earth.
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| Extension Web Sites
from PBS: |
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Newtons
Apple - Rain Forest Animals
This site has other ideas that can be adapted to studying wilderness
in the US.
PBS
TeacherSource - Science and Technology
A list of other links that might be useful in teaching this topic.
PBS
TeacherSource - Classroom Currents
Towards the bottom of this page are other ideas for classroom projects
involving National Parks.
Newtons
Apple - Wilderness Training
This site includes an activity that allows students to make a compass
from household materials.
Newtons
Apple - Jungle Survival
Another site that challenges students to think about what they would
need to survive in a wilderness
The
American Experience - The Donner Party
More activities related to wilderness survival.
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| Activity 1: Clash of Viewpoints |
| Time Allotted:
15 minutes
Materials:
Large paper and markers or chalkboard space and chalk for brainstorm
| Objectives: |
- Students will describe possible conflicts between various
people in land-use issues.
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| Brainstorm Activity: |
- Ask the students to imagine a pristine wilderness in your
area. Have them brainstorm with a partner or as a group
"who can you think of that might be interested in the value
of this area". Have them come up with as many people or
groups of people that they can think of.
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Watch
the AFG Video Segment:
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Sipsey
Wilderness - Clash of Viewpoints
Differing
viewpoints about wilderness preservation and resource
utilization have existed for hundreds of years. |
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- Ask students to add to their list after watching the video.
- If they have made their lists in small groups, have the
groups report to the class as a whole and compile a class
list of possible stakeholders in a land use debate.
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| Discussion Questions: |
- Who's right?
- Which uses are incompatible with each other?
- Who do you think should be able to determine the use for
the land?
- According to the video, Aldo Leopold said that we don't
generally call things resources until they are limited.
Today, wild areas are limited, and people still want to
get into them to harvest and mine traditional resources
like timber and ore. How can we help to encourage people
to value the land itself? Can we make the land as it is
economically productive without altering it?
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| Activity 2: Ecotourism |
| Time Allotted:
One class period for preparation
Materials:
Student Instruction Sheet
Internet Access
Books or periodicals on National Areas, outdoor recreation, and
natural resources
Paper folded into thirds for making brochures (colored or construction
paper)
Markers, Pens, Crayons
| Objectives: |
- Students will use research to determine natural resources
in a wilderness.
- Students will design a plan that uses the natural resources
to attract tourists.
- Students will weigh the value of wilderness vs. economic
gain.
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Watch
the AFG Video Segments:
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Campbell
River Eco-Tour
In
relatively wild places like British Columbia - where bald eagles
and black bears are among the attractions - ecotourism is growing
in popularity. |
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Note: Start at the beginning and stop after hearing "as 20
or 30 of these hake float by".
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Outfitters
and Recreation in Protected Wilderness
Outfitters
and guides appreciate the importance of wilderness preservation. |
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Note: Start at "they estimate 60-70%…" and stop after hearing
"all methods folks use to get into Idaho's wilderness areas"
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Wildlife
and Fishing in Protected Wilderness
Anglers,
hunters and wildlife enthusiasts state their reasons for valuing
the protection of the wilderness. |
| Classroom Activity: |
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Students will make a brochure advertising ecotourism opportunities
that students design for wild areas near you. Choose a variety
of national wild areas near you (or ask students to find them
for themselves). You may want to focus on national wilderness,
forest service, and BLM areas that don't have as many ecotourism
opportunities currently available as do national parks. The
related web sites below will allow you to search for parks
and wilderness by state. You may want to provide your students
with addresses or phone numbers of park or wilderness offices
so that they can obtain primary information.
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- Divide students into groups of three. Assign each group
a wild area. Give each group a copy of the student
instructions for this activity.
- Ask them to use library and internet resources to learn
about their wild areas. If time permits, they might write
to the local ranger station or forest service office for
the area to ask for information.
- They will turn in a brochure that advertises the parks
unique resources and that has ecotourism opportunities designed
by the students. You may also choose to have students present
their tours to the class.
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Related Web Sites:
National
Park Service
National
Wilderness Preservation System
National Forest
Service
Suggested Assessment
The following scoring guide can be used to grade the student brochures.
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Score
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5
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3
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1
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| Information about Wilderness |
Accurate & thorough |
Some good details |
Lacking details |
| Relevant Use of Wilderness |
Tour highlights and utilizes local uniqueness |
Shows understanding of local features |
Random activities on tour |
| Tour Package Complete and Thorough |
Clear what is offered and how a tourist
will be taken care of |
Some gaps in the program |
Lacking details |
| Creativity |
Unique and creative |
Some creativity |
Lacking creativity |
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| Activity 3: The Price We Pay |
| Time Allotted:
30 minutes
Materials:
No special materials
| Objectives: |
- Students will examine the pros and cons of ecotourism.
- Students will understand that every use of land can have
adverse impacts on the ecosystem.
- Students will determine ways to mitigate the damage their
ecotourism plans might cause.
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Watch
the AFG Video Segments:
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Outfitters
and Recreation in Protected Wilderness
Outfitters
and guides appreciate the importance of wilderness preservation. |
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Note: Start at "although reasons for going may vary" and
stop after hearing "use it or abuse it"
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New
Pressures on Canyonlands National Park
The
popularity of Canyonlands National Park threatens the fragile
ecosystem and environment that the park was designed to protect. |
| Discussion Questions for Video Segments: |
- How does tourism in these areas impact the ecosystem?
- What are some ways that the damage might be reduced?
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| Writing Activity:
Have students think about the wild area they researched and
look over their plans for ecotourism. They should write an
essay explaining:
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- How their plans for tourism might impact the ecosystem.
- How they might reorganize their ecotourism plan to reduce
damage as much as possible while still getting the economic
value from tourism in wild areas. For instance, can visitors
stay in local hotels instead of camping in the wilderness.
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