Suggested activities for students

 

1. Make a copy of the following statements and ask students to rank each on a scale of 1 to 10 from strongest disagreement "1" to strongest agreement "10"

  1. Natural resources should not be left untapped if using them could improve living conditions for a group of people.

  2. It is important for people to preserve wilderness areas even if a vast majority of people will never visit them.

  3. The world's natural resources exist for people to use. Preserving these resources as wilderness is a luxury we often cannot afford.

  4. Environmental degradation is the biggest problem facing humanity today.

  5. People will eventually develop new technologies to cope with environmental problems.

  6. People have a responsibility to protect all life forms on Earth.

  7. Protecting a country's natural resources and natural heritage is primarily the government's responsibility.

  8. The government is doing a good job of protecting your country's environment.

  9. Recycling is the most important thing people can do to help improve the environment.

(J) People should be able to use their own land (i.e. farming, housing, logging, wildlife habitat) in whatever way they see fit.

(K) All people have a legal right to clean air and water.

(L) When a dilemma arises between protecting wildlife and protecting jobs for people, we should consider the needs of people first.

(M) The fate of the human race is tied to the fate of other living things; if people are to survive, we must protect all species and their habitats.

(N) Human overpopulation is the single greatest factor contributing to Earth's environmental problems

  1. The laws the federal government has passed to control pollution are sufficient to ensure safe air and water for future generations.

 

2. Find an open space and select one of the above statements.Ask students to group themselves along a line according to the number they chose. As this will reflect the range of opinions in the class, break the line at its midpoint and have half the students stay in place while the other half moves down so that each student has a partner. In partners allow one person a minute to explain his/her opinion to the partner. The partner should then paraphrase what was said in thirty seconds. Then that person has one minute to explain and the first person is to paraphrase when a minute is up. In discussing what happen, ask students their reasons for their choices, examples drawn from real-life situations, any changes; any need for additional information, where values come from. Repeat this activity for as many statements as you like.