Case Study # 2

Overview of
the Lesson

We are hoping to show the students of College Mentors for Kids, what an oil
spill is, how challenging cleaning up an oil spill is, and the effects oil spills
have on the environment.

Description of
Learners

Fourth grade students at risk. 10 even distribution of girls and boys and 10
mentors. The students are here for an after school program to highlight the
benefits of college, and education as a whole.
We know the students were very young when the BP Deep Water Horizon
oil spill occurred, they have probably heard of the topic.
The classroom is in the basement of Hicks. The large classroom has many
projectors so they can watch the the Prezi comfortably, and lots of room for
the activity to occur.

Intended
Learning
Goals

Lesson
Content

Learning
Objectives

Standards

The students will learn what an oil spill is and pollution are by listening to our
Prezi on oil spills.
The students will apply what they know by conducting an oil spill model.
They will then analyze the methods used to clean up the oil spill
Prezi https://prezi.com/nvmsjo-vmibm/oil-spill-activity-elementary/
Activity
Assessment
demonstrate an oil spill in the classroom.
consider the results of the oil spill cleanup: how effective or ineffective the
methods of cleanup was.
discuss cleanup approaches and substances to separate oil from water

Fourth Grade Core Science Standard: Describe how the supply of natural
resources is limited and investigate ways that humans
protect and harm the environment. (4.2.4, 4.2.5, 4.2.6)

Required
Materials

Procedure

Preparation Materials:
4 Large-mouth gallon buckets
Water
4 Tablecloths
Clean up Materials (4 sets of these)
Duct tape or other strong tape
Bendable straws
Dense foam wedge; makeup sponge
Paper towels
Cardboard
Cotton balls
Craft (popsicle) sticks
Dispersant Material
Name-brand dishwashing soap
Oil & Chemicals Materials
Blue food coloring
Tablespoons
Vegetable oil
Student Materials
Data Page 1 & 2
Journal Page
Pencils
Presentation Materials:
White Board
White Board Markers
Computer and projector for Prezi
The College Mentor for Kids Journal
Presentation:
Use the Prezi https://prezi.com/t5t0yvo_m6qv/copy-of-oil-spill-activity-elementary/ to
guide the students and introduce them to the topic. Have them use the whiteboards
and markers in the room to come up with answers to the questions along the way!
Preparation:
Put down tablecloths in case of water spill.
Add water to buckets.
Put out a set of cleaning materials next to each bucket.
At the front of the room on a table:
(Students may come get these when needed in the simulation)
Dish soap
Oil
Food Coloring
Tablespoons
Divide Students into 4 groups of 3
Assign Roles: Observer, Data Collector, and Oil Remover
Hand out data pages to Data Collector.

Class Discussion:
Ask students: What do you already know about oil spills?
Go over definitions as a class. Students should copy vocabulary words onto their
journal page:
Ocean
Oil Spill
Absorber
Boom
Skimmer
Dispersant
In Groups
Observe supplies & discuss which supplies might represent each type of equipment
used to clean up oil spills. (Booms, skimmers, absorbers, and dispersants)
Measure 4 tbsp. vegetable oil & add 4 drops of food coloring. Mix.
Place a 1 inch Popsicle stick in the center (represents a ship)
Spill the oil in the center of the ocean
Class Discussion:
What do you think the oil and food coloring represent?
Oil represents crude oil; food coloring represents chemicals trapped inside of the oil.
**Note: The food coloring will not mix completely with the oil
Simulate Cleanup Before Dispersant In Groups
Oil Removers: use material (pieces of cotton, cardboard, and paper towels smaller
than one inch) to try to clean up all the oil before it reaches the edges
Observers: Describe what the oil remover is doing & what materials are being used
Data Collectors: list properties of each material. Categorize each as booms,
skimmers, absorbers, or dispersants (column 1 & 2 of the worksheet)
Together: Discuss & complete column 3&4
Simulate Cleanup After Dispersant In Groups
Add 4 drops of dishwashing soap
Together: Complete column 1, 2, & 3
Class Discussion:
What happened to the oil? Why?
What happened to the chemicals (dye)? Why?
What color is the water? Why?
Retest materials in the water with Dispersant
Predict: What will happen now that dispersants have been added?
Retest Cleanup.
Add observations to column 4

Class Discussion:
Did any method completely remove oil?
What happened to the chemicals (dye)?
Do you think all toxins or chemicals behave the same way? Why or why not?
Compare results for before and after dispersants added.
Share successes & flaws.
Based on observations, how effective have the Gulf oil spill effort (equipment) been?
Did observations change the way you view the cleanup strategies?
Did any observations change the way you view effects of cleanup strategies may
have on water quality & wildlife?

Assessment
Journal Entry:
Answer 1 question from each group of questions (total of 5 questions answered)
What does the oil represent?
What does the food coloring represent?
What happened to the oil? Why?
What happened to the chemicals? Why?
What color is the water? Why?
What cleanup materials did you use?
What role did it have, and what type of equipment did it represent?
How effective was it at cleaning up the oil?
Based on observations, how effective have the Gulf oil spill effort (equipment) been?
Did observations change the way you view the cleanup strategies?
Did any observations change the way you view effects of cleanup strategies may
have on water quality & wildlife?
Did any method completely remove oil?
What happened to the chemicals (dye) after dispersant was added?
Do you think all toxins or chemicals behave the same way? Why or why not?

References/
Reference
Materials

Sam H. Ham & Daphne R. Sewing (1988) Barriers to Environmental Education, The
Journal of
Environmental Education, 19:2, 17-24.

http://www.tandfonline.com/doi/pdf/10.1080/00958964.1988.9942751
In this article they explore the previous established barriers that have
prevented part of environmental education with the hope of discovering what is truly
the main barrier of environmental education in the classroom. They knew that the
previous 4 main barriers were misconceptions of what environmental education is,
logistical barriers, educational barriers, and attitudinal barriers. To find the main
barrier, they asked random teachers in 6 different school districts about the barriers
in their classrooms regarding environmental education open ended and close ended
results. When the results of the survey came in, they discovered that time in the
classroom was by far the biggest barrier that prevent teachers from successfully
teaching environmental education. Because students are not getting the material in
school, we thought that an after school program like college mentors for kids would
be a wonderful place to learn about such a topic. While our lesson is 45 minutes, this
is 45 minutes of extra classroom time that we can teach something valuable they
are not getting in school!

Byhee, B. (2010). Advancing STEM Education: A2020Vision.

http://opas.ous.edu/Work2009-2011/InClass/BybeeIntegrated%20STEM%20Plan.pdf
This article is centered around the reformation of STEM education in the k12 system. It highlights the fact that most people do not know what STEM stand for
(the article says people often confuse it with things such as stem cell research) or
how people often forget the engineering and technology standards, and focus on the
science and math. One of the suggestions Byhee makes in his suggestion of reform
is linking technology and engineering into science. We did this in our lesson as while
the science lesson of pollution and oil spills is presented, the students are solving a
problem that requires a challenge and critical thinking (engineering) of what is the
best way to clean up an oil spill. Through this challenge, they are doing something
that is age appropriate, gaining knowledge of a problem, and designing solutions to
the problem, all things Byhee highlights that make a successful STEM lesson.
Brown, Julie. (2013) Simulate an oil cleanup. National Geographic.
This National Geographic activity explains how to simulate an oil spill clean up for
students. We edited the procedure given from this site to create our own lesson
plan. It provided guidelines for the simulation and data collection pages for students
Northeastern STEM. (2014). Oil Spill Activity (Elementary) [Prezi]. Retrieved from
https://prezi.com/nvmsjo-vmibm/oil-spill-activity-elementary/
This Prezi gives students a starting basis on what pollution is, how oil spills
connect to pollution, and talks about the major BP oil spill. We edited the Prezi to
include more interaction and critical thinking as well as we showed a different
video.The video we showed highlights the effect the oil spill has on an ecosystem
rather than the original.

What inspired
us

We started out by searching Pinterest to brainstorm ideas on STEM related activities

we could teach to elementary school kids. We then came across a lesson on oil
spills and demonstrating a way to clean up the oil. We plan to show a prezi to give
information about our lesson and give background on oil spills and pollutants. Then
we are going to do a hands on demonstration of cleaning up and absorbing the oil.
Then when searching National Geographic we came across an activity on how to
simulate an oil spill cleanup and we used that to help us create our lesson.

Brown, Julie. (2013) Simulate an oil cleanup. National Geographic.