Children's Water Festival
Chatham Kent
Oil Slick!
Overview
What happens when oil is spilled in a natural habitat Students discuss this on a large scale (oil tanker spill) and on a smaller scale (when oil travels through storm drains into our local lakes and rivers). Students use a model to see how oil and water mix (or don't) and how the animal's habitats and vegetation are adversely affected. Students also take the role of wildlife biologists observing feathers when they are wet, dry or soaked in oil; giving oral descriptions of their observations. Then they attempt to clean the feathers. Students are encouraged to think about actions such as pouring used oil and other contaminants down storm drains or household drains and how these cause pollution. They discuss why prevention is a better strategy than remediation.
Curriculum Link
Life Systems, Grade 4 (Habitats and Communities)
Demonstrate an understanding of the concepts of habitat and community, and identify the factors that could affect habitats and communities of plants and animals (O.E.)
Describe advantages and disadvantages of human interactions within habitats and food chains (S.E.)
Describe structural adaptations that allow plants and animals to survive in specific habitats (S.E.)
Identify various factors that affect plants and animals in a specific habitat (S.E.)
Matter and Energy, Grade 5 (Properties of and Changes in Matter)
Describe the properties of materials that make them useful in everyday products and discuss the environmental impact of this production, use, and disposal of these materials (S.E)
Canada and World Connections, Grade 4 (Canada’s Provinces, Territories, and Regions)
Identify and describe a cause-and-effect relationship between the environment and the economy in a province or territory (S.E)