On-Line Mountain Environment Activities

Overview of Lessons and Investigations

Learners will explore on-line resources that provide current mountain environment information. The emphasis of these inquiry-based activities is on using information to investigate scientific questions, creating models, and making predictions. Many of these hands-on activities require learners to record electronic information over several days, share data with learners at remote locations, and conduct analysis using image processing technology. Activites have clearly defined learning outcomes and are segregated into four levels: novice, intermediate, advanced, and expert. These levels are more closely aligned with computer experience than cognitive levels. For a preview, a Quick Tour of the activities has been created. There are also on-line resources, tools, and background materials available.

Novice Level Activities

School Biome Detectives: Classroom Mountain Biome - Students monitor their classroom as an ecological biome.

Creating a Contour Map of Your School Playground - Students create a contour map of part of their school playground.

Where are Da Bears now? - Students learn basic facts about grizzlies; where they live, what they eat, and what happens when there are too many bears around.

Fire in Yellowstone National Park - Students focus on the North Fork fire.
 

Life Cycle of a Mountain- Students measure and model mountain erosion/degradation processes.

Ground Water - The Hidden Resource- Students track and plot current stream and groundwater data.

Water Quality Monitoring and Streambed Sediments- Students will measure and calculate suspended and bedload sediment for a local stream.

Fire in Yellowstone National Park - Students examine some of the conditions before the fire, and the ensuing results of the fire.

Rocks and Topography- Students use Internet software to produce accurate Geologic Plot Profiles and Elevation Plot Profiles.

Advanced Mountain Topography- Students will use Plot Profiles to search for a relationship between elevation and precipitation.

Bird Habitats - The students will learn to use the Internet to find sites to show where certain birds are located.

Measuring Earth's Vegetation from Space- Students will compute and compare a Normalized Difference Vegetation Index (NDVI) for a region of the globe.

Cryosphere - Students will make conjectures based on animations of Snow Water Equivalent of the Western United States.
 

Bighorn Sheep - Students investigate bighorn sheep habitats using scientific visualization techniques.

In Search of Mountain Lions - Students investigate habitats of mountain lions.

Visualization Investigations - Students use spatial analysis skills to solve real world problems.
 

Other Items of Interest

• Virtual GIS Simulator On-Line
• Mountain Environment Resource Pages are Way-Cool!!
• dazzle your collegues with the on-line NMP materials
• check out the Official Network Montana Project site at University of Montana.