Habitat Expedition ProjectYou will be sent on an "online" expedition to learn about and explore a particular habitat. Choose only one habitat. Your job is to record and describe the different types of plants, animals , soil/land, and environment in that particular habitat. You will also create a scenerio that tells how you were chosen to go on this expedition, which entity you are working for (a government, a company, organization, a club, etc.), and the objectives they have hired you to carry out. Your information will be key to helping this entity achieve the specific goal(s) or purpose(s) for which they sent you out.
As an example, Meriwhether Lewis was chosen by Thomas Jefferson, president of the U.S., to lead the expedition with the objective to: - explore the unknown territory that was newly acquired by the U.S.
- create detailed maps of the area
- establish trade with the Native Indians in that area and report back on how friendly they were
- gather and bring back unknown specimens of plant life and animal life
- keep a journal of what they saw and observed, including describing animals, plant life, and their behavior
- and try to find a direct waterway to the Pacific Ocean
Habitat Project Resources Habitat Project ExpectationsYou have been asked to make sure to have (highlighted is what we started working on already): - Exploration Scenario Story (1+ page typed, double spaced) - Write a story that captures the nature of your exploration (this in really an introductory story to the project). In other words, this story explains how you ended up going on this expedition. You will need to make up a realistic scenario and creatively write a story that captures this. Below are questions that you need to make sure are covered in your story in some way:
- How and why were you were chosen to go on this expedition?
- Which entity (a government, a company, organization, a club, etc.) hired you for this expedition?
- What is the reason given for this expedition? - this is the problem or conflict in the story
- Where and when will this expedition take place? - this is the setting: make sure to cover the year, the season, the habitat, and the location within the habitat
- What is the length of your expedition?
- What is the size and make up of your expedition team? - These are the characters: How many people are going? Who is going? Are they specialized in certain areas?
- Journal Entries (typed) - Write a minimum of 5 journal entries of the places you have visited and the plant and animals you encountered in your chosen habitat. These journal entries are what happens in a typical day of the exploration. Share your feelings, thoughts, hopes/fears, and experiences in this place, each day.
- Sketches with Descriptions (pencil drawings, each individual one on 8 1/2'' x 11'' paper) - Draw the plant and animals found in that habitat. A minimum of 2 different sketches/drawings are required and you should add written descriptions on the animal or plant in your drawings, eplainning their appearance, behavior and how you encoutered them. These sketches and description is done in the style of Lewis & Clark, as seen in their journal entries. (see example below)
- (started 5/8/15 in class) Presentation (Google Slides, hosted in your website) - Create a presentation about this habitat and your exploration of it, to present to the people who sent you on the expedition. Imagine that you just recently came back from your expedition and the people who hired you desperately want to hear about your discoveries. You will present your discoveries in a clear and exciting presentation geared to impress, inform and inspire those who see it (feel free to include material from the story, journal entries and sketches).
Below are questions you might consider covering to make your presentation more official, professional and engaging:
- Add historical background as to how the idea for this expedition was came about.
- State the purposes and expectations (objectives) for which you were initially sent out to explore - What were you hired to do?
- Share your discoveries and observations - What engaging stories can you tell from your expedition?
- Share the challenges you faced, the risks taken, and the hard choices you had to make.
- Describe the habitat in terms of weather/climate, terrain, and the living and non-living things in it.
- Include pictures, drawings, maps and descriptions of the different places (including maps), animals and plants within your chosen habitat.
- Make the appropriate recommendations based on the initial objectives for the expedition.
Student-Made Habitat Exploration Presentations 2015
Journal Entry Images from the Lewis & Clark Expedition
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