Introduction
The Flint, Michigan water crisis that started in April 2014 was connected with race, poverty, the loss of jobs and the science of lead poisoning that affected many people, especially children. The contaminants in the city’s water resulted in long lasting effects on people and it affected children the most. Students will be able to understand why the Flint water crisis occurred, the effect of the crisis, and the strategies that are being used to solve the crisis.
Task
Students should be able to examine the relation to the knowledge of chemistry and the social and environmental injustices that occurred in Flint, Michigan. Students should be able to watch a video that documents what occurred to cause the water to be contaminated and how people’s health was affected.
Process
- Have the students answer the following questions before watching the video:
- What is lead?
- Should lead be in our water, soil, and air?
- Can consuming lead make people feel sick?
- Go over the questions with the class in a quick discussion.
- Watch video from the Flint water crisis: The legacy of the Flint water crisis - YouTube
- Have students answer the following questions while watching the video:
- How was the contamination of the water discovered?
- How could the contamination of the water been avoided?
- Why is it not safe for people to drink contaminated water?
- What happens to a person’s health when their body is exposed to Lead?
- In what neighborhood did this happen to?
- Would you think this could happen in your area or in other cities?
- What are the long-term effects of the children who consumed a lot of the contaminated water?
- How would the Flint water crisis be classified as not providing environmental and social justice?
- Students will work in groups of 4-5 to share their responses and discuss the issues that were presented in the film.
- The teacher will go over the answers and inform the student on the social and environmental injustice that occurred.
Evaluation
Students should be able to complete all questions and to show an understanding of what happened in Flint, Michigan. They should all be able to engage in both group activity and class discussion to express the information that was taken away from the lesson. There should be an understanding of how the lesson ties in with social and environmental justice.
Conclusion
Students will reflect on their own community as there can be social and environmental issues present all around them. With the information from the Flint water crisis, students will be able to assess if there are any potential issues that they should be aware of what they consume, use, and hear.
Credits
Teacher Page
Hello educators I am a recent college graduate with a bachelor's degree in Natural Science with a concentration in Chemistry from California State University, Bakersfield. Currently pursuing teaching credentials for single subject in chemistry from San Diego State University.
This WebQuest is not perfected as there is more to know in lesson planning. This is a great issue that students should know even at a middle school level. I wrote it more based for my future classroom of high school chemistry students but feel free to view through it for a middle school or even elementary school.
Thank you and best of luck to all the educators!