DIY Wild Treasures Challenge 6:
Lifestyle Challenges
During Lifestyle Challenges, your students will try to predict what the majority of their classmates would choose to buy and do if money and age is no object. At a transportation exhibit, they will decide between 5 vehicles. At the clothing exhibit, they will choose between an outfit made from 100% cotton and one made of 100% hemp. At the food station, they will select between a conventional and a locally grown organic lunch. And at the recreation station, your students will elect three recreational activities (ranging from watching TV to shopping at the mall) they think the majority of their classmates would prefer to do the following weekend.
Materials
(Per station; 4 stations total)
Dream Car: Transportation
1. One picture of each of the following vehicles: (1) four-door sedan – gas engine; (2) four-door sedan – hybrid engine; (3) sports car – gas engine; (4) SUV – gas engine; and (5) pickup truck – gas engine.
2. Display the question, “Which of these vehicles would most of your classmates choose to buy if money was no object?”
3. Display next to each respective picture the following transportation data: (Insert Table)
1. At least one or more identical pairs of clothing. One of the pairs should be made from 100% cotton and the other should be made from 100% hemp. It’s even better if you can display a similar looking outfit of each.
2. Display the question, “Which one of these outfits would most of your classmates choose to buy if money was no object?
3. Display on each set of clothing material the following clothing data (Insert Table)
Clothing Data
|
COTTON |
HEMP |
PLANT USES |
Textiles, paper, cosmetic products |
Energy, textiles, paper, rope, plastics, food, medicine, construction, oils, paints |
TEXTILE FIBER YIELD |
635 pounds per acre |
2,700 pounds per acre |
Pesticides Herbicides Soil erosion Bleaching Alternatives |
50% of the world’s pesticides are used for growing cotton plants Chemical herbicides required to prevent weed growth A heavily irrigated crop; Farming techniques can cause soil erosion Fibers usually bleached; Bleaching process uses chlorine dioxide, which produces dioxin (water and soil pollutants) Unbleached organic cotton is available |
Naturally pest resistant; Minimal pesticides required No herbicides required; tightly spaced plants prevent weed growth Farming techniques promote efficient use of water & prevent soil erosion
Natural bright color rarely requires bleaching; bleaching process uses hydrogen peroxide, which produces no dangerous pollutants |
1. Create two meals with real and/or plastic props or in a menu format that looks something like this:
Meal 1: Beef burger, turkey hot dog, cow milk, potato chips, brand name soda, canned corn, apple. Meal 2: Vegetable burger, soy hot dog, soymilk, organic blue corn chips, locally produced soda, corn-on-the cob, organic cucumber.
2. Display the question, “Which of these two meals do you think most of your classmates would choose to eat?”
3. Display at the station the following food-related data. (Insert Table)
Food Data
|
Vegetable Burger Meal |
Beef Burger Meal |
Waste Pollution |
Organic foods No pesticides, no
herbicides, no chemical fertilizers *Most soy products are not grown organically Multiple cropping More attractive to
beneficial insects and birds, and uses less pesticides and herbicides than
mono-cropping. 25 gallons of water needed
to produce one pound of most fruits, vegetables and grains. |
Conventional farming Uses pesticides, herbicides
& chemical fertilizers Mono-cropping Practiced at most 2600 gallons of water and
16 pounds of grain needed to produce one pound of beef. |
Garbage |
Fresh foods Can be composted to return
nutrients to the soil. Buying in bulk reduces packaging waste. |
Canned & frozen foods Create solid waste such as
metal, plastic and paper. |
Entropy |
Fresh foods Require 10 times less
energy to produce than frozen foods. Locally grown fruits &
vegetables reduce entropy contribution by saving on transportation-related
waste |
Meat protein The production of one pound
of meat protein requires 40 times more fossil fuel than for one pound of soy
protein. Foreign foods The typical mouthful of
American food travels 1,200 miles from farm to consumer. |
1. With either real props or pictures from magazines, create an exhibit that depicts the following 6 recreational choices: shopping; watching TV; reading; creating arts & crafts; hiking; playing sports.
2. Display the question, “Which 3 of the following 6 activities would most of your classmates choose to do this weekend if age and money were no object?”
Procedure
1. Set up the four stations around the room.
2. Tell the class that each of the 4 stations consists of a lifestyle exhibit. Each exhibit presents a lifestyle choice. Their goal is to predict what they think the majority of their classmates would choose to do or buy at each exhibit if money and age is no object. After rotating through all four stations, they will share their decisions. If two or more groups match all of their lifestyle choices, then all the teams can earn all of the remaining Earthstones.
3. Tell your students that they will have 5 minutes at each station and that they must keep their discussions and answers confidential.
4. Ask students to submit to you in writing their lifestyle prediction and group name as they leave each station.
5. After all the groups submit their lifestyle choices, have one member from each group write their predictions on the board. Determine if any two groups match. If not, you can still award the remaining Earthstones based on your students’ cooperation and effort.
6. If necessary, pick any remaining Earthstones.
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