 Insert call for educators quote here

 Students in Life Science complete hands- on lessons that focus on VA SOL  Lessons incorporate the 5 E’s › Engage, Explore, Explain, Extend, and Evaluate  Students are expected to analyze data they collect during investigations and apply their understanding to new problems, settings, and situations

 Incorporate spatial thinking  Prepare our students for future careers  Incorporate Science Technology Engineering and Mathematics (STEM)  Provide strong inquiry-based learning opportunities that develop synthesis-level thinking

 Modify and field test GIS-based watershed-related lesson › Start in the GT Center classes › Gather data from students during process  Modify other existing lessons that relate to biomes, watershed, nutrient pollution, wetlands, development, etc. to include the use of GPS and/or GIS

 Expand students’ understanding of spatial thinking; promote visualization  Provide a learning experience in which students synthesize information  Develop students’ fluency in the use of GIS using ArcView  Offer teachers a model for using GIS and hand held GPS units with students  Build a support model for schools to facilitate their implementation of GIS

 Work with existing curriculum › Use familiar curriculum format › Package data sets as projects in ArcView  Plan and execute professional development by qualified trainers  Develop teacher leaders  Work with technology staff at each school  Provide installation instructions and access to data sets

 Compare and contrast land area of each state that contributes runoff to the Bay  Examine elevation and topographic features in the Bay watershed  Locate and name four regional watersheds in Virginia  Analyze a three-dimensional watershed model of Fairfax County

 Conduct schoolyard walk to collect GPS waypoints and note features  Upload waypoints to aerial map of school grounds and annotate map in ArcView  Locate the school’s “watershed address”  Create a presentation that synthesizes student learning

Comparing ratio of land area of states in the Bay watershed

“Through this new and innovative software we learned how to look at a map spatially and to notice the importance of the smallest details such as the rivers and states that contribute to the Bay. We also learned how to use GPS to locate and record way points and bring them up on a geographically accurate map…”

 Ensure that everyone has the same version of ArcView  Secure help with data set acquisition  Include students in the development of curriculum  Package data sets as projects for students and teachers to facilitate their use during a lesson  Revise lesson as needed to increase level of inquiry

 Include “screen shots” and icons in directions to help students navigate and become fluent with the program  Use the curriculum format students and teachers are most familiar with  Encourage students to check off each step as they work through the directions  Make sure to empower teachers to take an active role throughout the process