Resource Depletion
High School through College
This kit covers a historical overview of American representations of natural resources from ancient Indian basketry to contemporary web sites. It compares conflicting media constructions about the Exxon Valdez oil spill, the damning of rivers, and Chukchi sea oil drilling. By showing the slow realization that natural resources are finite, students will learn valuable lessons in earth, natural and environmental sciences.
All materials are classroom-ready, including: teacher guides, student handouts, overviews, and assessments.
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Download each teachers guide, slide show or video below.
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click a unit title to view/close list of downloads Units
Lesson 1: History of Resource Depletion
Teacher's Guide
PowerPoint Slide Show
Supplemental Resources
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Links to Supplemental Resources from Federal Archives Lesson 1
- PPT Doc.#2, Ozette Rocks
Resource: Library of Congress: Makah rock art photo
- PPT Doc.#3, Secota Village
Resource: Smithsonian: Secota village drawing
- PPT Doc.#4, Prairie on Fire
Resource: Smithsonian: Prairie fire painting
- PPT Doc.#5, Niagra Waterfall
Resource: Library of Congress: Niagara Falls drawing
- PPT Doc.#6, Greenville Treaty
Resource: Library of Congress: Greenville treaty text
[Scroll down to items #10 & 11 ]
- PPT Doc.#7, Wa-Ba-Sha
Resource: Library of Congress: Mississippi river town print by same publisher
- PPT Doc.#8, Giant Redwood
Resource: Library of Congress: Text by artist Bierstadt on representing Native Americans
- PPT Doc.#9, New Cleared Farm
Resource: Library of Congress: Selected images of pre-20th century farms and farming
- PPT Doc.#10, Mammoth Tree
Resource: Library of Congress: Selected images of Calaveras big trees
- PPT Doc.#11, McCormick Reaper
Resource: Library of Congress: Selected images of "Western Life and Indian Fighting"
- PPT Doc.#12, Gladys City Oil
Resource: Library of Congress: Big oil satirical magazine cover
- PPT Doc.#13, Boulder Dam
Resource: Library of Congress: America's Story collection Hoover dam exhibit
- PPT Doc.#14, Years of Dust
Resource: Library of Congress: Depression-era Farm Security Administration photo exhibit
- PPT Doc.#15, Our Filthy Seas
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of House bill honoring Jacquess Yves Cousteau
- PPT Doc.#16, Still Waters
Resource: Library of Congress: Lesson plan on New England Fishing Industry
- PPT Doc.#17 , "When the Rivers Run Dry"
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of “Household Water Conservation Challenge Act of 2007”
- PPT Doc.#18, Tarzan
Resource: Library of Congress: Selected images of deforestation
- PPT Docs:#19, End of Suburbia, #26, An Ordinary Place ,#27, United Land Investments
Resource: National Endowment for the Humanities: Lesson plan on building suburbia
- PPT Doc.#20, Resource Wars
Resource: Library of Congress: Link to web story on "Darfur as a Resource War"
- PPT Doc. #21, No Place Like Home
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of legislation marking Earth Day 1990
- PPT Doc.#22, Walden
Resource: Library of Congress: Bibliography of nature writing before Walden
- PPT Doc.#23, Man and Nature
Resource: Library of Congress: Resource list on the evolution of the conservation movement
- PPT Doc.#24, The Commons
Resource: Library of Congress: Publisher description of Garrett Hardin's "Living Within Limits"
- PPT Doc.#25, Roosevelt and Muir
Resource: National Park Service: John Muir & Yosemite exhibit
- PPT Doc.#28, Consumer Guide
Resource: Library of Congress: Harpers Weekly magazine cover "The Consumer Consumed" 1888
- PPT Doc.#29-31 Joy to the Wallet, Buy Nothing Day, Consumerism
Resource: Library of Congress: Overview of the rise of conumerism in the 1920s
- PPT Doc.#32-33 Bottomless Well, A Crude Awakening
Resource: Library of Congress: Link to Business Resource Guide to Oil & Gas Industry
- PPT Doc.#34-35, The Last Stand, GP in Action
Resource: Library of Congress: America's Story collection California timber exhibit
- PPT Doc.#36, Green Belt Movement
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of House bill honoring Wangari Maathai
- PPT Doc.#37, Thirst, Doc# 38, Euphoria
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of House position on world freshwater resources
- PPT Doc.#39, Dirt
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of Critical Lands Resource Conservation Act 1977
- PPT Doc.#40, Culture
Resource: Smithsonian: Lesson plan on Zuni dryland farming
- PPT Doc.#41, Oren Lyons
Resource: Smithsonian: Link to video on Oren Lyons speaking on " A Call to Consciousness on Climate Change"
Lesson 2: Case Study-- Damming the Rivers
- Teacher's Guide
Valley of the Tennessee - Hetch Hetchey, Yosemite
- China's Mega Dam
- Manufactured Landscapes
- Supplemental Resources
X
Links to Supplemental Resources from Federal Archives Lesson 2
- Vid Clip: Valley of the Tennessee
Resource: OurDocuments.Gov: Background on the Tennessee Valley Authority Act
- Vid Clip: Hetch Hetchy
Resource: Library of Congress: Lesson plan on the damming of Hetch Hetchy
- Vid Clip: China's MegaDam, Vid Clip: Manufactured Landscapes
Resource: Library of Congress: Catalog record on exhibit - Displacement: the Three Gorges Dam and contemporary Chinese art
Lesson 3: Case Study-- Chukchi Sea Oil Drilling
- Teacher's Guide
- 4 Student Readings for this unit
- Supplemental Resources
X
Links to Supplemental Resources from Federal Archives Lesson 3
- Text: Chukchi Sea Oil Drilling
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of legislation for Polar Bear Seas Protection Act, 2008
Lesson 4: Case Study-- Exxon Valdez, Oil & Water
- Teacher's Guide
- Scientists & the Alaska Oil Spill
- Alaska-Exxon Valdez
- When the Spill Hit Homer
- Dr. Riki Ott - Not One Drop
- Supplemental Resources
X
Links to Supplemental Resources from Federal Archives Lesson 4
- Vid Clip: Scientists & Alaska Oil Spill, Vid Clip: Alaska-Exxon Valdez, Vid Clip: When the Spill Hit Homer, Vid Clip: Dr. Riki Ott- Not One Drop
Resource: Library of Congress: Text of legislation mandating research on the effects of Exxon Valdez spill
Lesson 5: Case Study-- Cochabamba, Water for Sale
- Teacher's Guide
- 4 Student Readings for this unit.
- Supplemental Resources
X
Links to Supplemental Resources from Federal Archives Lesson 5
- Text: Water For Sale
Resource: US Department of State: Comments on Ciochabamba water concession controversy
[Scroll down to par 18 section on Expropriation]
