Floods and Droughts Learning Lab

• In this learning lab, students will have the chance to explore three different interactives to learn about the increasing pervasiveness of droughts and floods, their ecological, social, and financial effects, and what can be done to mitigate them.
• Students will investigate a virtual classroom full of links to relevant content, complete learning missions in a game format, and learn about the effects of flood and droughts on communities.
• Six lessons that pair with this learning lab are also available through this teacher guide to allow you to easily integrate the materials into your classroom.
  

Positives

• Students will find each presentation engaging and will enjoy exploring what each has to offer.
• There are opportunities to learn about droughts and floods from different perspectives, giving students a rich learning experience.

Additional Prerequisites

• Make sure students know that sometimes text will appear just from hovering over the interactive elements, but other times students will need to click the elements for corresponding text to appear.
• The "Register Here" button at the end of the second presentation is not clickable.
• The videos discuss drownings from floods, so be prepared to support students emotionally if they have experienced a similar event.
  

Differentiation

• In the virtual classroom, it may be helpful for students to know which graphics or how many graphics are clickable links, so they are exploring the resources fully.
• The teacher can use the drought and flood sighting tools to introduce students to the importance of citizen science.
• After watching the second video in the third presentation, students can compare and contrast how the dry conditions are affecting the two families from the video.
• Connections can be made to lessons about the water cycle, the effects of global warming on the water cycle, and how changing weather patterns affect society.