Annotated Bibliography
Brown, Amanda, and McGinn Mahoney. "Studying 'Stuff'." New York Times (2009): n. pag. Web. 21 Nov 2010. <http://learning.blogs.nytimes.com/2009/05/15/studying-
stuff/>.
This article provides a lesson plan to be used with the video “The Story of Stuff.” In the lesson, the authors challenge the students to think critically about environmental issues related to consumerism, as well as the video’s bias. I adapted some of the ideas from this lesson plan in my lesson on bottled water. I used this source for lesson 4.
Furlong, Mariel. "Back to the Source." National Geographic: Water Our Thirsty World. April 2010: Print.
This special National Geographic Issue is completely devoted to issues surrounding water in our world. The fold-out map titled “Back to the Source” shows where different cities throughout the world get their freshwater from. Water sources include Surface water, groundwater, and desalination. The map also shows the water availability in relation to water use around the world. I used this source for lesson 1.
"The Groundwater Story by King County." YouTube. Web. 11 Nov 2010. <http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wao-8zcRiTA&NR=1>.
This fun animated YouTube video features a singing groundwater character and groundhogs who show us the ways people harm groundwater. They also offer ways people can protect their groundwater. After watching this video, children will have a better idea of where groundwater comes from. I used this source for lesson 3.
This interactive web page allows readers to explore how much water it takes to produce different goods and services. Readers will be shocked by how much water some of the goods and services actually require. This page helps people think about the water they are indirectly responsible for using when they use a good or service. I used this source for lesson 2.
news/local/govt_and_politics/article_bfba9c08-7026-11df-9801-001cc4c03286.html>.
This Wisconsin State Journal Article talks about some of the problems that the Madison Water Utility faces. Some zones of the city are facing water shortages due to the fact that the water has been polluted with natural and industrial contaminants. This article shows that issues surrounding freshwater hit close to home. I used this source for lesson 3.
This video by Annie Leonard brings up issues surrounding bottled water and the environment. It is quite similar to the more famous video “The Story of Stuff.” Because the video is rather one-sided, students should be encouraged to consider Annie Leonard’s bias and alternative viewpoints. I used this source for lesson 4.
water.html>.
This webpage contains a lesson that helps children visualize the proportion of available freshwater to total water in the world. If the entire world’s water supply fit in two five-gallon containers, the available freshwater would only make up ten droplets of that water. In addition to the model, the lesson brings up the point that people in the U.S. use a disproportionate share of the world’s water resources. I adapted this lesson for Part 1 of my first lesson.
This website outlines ways we use freshwater in the United States. Categories include thermoelectric water use, irrigation water use, public supply water use, industrial water use, and other water use such as mining and aquaculture. The webpage provides information about each type of water use along with related photographs. I used this source for lesson 2.
This interactive webpage lets people calculate their own water footprint. It takes into account how much water people use (directly and indirectly) from household appliances, the food they eat, the energy they use, and even the clothes they wear. From this page, I learned that “the average American lifestyle [is] fueled by nearly 2,000 gallons of H2O a day.” I used this source for lesson 2.
