Bakken+Pipeline+Performance+Task+Activity

=Bakken Pipeline Performance Task Activity= Des Moines Public Schools story on this activity

As a culminating project in our environmental science unit (and as a follow up to lessons on water quality, the carbon cycle, the greenhouse effect), we put together a performance task activity for the students to make a decision regarding a newsworthy event in Iowa. We gave students the below set of information on the proposed Bakken pipeline project and asked them to role-play the Iowa Utility Board in deciding whether or not to approve or reject the project's permit. Following this activity, colleague Judith Pauley (Team Africa's Literacy Teacher) worked with the students to prepare official letters to the Iowa Utility Board, who are currently accepting public comment on the project. We were very proud of the hard work everyone put into this project! Writing letters to the Iowa Utilities Board afforded a tangible and simple way for students to articulate their points of view, write a persuasive letter based on evidence and engage in the civic process. We hope that the students feel their voices were heard in this activity and will be more inclined to engage in the process of similar projects in the future.

Introductory documents and worksheets for students to complete

Documents to review in decision-making