Cooperation
High School - September 2012
Character Education
Newsletters
Broward County Air
Quality Program
Welcome back to school! The Broward County Air Quality Program continues to incorporate
Character Education into its educational efforts. Each month the newsletter will relate core values to
science in an effort to educate students about good character and the importance of protecting our
natural resources.
Go Green
Cooperation is defined as “working with others to accomplish a common purpose.” This month, the
common purpose is protecting nature and our natural resources from the effects of climate change and
air pollution.
NatureScape Broward
Environmental Kids Club
Broward County Kids
Corner
Upcoming Events
End of September:
C3 Challenge
What’s in a Label? Exploring Fuel Economy and the Environment
Students will learn how to read and understand fuel economy and environment labels by comparing
and contrasting various vehicles and fuel types.
Materials:
- Student Worksheet www.epa.gov/students/pdf/fueleconomyhighschool.pdf (pg.6-7)
- Internet access or printed Vehicle Information sheets
Background:
The Energy Policy Act of 1992 requires the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S.
Department of Energy to provide consumers with accurate miles per gallon (MPG) information. In May
2011, the U.S. EPA and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration announced a new design
for fuel economy labels, where consumers will be able to see the vehicle’s fuel economy (miles per
gallon), energy use, fuel costs, and environmental impacts. These labels will be available on all 2013
models. Formerly, the fuel economy labels only included estimated city and highway miles per gallon,
and estimated annual fuel cost.
Procedure:
Have students brainstorm what his/her dream car would be. Find out what features are most important
to you students. Is it color and stereo, or fuel economy and environmental impact? As homework,
assign students to research their dream car including price, fuel economy, and estimated annual fuel
cost. If needed, introduce the concept of fuel economy (MPG).
Activity:
1. Review the student’s homework in class. Ask a few students to share what they learned about their
cars: how many miles per gallon? How much will they pay for fuel each year? How much does the
vehicle cost?
2. Is fuel economy now a factor in what type of car they would choose?
3. Show students examples of what the new fuel economy and environment labels look like. Access
sample labels at www.epa.gov/otaq/carlabel/basicinformation.htm. These labels now provide all the
information consumers need to make an informed decision about buying a vehicle.
4. Discuss the various components of the label, including fuel economy, annual fuel cost, fuel
economy and greenhouse gas rating, and fuel costs savings over 5 years.
5. Have students use www.fueleconomy.gov to look up fuel economy and environmental emissions.
(To access, visit www.fueleconomy.gov. Click “Find a Car” on the upper left side of the page).
6. Using the tool’s information, inform students that they will research two vehicles to compare and fill
in blank fuel economy and environment labels. You can either provide students with various car
makes and models or allow students to research cars of his/her choice. Tell students to research
two different fuel types (i.e.: gasoline, gasoline-electric hybrid, plug-in electric vehicles).
7. After students have researched and found his/her fuel economy and environmental emissions for
their vehicles, compare and contrast by having each student or group summarize the vehicles they
researched. Which are more efficient, SUVs or compact cars? How does gasoline power vehicles
compare to electric vehicles? What cars have higher greenhouse gas ratings? How are fuel
economy and greenhouse gas rating related to each other? What type of fuel provides a lower
annual fuel cost? How are annual fuel costs and fuel economy related?
Wrap Up:
1. Review fuel economy and environment labels. How will these labels help consumers? Are there
any drawbacks to the labels?
2. Ask students if his/her criteria for choosing a car has changed. Will they take fuel economy and
environmental impact into consideration when choosing a car in the future?
Assessment:
Ensure that students have completed his/her fuel economy and environment labels and answered the
discussion questions on the student worksheet. Note that numbers will vary based on the vehicles
chosen.
Extensions:
1. Have students research the legislation related to the fuel economy and environment labels. What
did the old labels look like? How do they compare to the new 2012 labels? Why would this change
be important?
2. Have students design their own car labels. What information would be important for them to include
on a label?
3. Research the history and use of both fossil and alternative fuels in transportation. Examine the
origin of fuels, such as where does gasoline come from and what do we use to generate electricity
for plug-in vehicles. Study the implications of all fuel types discussed, including the advantages and
disadvantages, the economics and environmental impact of each.
Source: www.epa.gov/students/pdf/fueleconomyhighschool.pdf
Average Vehicle Occupancy (AVO) at your School
Students will be able to determine the average vehicle occupancy (AVO) of their school, while
developing and analyzing a survey to determine attitudes toward air pollution and transportation, and
the correlation between them.
October:
Walk to School Day
C3 Challenge
November:
America Recycles Day
C3 Challenge
December:
Clean Air Poster Contest
January:
Clean Air Poster Contest
February:
Clean Air Poster Contest
March:
Water Matters Day
@Broward Environment
@Broward Environment’s
Channel
Materials: pencil, paper
Background- Provide some background information for students to correlate air quality problems with
pollution caused by transportation, such as cars in their community. Information on laws that have
been passed to force polluters to clean up their business, most notably the U.S. Clean Air Act, travel
data from U.S. census, and other regulations, can be provided. (more information can be found at
www.extraordinaryroadtrip.org/pdfs/avo.pdf
Procedure:
1. Look at a map of your school. From this map determine the best locations (i.e. teacher and
student parking lots) to conduct a survey of traffic and the number of people traveling in each
vehicle. Before conducting the survey, inspect each observation point and carefully select a safe
place to stand.
2. Students should predict what they think the average vehicle occupancy will be. Then, using a tally
sheet, have students determine the number of vehicles and the number of people in each vehicle.
Students who are counting should make very specific comments to the recorder. Example: "car;
one person," "truck; two people." Other students can keep a separate count of any walkers or
bikers they see. Have students survey for 10 minutes. If possible, have them conduct the survey
during the time when school starts or ends, which is when the most people are traveling to/from
school. Calculate the AVO for your community. AVO= The number of people traveling/ The number
of vehicles (ex:159 people/100 vehicles= 1.59 AVO)
3. Have students develop a written or oral survey to determine school's attitudes toward trip
reduction. The survey should target why people decide to carpool or take transit. The survey
should also focus on reasons drivers have for driving alone. After analyzing the survey responses,
have your students come up with ideas that promote carpooling, bicycling, bus riding, and walking.
Extension:
1. Based on the results, the students could develop a trip reduction program for their school.
2. Students can survey businesses in the area to learn more about their efforts to encourage
carpooling, use of mass transit and biking.
Sources: www.extraordinaryroadtrip.org/pdfs/avo.pdf
Studies from 1830 indicate that a remote island chain in the Pacific Ocean had 13 separate species of
finches. Each finch species had a distinctive beak shape that was specialized for eating a particular
type of food. In spite of these differences, there were strong similarities shared by the finches. A
scientist hypothesized that the 13 species of finches descended from a common ancestor. Which of
the following factors produced variation in the finch species?
A. mutation
B. extinction
C. overpopulation
D. artificial selection
Answer: A
Spread the Word!!!
Subscribe to our FREE electronic Character Education Science FCAT Warm-up Newsletters
Today!
The monthly edition of this newsletter is distributed only through a FREE electronic e-mail subscriber
list. E-mail the Broward County Air Quality program at airoutreach@broward.org to receive this
valuable curriculum resource. The newsletters are also available on our Environmental Kids Club web
site at www.broward.org/kids. Archived copies of the newsletter are also available through the School
Board’s BEEP system.
Congratulations!
Our April 2012 newsletters (www.broward.org/Kids/CharacterEducation/Pages/Tolerance.aspx)
included a short survey on the FCAT Warm-up Character Education Newsletters. We value your
opinion and looked forward to hearing from you. We received many wonderful comments and
valuable feedback. We are pleased to announce the winners of our survey contest:
Ximena Uribasterra at Pembroke Pines Elementary
Julie Ganas at Silver Lakes Elementary
Suzy Pinnell at Deerfield Beach Middle
Free Publication!
The ENERGY SENSE- Conservation and Efficiency Start With You publication is available at no
charge. This fantastic publication will not only help the environment, but will help your family save
money at the same time! ENERGY SENSE! was written to help you understand both energy
conservation and energy efficiency. Simple examples of each are: turning off a light when you leave a
room (conservation) and using an LED (light-emitting diode) light bulb versus an incandescent bulb
(efficiency).
If you would like a copy, simply email ddyoung@broward.org for your copy.
Free Anti-Idling Stickers
Help spread the word about idling and exhaust. Smoke from
vehicle exhaust is made up of tiny particles that can get lodged in
your lungs and are a major contributor to respiratory diseases
such as asthma and emphysema. For a sticker, please email
airoutreach@broward.org.
The Conservation & Climate Change Challenge is Back!
We are proud to announce the 4th annual Conservation & Climate Change (C3) Challenge! This
year, the C3 Challenge runs from October 1st to February 8th. The C3 Challenge is an educational
competition intended to engage Broward County students, teachers, school administrators, staff, and
parents in practical actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions at school and home. This
competition is aligned with the Next Generation Sunshine State Standards. For more information visit
www.broward.org/PollutionPrevention/AirQuality/EducationalPrograms/Pages/C3.aspx.