American Lung Association: Particle Pollution
Articles/Websites
Grades6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12Biology, Earth and Space Sciences, Health
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Provided by The American Lung Association
What it is
- This article and brief video provides information about the health risks associated with particulate pollution.
- Students will learn about different types of particle pollution, populations that are at risk for serious health problems, health risks associated with short-term and long-term exposure, recent findings from the EPA, and the sources of particle pollution.
Teaching tips
Positives
- The short video provides a good visual illustration of how particle pollution is dangerous for humans.
- This well-outlined website provides findings from recent scientific studies and highlights the risks of particle pollution from various sources.
- This resource is easy to follow and self-explanatory.
Additional Prerequisites
- Teachers should be aware that the information regarding serious health risks and premature death linked to particle pollution might be alarming to some students. Help students feel empowered by showing them how they can check the air quality in their area with this real-time air quality index and what they can do to protect themselves.
Differentiation
- Teachers can divide students into small groups to research one of the sources of particle pollution and make a presentation to show what can be done to reduce the production of particle pollution from each source.
- Students can make public service announcements about particle pollution to educate their community on the local particle pollution risks and solutions for reducing particle pollution.
- Do an experiment with students to see how much air pollution students can see in the air indoors vs. outdoors or before and after an event, such as someone kicking up dirt.
- Connect the reading to topics such as emissions from power plants, diesel-powered vehicles, and industrial or chemical plants.
From the scientist review
The resource is elementary in explaining the impact of particulate concentration on human health and outlining the short-term and long-term effects. Sources of this pollution come from both natural and human factors. This resource is recommended for teaching.
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