Tree Mapping

STEAM Challenge

Submission Due Date: April 5, 2024

Designed for Middle and High School Students

Table of Contents ·      The Challenge ·      Assumptions and Logistics ·      Process ·      Meridian Support Resources ·      Presentation of Learning ·      Evaluation Rubric ·      Essential Questions ·      Student Proficiencies ·      Curricular Correlations (NGSS and Common Core)

Range of Activities ·      Tree Ecosystems Scientific Exploration ·      Local Tree Ecosystem Analysis and Mapping ·      Tree Ecosystems Problem Solving; Solution Articulation ·      Scriptwriting ·      Digital Literacy Skills – Video – Pre-production, Production and Post-production ·      Human Skills: Creativity, Collaboration, Critical Thinking, Presentational Skills

 

 

 

The Challenge

What is the relationship between a tree canopy and your local water supply? Why is tree diversity important environmentally to your town? Is there a connection between tree quantity – visual greenery – in an urban setting and human stress?

These are just a few of the questions that one can ask of the tree ecosystem that exists in your town, whether you live in a rural, suburban or urban area.

As the town arborist, you’re making a presentation analyzing the tree ecosystem in your neighborhood to be delivered to the town council. Choose a significant space in your town that can be defined geographically and contains a mix of buildings and trees. Your chosen space should be at least one acre large and should contain a minimum of two tree species. Create a tree-based map of the area that notes each building and tree in the area, noting the different tree species present. If there are more than 50 trees present, you can choose to include a representative sample of trees in the map rather than portraying each tree. You should then craft a video report explaining the health of the space. For example, is too much road salt or vehicle emissions negatively affecting tree health? The analysis of your area should address, but not be limited to, these criteria:

• Tree biodiversity
• Native vs. foreign species
• Threats to trees, including pests and disease (e.g. emerald ash borer)
• Root system health (space, soil chemistry, etc)
• Societal Health

In your video report, you must make at least two specific suggestions for improvement. Remember, you are presenting this to the town council – how you share the reasoning behind your suggestions should be tailored to the audience. Could your area benefit from tree planting? Do you focus on long-term economic savings? Environmental benefits? Aesthetics? Trees can provide many types of intangible benefits and one of the best places to help quantify those benefits is with this website, itreetools.org. In the end, it’s your call.

Deliverables include:

• Video Report (this is the only Meridian Stories deliverable)
• Tree Map (at teacher’s discretion)
• Draft Shooting Script (at teacher’s discretion)

Assumptions and Logistics

• Time Frame – We recommend that this digital storytelling project takes place inside of a three to five-week time frame.

• Length – All Meridian Stories submissions should be under 4 minutes in length, unless otherwise specified.
• Slate – All digital storytelling projects must begin with a slate that provides: 
  • the title of the piece;
  • the name of the school submitting;      
  • the wording ‘Permission Granted’ which gives Meridian Stories the right to a) publicly display the submission in question on, as linked from, related to or in support of Meridian Stories digital media; and b) use or reference it for educational purposes only, in any and all media; and
  • We strongly recommend that students do not put their last names on the piece either at the start or finish, during the credits.

• Submissions – Keep in mind that each school can only submit three submissions per Competition (so while the entire class can participate in any given Challenge, only three can be submitted to Meridian Stories for Mentor review and scoring).
• Teacher Reviews – All reviews by the teacher are at the discretion of the teacher and all suggested paper deliverables are due only to the teacher. The only deliverable to Meridian Stories is the digital storytelling project.
• Teacher’s Role and Technology Integrator – While it is helpful to have a Technology Integrator involved, they are not usually necessary: the students already know how to produce the digital storytelling project. And if they don’t, part of their challenge is to figure it out. They will! The teacher’s primary function in these Challenges is to guide the students as they engage with the content.  You don’t need to know editing, sound design, shooting or storyboarding: you just need to know your content area, while assisting them with organization and time management issues. See the Teachers Role section of the website for further ideas about classroom guidance.
• Digital Rules/Literacy – We strongly recommend that all students follow the rules of Digital Citizenry in their proper usage and/or citation of images, music and text taken from other sources. This recommendation includes producing a citations page at the end of your entry, if applicable. See the Digital Rules area in the Meridian Stories Digital Resource Center section of the site for guidance.
• Location – Try not to shoot in a classroom at your school. The classroom, no matter how you dress it up, looks like a classroom and can negatively impact the digital story you are trying to tell.
• Collaboration – We strongly recommend that students work in teams of 3-4: part of the educational value is around building collaborative skill sets. But students may work individually.

 

Process

Below is a suggested breakdown for the students’ work.

During Phase I, student teams will:

• Choose a significant area in your city or town that is between one and two acres large.
  • The area must contain a mix of buildings/structures and trees.
  • Teams must choose precise geographic limits for their space so that they can map it accurately.
• Count each tree and building in the chosen space.
  • Identify the species of each tree
  • Collect thorough data – it is easy to re-do data analysis, but not as easy to go back and re-collect data! Teams should consider data they might want to collect to include in their tree map such as size and shape.
• Map the chosen space.
  • Choose a type of mapping – digital, blueprint, 3-d, etc.
  • Decide how to depict trees and buildings in the map. Be sure that your final map design is accurate and to scale.
  • If the number of trees exceeds 50, decide if the map should depict a representative sample instead of each tree.
  • Teacher’s Option: Tree Map – Teachers may require that teams hand in their Tree Map
• Begin research of tangible and intangible benefits that trees provide.
  • The National Tree Benefit Calculator can help teams determine economic and ecological benefits for each tree in their space
• Begin research of the given scientific criteria (below) and the effects they have on environmental and societal health.
  • Tree biodiversity
  • Native vs. foreign species
  • Threats to trees, including pests and disease
  • Root system health (space, soil chemistry, etc.)
  • Societal health

During Phase II, student teams will:

• Continue research of tangible and intangible benefits that trees provide.
• Decide what to focus on in the report.
  • Analyze what the audience might want to know most.
  • Evaluate what stood out from the research on the health of the area.
  • Identify at least two specific suggestions to make.
• Brainstorm the creative structure of your video report. Questions to consider include:
• Who is the voice of this report? Or are there multiple voices?
• Are you going to include subject matter experts? Professions to consider might be scientists; park rangers; arborists or tree specialists; and/or Mental Health workers. If so, you will need to interview them.
• What are we seeing? Mostly a talking head, intercut with your tree map? Or will there be other graphics and visuals used to support your argument? Might there be, for example, clips used from the Internet that will help your argument? (If you decide to use those clips, be sure to check out Meridian Stories’ Digital Rules Resource Center: The Starting Line to help determine the right around your proposed use.)
  • Are you going to visualize the problem in a different style than how you visualize the solutions you are proposing?
• Write and finalize the script, keeping in mind that this is essentially a persuasive story that you are writing: you are trying to convince the Town Council, in some small or large way, to improve the long-term environmental health of the community.
  • Teacher’s Option: Draft Shooting Script – Teachers may require that teams hand in their First Draft Shooting Script.

During Phase III, student teams will:

• Cast the video (if necessary)
• Choose the location for shooting
  • Will this be on-site in the chosen area?
• Pre-produce the video:
  • Prepare for each shot
  • Choose the still images to integrate into the report
  • Create costumes, props and other set pieces, as needed.
• Rehearse the video report
• Shoot the video
• Edit the video, adding stills and other graphics as desired
• Post-produce the video, adding music and sound effects as desired.

Meridian Support Resources

Meridian Stories provides two forms of support for the student teams: 1.    Media Innovators and Artists – This is a series of three-to-four-minute videos featuring artists and innovative professionals who offer important advice, specifically for Meridian Stories, in the areas of creativity and production. 2.    Meridian Resources – These are short documents that offer student teams key tips in the areas of creativity and production. Recommended review, as a team, for this Challenge include:
Meridian Innovators and Artists	Media Resource Collection
On Nonfiction – Margaret Heffernan On Sound Design – Chris Watkinson On Editing – Tom Pierce On Interviewing Techniques – Tom Pierce	“Introduction to 3D Modeling” “Sound Recording Basics” “Digital Rules Resource Center: The Starting Line” “Rendering and Animation Programs”

 

Presentation of Learning

Meridian Stories is a proud partner of the non-profit Share Your Learning, which is spearheading the movement of over five million students to publicly share their work as a meaningful part of their educational experience.

The workforce considers Presentational Skills to be a key asset and we encourage you to allow students to practice this skill set as often as possible. These digital storytelling projects provide a great opportunity for kids to practice their public presentational skills. This can be achieved in a remote learning environment by inviting parents to a Zoom/Google/Skype screening of the student’s digital stories.

According to Share Your Learning, Presentations of Learning (POL) promote…

• Student Ownership, Responsibility & Engagement. POLs can serve as a powerful rite of passage at the end of [a project]. By reflecting on their growth over time in relation to academic and character goals, grounded in evidence from their work, students are encouraged to take ownership of their learning. Just as an artist wants their portfolio to represent their best work, POLs encourage students to care deeply about the work they will share.
• Community Pride & Involvement. When peers, teachers and community members come together to engage with student work and provide authentic feedback, they become invested in students’ growth and serve as active contributors to the school community.
• Equity. POLs ensure that all students are seen and provide insight into what learning experiences students find most meaningful and relevant to their lives.

Meridian Stories’ own research indicates this to be a really useful exercise for one additional reason:  Students actually learn from their peers’ presentations – it is useful to hear a perspective that is not just the teacher’s.

It is with this in mind that we you encourage you to plan an event – it could be just an end-of-the-week class or an event where parents, teachers and student peers are invited – to allow the students to showcase their Meridian Stories’ digital storytelling projects. For more free resources that will support this planning, visit Share Your Learning.

Evaluation Rubric – Tree Mapping

CONTENT COMMAND
Criteria	1 – 10
Communication of Content – Map	The tree map is accurate and explained clearly, adding to the effectiveness of the video report
Communication of Content – Scientific Criteria	The analysis of the specified scientific criteria is clearly explained and smoothly incorporated
Communication of Content – Suggestions	At least two suggestions for tree health improvement are creatively presented, practical and well-explained
STORYTELLING COMMAND
Criteria	1 – 10
Script/Narrative Flow	The narrative is presented clearly and the scripting is engaging and effective
Visual Representation of Narrative	The visual choices expand upon the narrative and thoroughly engage the audience
Media Format	The video is very successful and convincing as a digital story about tree health to a targeted audience: the town council

MEDIA COMMAND
Criteria	1 – 10
Editing	The video is well edited, with each visual shot moving into the next fluidly, resulting in a cohesive digital report
Sound and Music	The selective use of sound effects and music enhances the video’s effectiveness
HUMAN SKILLS (for teachers only)
Criteria	1 – 10
Collaborative Thinking	The group demonstrated flexibility in making compromises and valued the contributions of each group member
Creativity and Innovation	The group brainstormed many inventive ideas and was able to evaluate, refine and implement them effectively
Initiative and Self-Direction	The group set attainable goals, worked independently, and managed their time effectively, demonstrating a disciplined commitment to the project

Essential Questions

1. Why is an analysis of one’s local tree ecosystem important to the overall health of the community?

• Why is biodiversity important for forests and for local, populated spaces?

2. What is the difference between native, non-native, and invasive species?
3. What are some threats to healthy trees?
4. How does one create a useful, working map with legends and scales?
5. How can your proposed suggestions improve your community?
6. How has immersion in the creation of original content and the production of digital media – exercising one’s creativity, critical thinking and digital literacy skills – deepened the overall educational experience?
7. How has working on a team – practicing one’s collaborative skills – changed the learning experience?

Student Proficiencies

1. The student will learn that one’s local tree ecosystem has significant ramifications on the environmental health and stability of the population center. Additionally, the student will learn that different species of trees support different living species, from insects to mammals to mosses. Furthermore, areas with greater biodiversity are better able to adapt to changing environmental conditions and maintain a healthy ecosystem.
2. The student will understand that native species are species that have historically occurred in and evolved in an area. They maintain and restore the symbiotic relationships that constitute an ecosystem. Non-native species are introduced species that do not disturb the natural ecosystem of an area. Invasive species are introduced species that do disturb the natural ecosystem of an area, causing negative ecological effects and often displacing native species.
3. The student will know that healthy trees can be threatened by pests, diseases, and poor soil composition due to excess chemicals, including salt.
4. The student will have experience creating a scaled map of a local area to be used for practical purposes.
5. The student will gain a new understanding of some of the needs and values of their community, as it related to their local tree ecosystem.
6. The student will utilize key Human skills, with a focus on creativity, critical thinking and digital literacy, in their process of translating STEAM content into a new narrative format.
7. The student will have an increased awareness of the challenges and rewards of team collaboration. Collaboration – the ability to work with others – is considered one of the most important 21^st century skills to develop in students as they prepare for life after secondary school.

Curricular Correlations

The Tree Mapping Challenge addresses a range of curricular objectives that are articulated in the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and the Common Core Mathematics Standards.

Below please find the standards that are addressed, either wholly or in part.

Next Generation Science Standards

High School – Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Use mathematical representations to support claims for the cycling of matter and flow of energy among organisms in an ecosystem. (HS-LS2-4)

High School – Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Use mathematical representations to support and revise explanations based on evidence about factors affecting biodiversity and populations in ecosystems of different scales. (HS-LS2-2)
• Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity. (HS-LS2-7)

High School – Human Sustainability

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity. (HS-ESS3-1)
• Create a computational simulation to illustrate the relationships among management of natural resources, the sustainability of human populations, and biodiversity. (HS-ESS3-3)

High School – Disciplinary Core Ideas

• Biodiversity is increased by the formation of new species (speciation) and decreased by the loss of species (extinction). (HS- LS4.D)
• Humans depend on the living world for the resources and other benefits provided by biodiversity. But human activity is also having adverse impacts on biodiversity through overpopulation, overexploitation, habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, and climate change. Thus sustaining biodiversity so that ecosystem functioning and productivity are maintained is essential to supporting and enhancing life on Earth. Sustaining biodiversity also aids humanity by preserving landscapes of recreational or inspirational value. (HS- LS4.D)
• A complex set of interactions within an ecosystem can keep its numbers and types of organisms relatively constant over long periods of time under stable conditions. If a modest biological or physical disturbance to an ecosystem occurs, it may return to its more or less original status. (HS-LS2.C)
• Anthropogenic changes (induced by human activity) in the environment—including habitat destruction, pollution, introduction of invasive species, overexploitation, and climate change—can disrupt an ecosystem and threaten the survival of some species. (HS-LS2.C)
• Resource availability has guided the development of human society. (HS-ESS3.A)
• All forms of energy production and other resource extraction have associated economic, social, environmental, and geopolitical costs and risks as well as benefits. (HS-ESS3.A)
• The sustainability of human societies and the biodiversity that supports them requires responsible management of natural resources. (HS- ESS3.C)
• When evaluating solutions, it is important to take into account a range of constraints, including cost, safety, reliability, and aesthetics, and to consider social, cultural, and environmental impacts. (HS- ETS1.B)

High School – Crosscutting Concepts

• Many decisions are not made using science alone, but rely on social and cultural contexts to resolve issues. (HS-ESS3-2)
• Much of science deals with constructing explanations of how things change and how they remain stable. (HS-LS2-6),(HS-LS2-7)

High School and Middle School – Mathematics

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Reason abstractly and quantitatively. (MP.2)

Middle School – Matter and Energy in Organisms and Ecosystems

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Analyze and interpret data to provide evidence for the effects of resource availability on organisms and populations of organisms in an ecosystem. (MS-LS2-1)

Middle School – Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Evaluate competing design solutions for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services. (MS-LS2-5)

Middle School – Human Impacts

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Apply scientific principles to design a method for monitoring and minimizing a human impact on the environment. (MS-ESS3-3)

Middle School – Disciplinary Core Ideas

• Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors. (MS-LS2.A)
• In any ecosystem, organisms and populations with similar requirements for food, water, oxygen, or other resources may compete with each other for limited resources, access to which consequently constrains their growth and reproduction. (MS-LS2.A)
• Growth of organisms and population increases are limited by access to resources. (MS-LS2.A)
• Ecosystems are dynamic in nature; their characteristics can vary over time. Disruptions to any physical or biological component of an ecosystem can lead to shifts in all its populations. (MS-LS2.C)
• Biodiversity describes the variety of species found in Earth’s terrestrial and oceanic ecosystems. The completeness or integrity of an ecosystem’s biodiversity is often used as a measure of its health. (MS-LS2.C)
• Changes in biodiversity can influence humans’ resources, such as food, energy, and medicines, as well as ecosystem services that humans rely on—for example, water purification and recycling. (MS-LS4.D)
• There are systematic processes for evaluating solutions with respect to how well they meet the criteria and constraints of a problem. (MS-ETS1.B)

Middle School – Crosscutting Concepts

• Small changes in one part of a system might cause large changes in another part. (MS-LS2-4)
• All human activity draws on natural resources and has both short and long-term consequences, positive as well as negative, for the health of people and the natural environment. (MS-ESS3-4)
• Graphs, charts, and images can be used to identify patterns in data. (MS-LS4-1),(MS-LS4-3)

 

Common Core Mathematics

High School – Quantities

• Define appropriate quantities for the purpose of descriptive modeling. (HSN.Q.A.2)
• Choose a level of accuracy appropriate to limitations on measurement when reporting quantities. (HSN.Q.A.3)

High School and Middle School – Standards for Mathematical Practice

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Reason abstractly and quantitatively. (MP.2)
• Model with mathematics. (MP.4)

Middle School – Ratios and Proportional Relationships

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Use ratio reasoning to convert measurement units; manipulate and transform units appropriately when multiplying or dividing quantities (6.RP.A.3.D)

Middle School – The Number System

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Solve real-world and mathematical problems by graphing points in all four quadrants of the coordinate plane. (6.NS.C.8)

Middle School – Geometry

Students who demonstrate understanding can:

• Find the area of right triangles, other triangles, special quadrilaterals, and polygons by composing into rectangles or decomposing into triangles and other shapes; apply these techniques in the context of solving real-world and mathematical problems. (6.G.A.1)
• Represent three-dimensional figures using nets made up of rectangles and triangles, and use the nets to find the surface area of these figures. Apply these techniques in the context of solving real-world and mathematical problems. (6.G.A.4)
• Solve problems involving scale drawings of geometric figures, including computing actual lengths and areas from a scale drawing and reproducing a scale drawing at a different scale. (7.G.A.1)
• Solve real-world and mathematical problems involving area, volume and surface area of two- and three-dimensional objects composed of triangles, quadrilaterals, polygons, cubes, and right prisms. (7.G.B.6)