THE ACTIVITIES
SPRAWL PALS

Description: Students will set up pen pal relationships with students in other cities or towns and learn about how sprawl affects each other's school, home and community.

GO DIRECTLY TO:

• Goals and Objectives
• Procedure and Teaching Suggestions
• Student Activity
• Extension

GOALS AND OBJECTIVES

	Materials and Equipment Computers, printers and Internet access Spiral Binders

Through this activity students will:

• Use language and writing to communicate individual perspectives and factual knowledge on sprawl and environmental issues to a long distance pen pal
• Apply conventions of grammar and language usage
• Use technology to communicate.

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PROCEDURE AND TEACHING SUGGESTIONS

These Web sites offer pen pal programs on environmental issues and are a great place to start. Search for other sites that offer pen pal opportunities in urban studies, environmental studies and sprawl. Conduct your Web search under Pen Pal Programs.

• http://www.epa.gov/region6/penpals/
• http://www.theteacherscorner.net/penpals/
  Click to Science section, then Earth Science section

1. Secure a pen pal program that focuses on lesson plans or general communication opportunities for students to chat about sprawl issues affecting their city, town or community. Students should contrast their problems and solutions with another student's community. Try to select contrasting geographic locations, so that the students will have a broad experience with how sprawl is created and resolved. Weather, topography, cultural setting and dominant industries will affect each community's sprawl problems differently; each community's potential solutions will be different as well.
2. Introduce students to the program(s) you have selected. Assist them with focusing on the topics of their communication for the next semester or school year. Students should include the history, current issues and proposed solutions they are able to research and report to their pal.
3. Assist students with pen pal etiquette — no foul language, no personal discussions outside of the original subject matter, no exchange of phone numbers for the time period of the activity (later friendships can occur outside of school), etc. Students can also access current environmental and sprawl issues in their home region by going to: http://www.epa.gov/epahome/aboutepa.htm#regiontext

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STUDENT ACTIVITY

Familiarize yourself with the pen pal program your teacher has selected. The program will include topics to discuss and activities to perform together.

Research background information on your sprawl pal's community, including geography, human history, population growth, major industries, economic profile (prosperous, moderate, depressed) and current events.

We shape our buildings, then our buildings shape us. —Winston Churchill

Set up a spiral binder to file your email hard copies. Ask your pal to send you pictures that you can download and include in your binder.

Communicate on a weekly basis. Have fun!

After the determined time of participation, present an oral report to your class. Include a mix of factual knowledge and personal perspectives. If you have received pictures of your pal's community, mount them for display to enrich your presentation.

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EXTENSION

Host a pen pal program from your school. Set up the Web page and develop topics and activities that students in other states or countries can participate in.

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