Earth Science Students Dig Deep

Students in Kennedy Raimer’s Earth Science class recently completed in-depth explorations of the earth, creating infographics to highlight important details of their work and to share what they learned.

• Ms. Raimer: “The goals of the project were for students to understand how the systems of the earth are dynamic and work together, and for them to explore what processes have created the earth as we know it today. This project was really focused on the earth science and natural landscapes of each region.

“Students were asked to research five areas for each region: an overview of the region; a tectonic landform and a water-made landform; an atmospheric event; a water network of the region; and a human impact on the region.”

• Montgomery Erickson ’22: “I studied Central America and the Caribbean. I chose Central America because I was born there, and I wanted to learn more about it. I love to travel, so I picked the Caribbean.

“I was shocked to learn that 95% of Guatemala's drinking water is contaminated. The water is contaminated with disease-causing pathogens."

"While studying the water-forged landform, I learned about the sinking hole in South Caicos. I learned the legacy of the boiling hole and that it represents toil, hard work, and tears of the salt rakers from years ago.

“I enjoyed this project because there was lots of flexibility that led me to explore areas that were interesting to me!”

• Cherish Buxton ’23: “I chose Australia, because I know that many aspects of the continent are very unique to it, such as wildlife. I knew that there was so much to learn about Australia, and it was an opportunity to grow in my knowledge about other parts of the world.

“The most interesting thing that I learned about Australia is their source of freshwater. I learned about the use of desalination plants, which remove salt water and other impurities in order to make the water drinkable for their residents."

“Researching about deforestation was an eye-opener, because I saw that everything humans do has an effect on so much more than just us. The cutting down of trees contributes to climate change, the extinction of species, and even more recently, the wildfires that Australia has experienced. I am so glad that I chose Australia, because I am able to use this information to become a better activist for the environment.

“I enjoyed this project. I am very passionate about climate change and would love to pursue a career in environmental engineering. This was my main purpose for taking Earth Science. I believe the first step to fighting climate change is to become more aware. We must step out of our own country and take account of how actions affect people in other regions as well.”