Air Pollution
Directions:
Read, "The Lorax" by Dr. Seuss. Discuss how the smogulous smoke
produced by the THNEEDS factory made the Lorax cough, whiff,
sneeze, snuff, snarggle, and croak.
Talk about air pollution produced by cars and other machinery
with gas-burning engines, as well as emissions produced by
furnaces, fireplaces, factories, and incinerators.
Ask your child to conduct this experiment to see how dirty the
air really is.
You'll need:
- 5 jar lids
- White cardboard or oak tag
- Markers
- Labels
- Magnifying glass
Background
Particulate matter is made up of tiny particles in the
atmosphere that can be solid or liquid (except for water or ice)
and is produced by a wide variety of natural and man made
sources.
Particulate matter includes dust, dirt, soot, smoke and tiny
particles of pollutants that have attracted an amount of water so
small that it does not fall to the ground as rain.
Major sources of particulate pollution are factories, power plants, refuse incinerators, motor vehicles, construction activity, fires, and natural windblown dust.
Particles below 10 microns in size (about seven times smaller
than the width of a human hair) are more likely to travel deep in
the respiratory system, and be deposited deep in the lungs where
they can be trapped on membranes.
If trapped, they can cause excessive growth of fibrous lung
tissue, which leads to permanent injury.
Procedure
1. Write the numbers one through five on the labels. Then attach
a label to the top of each jar lid.
2. Place the jar lids on the cardboard. Carefully trace around
the jar lids. Then number these circles to match the labels on the
lids.
3. Take the lids and cardboard outside. Place them flat in an
open area. (Note: Rain will spoil the results, so bring the
experiment inside if the weather turns inclement.)
4. At the end of the first day, remove one lid, starting with number one. Repeat this procedure for the next five days, taking away one lid each day. Compare the circles
as the lids are removed. What observations can you make as the
days go by?
5. At the end of the fifth day, take away the last lid and look
at the circles. If the air is dirty, the circles covered by the
low-numbered lids will have more specks of dirt than the others.
Have your child use a magnifying glass to count the dirt specks.
6. Discuss results of experiment. "Is our air clean or is it dirty?"
