Natural Hazards
Using a RAFT prompt, I constructed the following situation for a weeklong research project that I plan to implement to address Standard 5.2 related to the Himalayan region. For more information on how to construct RAFTS, click here.
RAFT
You are a lawyer who has just been contacted by a Himalayan Mountain tour company. Tourists just sued the company because they got hurt while vacationing in the Himalayas.
They want you to prepare a court statement that shows that they are not responsible for paying the tourist medical bills. You have to make a convincing case by finding at least ten facts that show that the event was natural, and not caused by humans.
Choose from the following topics:
General Links
General forces of natures; causes, interviews, and current interviews
A great site with links to earthquakes, monsoons, floods, and other natural disasters; includes cause and effects and interactive reading quizzes
Natural Disasters on factmonster
 Avalanches
Avalanche facts from the Colorado Avalanche Information Center
Avalanche awareness
Avalanche characteristics and types; other general informational links
Avalanche dog training, information on SAR, search and rescue
Avalanche facts from National Geographic video
 Earthquakes
Earthquake facts, photos, slideshow, maps
History, plate tectonics, prediction of earthquakes, activities, graphics, photos, links
Interactive website
Seismology: past and present, plate tectonics, earthquake safety
Earthquake facts along with questions
Earthquake legends
 Floods or Glaciers/Glacial Lake Outbursts
2002 news article about the flood disaster related to glacial lake outbursts
Mountains as water source
NOVA: glacial hazards from space
NOVA: aerial photographs of glacier hazards
Glaciers and icecap information
Glaciers-U.S. picture gallery
Himalayan glacier picture gallery
 Landslides and Mudslides
Landslide images, landslide problem and program, recent landslide events
What are landslides? factors affecting mass wasting processes; facts on landslide damage
Virtual Field Trip of the Slumgullion Earthflow, Hinsdale Country, Colorado
A fact sheet about preparing for landslides
Landslide safety fact sheet from the CDC, Department of Health and Human Services
Recognizing the signs of a landslide and debris flows, before and after events
 Monsoons
What is a monsoon?
Monsoon winds
USA Today news article: Monsoon rains ease Southwest heat
Monsoons, tropical storms, and tornadoes
Several monsoon links from yahooligans
BBC article about the cause of the monsoon, timing, and forecasting
Monsoon rainfall variation, hazards
Nature’s response to monsoon, making of a monsoon, rain of life and death, resources
National Geographic site on monsoons, maps, and photos
Students in groups research the topics to generate their court statements. Individual assessment is based on whether or not the student found ten facts about a natural hazard.
Natural Hazard Presentation and Skits: Task-based Assessment:
Demonstrate, through a combination of:
- a 3-5 minute oral group presentation of research facts and a
- 3-5 minute dramatic skit
at least three ways that physical and human systems interact in the Himalayan region based on your group’s natural hazard research topic.
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