Human Impact Today

Overview

This lesson explores how human activities (such as urbanisation and deforestation) change places and environments. Students use simple evidence and a cause–effect approach to evaluate impacts, then propose realistic responses.

Learning intentions

Students will:

• explain how human actions can change the environment and shape places
• investigate one human activity (urbanisation or deforestation) using geographic evidence
• describe effects on people and places locally and in another place
• use criteria to judge possible responses to environmental challenges

Success criteria

Students can:

• identify a human activity and at least two environmental and/or social effects
• link cause and effect using evidence from provided sources
• compare impacts for two places using geographic terms (e.g. land, climate, settlement)
• choose a response and justify it using stated criteria

Curriculum links

• AC9HS6K05: Australia’s interconnections and how these change people and places (students consider how connections such as trade or migration can influence environmental impacts in other places)
• AC9HS6S02: locate, collect and organise information and data from primary and secondary sources (students sort evidence and organise it in a chart)
• AC9HS6S06: propose actions or responses to issues or challenges and use criteria to assess possible effects (students evaluate response options)

Lesson structure (60 minutes)

1. 0–7 min · Hook and discussion. Teacher displays two contrasting images (a growing city edge and a cleared forest area) and asks: “What changed, and who might be affected?” Students turn-and-talk, then share one idea each using a sentence stem: “I think the change happened because…”

2. 7–15 min · Mini-teach: Human causes → environmental change. Teacher explains that human activities can alter land use, habitats, water systems and risks (e.g. flooding/erosion), and that these effects spread to people. Students complete a quick teacher-guided “Cause → Effect” example in books (one cause, two effects).

3. 15–30 min · Investigate: Urbanisation or deforestation. Teacher groups students into two choices: Urbanisation case or Deforestation case, giving each group a short set of evidence cards (photos/short excerpts/data table) treated as secondary sources. Students collect key facts and organise them into a graphic organiser: “Activity / Where (place) / Evidence / Effects on environment / Effects on people.”

4. 30–40 min · Map and connect to places. Teacher provides a world or Australia+Asia-Pacific outline map and a short prompt about interconnections (e.g. demand for land for housing, timber products, or supply chains). Students mark the “main place” from their case and add an arrow to one other place affected by the connection, then write one sentence: “This connects because…”

5. 40–50 min · Evaluate response options using criteria. Teacher introduces three response cards (e.g. replanting and sustainable forestry; tree corridors and protected areas; smart planning for housing and green space; improved waste and water management) and gives simple criteria on the board:

• Likely to reduce harm to the environment
• Likely to help people or reduce risk
• Realistic for governments/communities to implement Students score two options with a simple rubric (e.g. + / ✓ / good, needs work) and record one justification.

6. 50–58 min · Share: Gallery walk or short presentations. Teacher facilitates a gallery walk: each group posts its organiser and response choice. Students rotate once, leaving one “Glow and Grow” comment: one strength and one question.

7. 58–60 min · Exit ticket (check for understanding). Teacher reads the prompt: “One human activity causes… This changes… In response, we should…” Students submit a short written answer or sentence frame completion.

Resources

• Image set: urban growth edge and deforested landscape (printed or digital)
• Case study evidence packs (urbanisation and deforestation) with short excerpts and a simple data table
• Graphic organisers (Cause–Effect–Evidence; or Activity/Effects chart)
• World or regional outline map (paper or wall map) and coloured pencils
• Response option cards (3–4 per case or mixed set)
• Criteria/rubric sheet for evaluating responses (simple symbols)
• Student books, pens, and sticky notes for “Glow and Grow”

Assessment

• Teacher checks during steps 1–3: are students identifying causes and effects and using evidence from the cards?
• Group review in step 5: do students apply the criteria to judge responses (not just state opinions)?
• Exit ticket in step 7: confirms students can complete a clear cause–effect–response statement.

Differentiation

• Support: Provide sentence starters and a partially filled organiser (e.g. Activity and one effect already written) for students needing scaffolds.
• Support: Offer a word bank (urbanisation, deforestation, habitat, erosion, risk, sustainability, community) and encourage students to match evidence to the words.
• Extension: Ask students to compare the two cases: “Which activity has the faster or longer-lasting impacts, and why?”
• EAL/SEN: Allow responses to be completed as diagrams with labels plus one sentence; accept oral explanations that the teacher records on a template.