Two big hurricanes ravaged Louisiana during August and September 2005. Hurricane Katrina on Monday, August 29, and Hurricane Rita on Saturday, September 24.

Through this website you will embark on a journey with Katrina as she makes landfall and makes her way inland over a period of several days.

General effects: The overall Destructive and Constructive forces of the hurricane and how it shapes landforms in Louisiana.

Day 1: Wind effects were the main effects felt on the first day when Katrina came inland. This section will talk about why wind was such a devastating force in Louisiana and what effects it has on Landforms.

 

Day 2: Water effects were felt on the next day when the levees in New Orleans were breached. This section will talk about what are the purposes of levees and why they were breached.

Day 3: Effects on topography and contour of Louisiana landforms. This section will show you how landforms topography and contour lines change with storms.

Day 4: Under the surface effects. This section will explore the ocean floor and show you how storms like Hurricane Katrina can affect the ocean floor.

Now click on the picture above of Katrina making landfall to take you to the Introduction section.

Into the future: This section will demonstrate to you what technology is being used to help with measuring the effects of Katrina and other landform changes.

 

This section will help you to recall what you already know about different landforms and prepare you for your journey.

General effects: Heavy rainfall accompanied Katrina as she made landfall.

Where did this water go and how did it flow across different landforms in Louisiana?

How does the slope in the land affect its flow?

What type of damage does the water leave?

Click on the picture of the water table and create a water table in class.

Day 1: On the first day that Hurricane Katrina made landfall, she brought with her high winds (approximately 150 mph).

What effects does wind have on landforms?

Do an activity that will help you to understand this.

Now click on the picture of Hurricane Katrina making landfall to explore wind effects of Katrina.

Day 2: After Katrina made landfall the levees in New Orleans were breached in three places.

Why did this happen?

Could it have been prevented?

Click on the picture of the levee on your right and come with us and find out for yourself.

Day 3: Now people were able to explore the effects of Katrina on the topography of Louisiana.

What is topography and how do we measure it?

Click on the picture of contour lines and find out how to explore topography and how it is measured.

Day 4: Did Hurricane Katrina affect the ocean floor near Louisiana?

Click on the picture to your right to find out.

A monologue activity is used to help you determine past changes in Louisiana's ocean floor and potential for the future.

Into the future: What instruments were used to measure the effect of Katrina?

How has this technology changed in the past 100 years, 50 years or 25 years.

Click on the picture on your right to go on a scavenger hunt and find out.

Create a visual scrapbook of your findings to...

 

Show how the landforms have changed

Show what type of sediment has been deposited over time in the Gulf of Mexico

Where did the sediment originate?

What type of fossils would you find on the beaches of the coast?

Click on the picture on your right to learn how to take pictures with a PDA and edit them on your computer.

 

Students will learn to independently study and engage in exploration of science concepts to prepare them for research in higher education

Students will learn to work in collaboration with their peers to complete activities as required in the outside work force

Students will learn how to look up scientific concepts on the world wide web or school library using computer technology

Students will learn to express themselves by teaching their peers different scientific concepts learned in the unit while using different types of technology (e.g., PDA's, digital photographs and videos)

Students will be able to objectively look at the effects of human actions on nature

Students will learn about plagiarism and its consequences in scientific writing

Click on the picture on your right to print the rubric for these lessons.

This section includes a student questionnaire which is used to evaluate the progress of the students and the curriculum web. The students have access to the blog after each unit so that they are able to voice their likes/dislikes or understanding/confusion as they go through the webquest. After a student answers the section of the questionnaire, they will use their browser back arrow to return to the Introduction webpage.

Click on the picture on your right to access the Landform Blog.

 

This section shows the teacher how the activities mirror the Louisiana Comprehensive Curriculum requirements. We hope you find all the activities meaningful and functional.

Click on the picture on your right to read the teachers guide.

This section thanks all who were involved in creating this WebQuest on Louisiana Landforms.

Click on the picture on your right to read the credits page.