You can teach kids about oil drilling.
Oil drilling is a common practice that's thought of as normal and necessary by many different types of people. However, the issue is certainly not this black and white. There are social, political, economical and environmental complexities that need to be considered, as well. Older kids can be taught all about these complexities, but young children only need to be taught the basics. How you teach the kids will depend a lot on their age and interest in the subject.
Instructions
1. Start with the basics. Teach the kids first about oil and how the oil being drilled was originally formed. The fact that it took millions of years or that it could be made up partly of dinosaur remains could fascinate the kids and get them interested in the subject.
2. Move onto the basics of oil drilling. Now that the kids are interested, you can start talking about the oil drilling process. Don't limit the conversation to just the process, however. Talk about ways oil drilling affects their everyday lives as a common fuel source and as a part of the economy.
3. Keep it age appropriate. If you're talking to high school kids, for example, you can go into details about dependence on oil drilling and the political and economic consequences of drilling. Younger kids should be taught that oil is not a renewable resource, but the details will likely not be understood.
4. Bring images into the lesson. To teach kids about oil drilling, you should use visual learning aids. For example, instead of just telling them some statistics, show it to them in the form of a bar graph or pie chart. A diagram or video of an oil well being drilled can also be helpful
5. Utilize online resources to help you teach kids about oil drilling. Make sure the resources you choose are age appropriate. For example, the State of California Department of Conservation offers a website page with various images relating to oil drilling. The images vary in complexity and detail to help you teach different age groups.
