NOVA Energy Corp. Invades Wyoming

NOVA_Energy_Corp_Invades_Wyoming.zip

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This lesson, created by Callan Bentley, introduces students to the concept of fossil fuel reservoirs within Laramide basins of Wyoming. Students will use case studies as examples to guide a simulated exploration activity in which they will map and interpret the distribution of oil and coal resources. The maps will guide a hypothetical commercial exploitation of the coal (or oil) based on economic parameters, including the cost of extraction and the market price of the fuel. Estimates of the total reserves will be calculated based on assumptions of porosity, grade, and other parameters.

Before beginning the lesson, students will be asked to discuss fossil fuels as a class, by answering questions like: Where does our energy come from? How do fossil fuels generate energy? How do we get our fossil fuels out of the ground? and How do we transform fossil fuels in order to utilize them? Then, split over three days of in-class time, students will work in groups to draw their own conclusions based on the findings of the data they've been given.

Upon completion of the exercise, students should be able to recognize that isolated outcrops of rocks may be correlated geographically to deduce subterranean structure; comprehend that the extraction of fossil fuels such as coal, oil, and natural gas is an expensive and laborious endeavor; and conclude which resources are likely to be found in a basin, and which of those resources would be economically feasible to extract.

Lesson Contents:

For orientation purposes, viewers should begin with NOVA Energy Corp Lesson Plan.pdf, which offers a description of the lesson in full, as well as an overview of topics covered, and all learning outcomes.

Below is a list of the files contained within the attached .zip folder. The size of each folder is included in parenthesis.

NOVA_Energy_Corp_Invades_Wyoming.zip