Exploring our Watershed - Metro Vancouver

[Pages:34]Exploring our Watershed

Teacher Planning & Activity Guide

Intermediate Program

"Effective environmental education programs are most effective if they present ideas in ways that are relevant to learners; empower learners with skills to address environmental issues and a sense of personal and civic responsibility; are accurate and balanced, incorporating multiple perspectives and interdisciplinary aspects; and are instructionally sound"

?Athman & Monroe

Why we care about your students?

Metro Vancouver is committed to developing and delivering programs and services to achieve the sustainability-driven goals of its Board. The Watershed Education team is proud to deliver this resource as part of a program that helps Metro Vancouver students know where their water comes from, understand the value of this resource, recognize their connection to it, develop a sense of pride and confidence in protected watersheds, and become champions for sustainability.

i Exploring our Watershed

February 2018

Table of Contents

About the Program................................................... 2 Check-lists................................................................ 3 PART 1 - Exploring Expectations

PRE-TRIP ACTIVITIES 4 ............................................................................................................................ Activity 1: Get on the Map........................................................ 5 Activity 2: Mysterious Items...................................................... 9 Activity 3: Where is Water in the Watershed.......................... 10 Activity 4: Getting Ready......................................................... 17 Parent/Guardian Consent Form 19 ......................................................................................... Adult Declaration Form 20 ................................................................................................................

PART 2 - Field Trip - Outline.................................... 21 PART 3 - Reflecting & Connecting

POST-TRIP ACTIVITIES.............................................................. 22 Activity 5: Water Drop Journey................................................ 22 Activity 6: Wearing Water........................................................ 24 Activity 7: Water Audit............................................................ 26 Vocabulary List 28 ................................................................................................................................................

What teachers are saying about the program:

? It is a once in a life time experience for most kids. Getting outside is so important to show students something besides electronic games. I also love the pre-package delivered to me and the bus makes it all so easy.

? The walk was unforgettable. All the knowledge the leaders had was amazing. I also liked how they had games for the students to play during the walk.

? I enjoyed the connections the leaders made for the students between what they were seeing and what they had learnt in the classroom.

? My students said it was the BEST fieldtrip EVER!! In a word, my class was enchanted.

Exploring our Watershed 1

About the Program

We've created a program that engages the senses, stirs curiosity, builds confidence and inspires ongoing learning. Topics focus on unique features and processes related to tap water and sustainability. What makes this program extraordinary? It: ?is fun, interesting and discovery-based, ?reflects BC curriculum, ?explores a place that is full of unique learning

opportunities, and ?sets you up with tools and step-by-step instructions

before, during and after your visit.

How will my class benefit from this program? Students will: ?see the mountain landscape where the water cycle

is illustrated before their eyes, ?experience the vastness of the landscape rarely seen

by the public, ?develop new perspectives as they share the day with

plants and animals they don't often see, ?make connections every time they turn on a tap, and ?understand why it's important to protect special places.

It will be an experience they will never forget.

I'm not experienced with this content nor teaching outdoors. How does this program work for me? Your guide will lead the day and, together with your students, you will explore and discover amazing things. We count on you to help us manage the class. You can also help students work through assigned steps or questions when they're working in small groups with techniques that allow them to discover content and ideas themselves.

What have you done to make it easy for me? We've assembled materials to reduce prep time.

How does the program work? There are three main parts for student learning:

Exploring Expectations?Part 1 is about preparing for the day. We've mapped out the `best of the best' activities to help you ready students to make the most of their visit with us. Our goal is to have you introduce the topic and stir-up a sense of wonder by getting students predicting, and guessing about the visit.

Experiencing a Special Place?Part 2 is their special day in a very special place. We provide the bus and guide your group through the watershed and activities. We've mapped out a variety of ways to engage learners. We focus on small group formats so you can get involved easily, and learn right alongside your class.

Reflecting & Connecting?Part 3 is about reflecting on experiences and making meaningful and relevant connections, while creating opportunities for student assessment.

What if I have more questions? Contact Visitor Services to discuss booking arrangements at watershed.ed@ or 604-432-6359.

"Direct experience with the environment, both individually and in groups, is an important and vital way to learn about sustainability. These opportunities must be provided for the studies to be relevant, because they help provide students with a deeper understanding of natural systems and the impact humans have on those systems." BC Ministry of Education Environmental Learning and Experience: An Interdisciplinary Guide for Teachers (2007)

2 Exploring our Watershed

Check-lists

A. Before your visit oSubmit payment. o C omplete Part 1 with students. You may need more/less time than

what this guide suggests. o S end PARENT/GUARDIAN CONSENT form (page 19) home with students. oOrganize at least one adult to accompany you and the class, but a

maximum of three. o E xplain to adult volunteers how they can best support you and your students on the day of the program.

Ensure they, along with your students, dress in layers appropriate for the weather, bring appropriate footwear (no flip-flops), and bring a litterless lunch as there are no facilities to purchase anything nearby. Outhouses are located at each stop. o Email a reminder about how to prepare your children to the parents the day/night before the program. o Make nametags (ideally waterproof) for students to wear on the day of the field trip.

B. Field trip?the day of your visit o Organize students into two groups ? one on the left and one on the right side of the bus. o Bring completed ADULT DECLARATION form (page 20). These will be required for check-in at the security gate. oProvide two copies of your class list with school name, contact person and phone numbers

(one copy to leave at security gate and one for education staff). oBring student lunches, snacks, drinks and extra supplies for those who may forget or need additional. oBring extra clothing for cold and wet conditions (gloves, toques, mitts). oOptional: Hand sanitizer (there is no running water). Outhouses are located at each stop. oReturn the Watershed Discovery Kit. Hold on to one satellite map and this planning guide.

C. After your visit oComplete Part 3 of this guide with students. oPlease complete the evaluation survey that will be emailed to you. o Share student work and success with us. Email: watershed.ed@

How to reach us

For payment information, program registration, or to adjust your program booking, contact: Visitor Services, Metro Vancouver 21th Floor, 4730 Kingsway Burnaby, BC V5H 0C6 tel: 604-432-6359, fax: 604-432-6296, email: watershed.ed@

To speak to the Program Coordinator, call 604-451-6506. In the event of an emergency on the day of the program ONLY, call 604-987-5354 if you are visiting the LSCR, or 604-942-5090 if you are visiting the Coquitlam Watershed.

Exploring our Watershed 3

Exploring Expectations

PART 1 ? Exploring Expectations

PRE-TRIP ACTIVITIES

We suggest doing these activities within a week or so of your visit.

What you do 1. There are 4 activities outlined here that will help prepare your class visit to the watershed. 2. Read to understand what's involved to complete each activity. 3. Examine the Watershed Discovery Kit to see what's included.

Watershed Discovery Kit (to be returned on the day of your visit) o 6 large SATELLITE maps* o WATERSHEDS MYSTERY bag (6 items inside) o WATER LINE-UP cards & answer key (2 sets) o WATER WATCHER cards & answer key (2 sets) o MONTHLY WATER USAGE chart (2 sets) o WATER CLOCK envelopes (2 sets) o WATERSHED WILDLIFE cards (2 sets) o ADULT Watershed Security DECLARATION form

(all adult volunteers must sign this) * Keep one for reference after your visit.

Prepare, for each student, a copy of: o Parent/Guardian CONSENT form o GETTING READY student worksheet

Our Best Tip

We've noticed that students who did one or more of these pre-trip activities got more out their field trip. We think that's because they seem more comfortable and ready to learn.

What teachers appreciate about the program: I appreciated... ...the opportunity to bring students to a natural setting that is not normally open to the public. ...the time and effort that staff put into preparing and guiding us. ...that students were outside and used their senses to appreciate the watershed; that they weren't given worksheets to complete; that they visited 3 distinct areas. ...the walk through the forest gave students a multi-sensory experience of the habitat, which really helped with teaching other concepts in our unit.

4 Exploring our Watershed

Activity One ? PART A

GET ON THE MAP

Exploring Expectations Teacher Page

1

PURPOSE

To introduce students to: - the concept of a watershed, - learn how water moves through a watershed and, - understand how they are connected to this place.

PART A - GET ON THE MAP: Exploring the satellite map of our region

TIME 30 min

MATERIALS ? Satellite maps (6) ? Student Instructions (6)

1. Divide students into 6 groups. Provide each group with map and student instruction card "GET ON THE MAP". (1 per group-see Watershed Discovery kit)

2. Give your students time to find the different features on their maps (3 different kinds of water ? fresh, salt, and snow). Make sure everyone has found all of the features.

3. Allow your students to work on questions 2-6 and then ask each group to share their answers during a class discussion. The following is a short list to help you add to the discussion:

Q3: What do you think are some advantages and are there disadvantages of using these lakes for our drinking water supply? Advantages: High up so gravity aids in distribution; close to where we live so easy to access, natural landscape so source water is pretty clean. Disadvantages: still need to move it into cities through pipes. Not as close as ground water.

4. Q4: Why does our drinking water need protection? Keeping people out means minimal disturbance to the landscape and water supply. No industry, agriculture or development=minimal sources of water contaminates.

Key Message

Humans borrow water from the water cycle. We need to take care of it because we cannot create new water. It's like borrowing your friend's sweater. You should return it as clean as when you first got it.

5. Q5: When it rains in a watershed, where do you predict all of the rainwater ends up? Creeks, streams rivers and reservoir. Look for water erosion marks on hills.

Can you find any evidence that shows how rainwater moves through a watershed to end up where you predicted? Look for water erosion marks on hills.

6. Q6: What is a watershed? Watershed: An area, usually defined by elevated ridges within which all water flows into the same catchment area such as a river or lake. A drainage basin that collects water at the lowest elevation.

Exploring our Watershed 5

PART 1 ? Exploring Expectations

Activity One ? PART A

Teacher Page

GET ON THE MAP: Explore the satellite map of our region

1

Allow student groups to work through the following questions using the map and Student Instruction cards.

1. Search and find these features on the map:

? Land

? Roads

? Water (3 different kinds)

? Our school neighbourhood

? Farms

? Mountains

? Cities

? Rivers (at least 3) ? Lakes (at least 5) ? Ocean

2.There are over 2.4 million people living in the area shown by this map. Every one of these people needs safe drinking water on a daily basis. ?Using the map, identify at least 3 possible sources of drinking water these people could use.

3.Look in the legend for the dam facility symbol. Find three dams and the large lakes they are connected to. These lakes supply our drinking water. ?What do you think are some advantages and are there disadvantages of using these lakes for our drinking water supply?

4.Look in the legend for the blue watershed boundary line. Trace the boundaries of the three different watershed areas surrounding our drinking water supply lakes. These huge areas of land are protected to keep our drinking water safe. ? Why does our drinking water need protection?

5. Trace the watershed boundary lines again. Most of these lines run along the tops of mountains.

? When it rains in a watershed, where do you predict all of the rainwater ends up?

?Can you find any evidence that shows how rainwater moves through a watershed to end up where you predicted?

6. As a group, decide how to explain what a watershed is to someone who doesn't know.

6 Exploring our Watersheds and Discovering Connections

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download