After our Citizen Science training in January 2017, I was excited to do a Watershed segment in our 4th and 5th grade STRETCH class. We spent about 6 class sessions (3 weeks) on this segment. The students learned about our environment, what’s so special about Maui’s ecosystem, our watershed and where their water supply comes from in their various neighborhoods. We discussed water as a source of our food and livelihood and why it’s so important historically to set up villages by source of water. We also discussed human, plants, and animals’ impact on these water sources and how pollution came into play.
Then we dived deeper to discuss native plants and how they are much more efficient in water usage and complementing our Maui ecosystem. Along with native plants we also discussed native animals and bird species which all play into the delicate balance of a healthy watershed. On the opposite spectrum, we discussed invasive species and what it’s done to our landscape as well as some conservation actions that have helped in the recovery of our native forests.
Then we dove in to make a model of a watershed with our kits (diatomaceous earth, food coloring, clay, spray bottle, plastic bin, gravel, sand, pebbles). I had the students set up a village with mountains, hills, lakes, valleys. Once that model was set up, I gave the students food coloring and we used that to model the effects of pollutants in our water system. Then we took it one step further to have students engineer dams and other devices to block, prevent, or reverse the effects of pollution. The students had a lot of fun with this challenge - some of them engineered blockades to prevent pollutants from emptying out into the ocean and killing our reefs and sea life. Some students invented apparatuses to dilute and purify the polluted waters.
Overall, the students really enjoyed getting their hands dirty and building, designing, testing, re-designing and collaborating with each other. This is definitely a segment I will repeat again for my younger students. This year, I did this watershed segment with my 4th and 5th grade class and next year, I plan to do a version with my 3rd and 2nd graders!
Then we dived deeper to discuss native plants and how they are much more efficient in water usage and complementing our Maui ecosystem. Along with native plants we also discussed native animals and bird species which all play into the delicate balance of a healthy watershed. On the opposite spectrum, we discussed invasive species and what it’s done to our landscape as well as some conservation actions that have helped in the recovery of our native forests.
Then we dove in to make a model of a watershed with our kits (diatomaceous earth, food coloring, clay, spray bottle, plastic bin, gravel, sand, pebbles). I had the students set up a village with mountains, hills, lakes, valleys. Once that model was set up, I gave the students food coloring and we used that to model the effects of pollutants in our water system. Then we took it one step further to have students engineer dams and other devices to block, prevent, or reverse the effects of pollution. The students had a lot of fun with this challenge - some of them engineered blockades to prevent pollutants from emptying out into the ocean and killing our reefs and sea life. Some students invented apparatuses to dilute and purify the polluted waters.
Overall, the students really enjoyed getting their hands dirty and building, designing, testing, re-designing and collaborating with each other. This is definitely a segment I will repeat again for my younger students. This year, I did this watershed segment with my 4th and 5th grade class and next year, I plan to do a version with my 3rd and 2nd graders!