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A River Puzzle

Classroom Resource Information

Title:

A River Puzzle

URL:

https://www.nationalgeographic.org/activity/river-puzzle/

Content Source:

National Geographic

Type:

Learning Activity

Overview:

Students brainstorm how land is used along a river in their watershed. They arrange pieces representing places along a river from source to mouth, and discuss impacts "downstream" in a watershed.

Content Standard(s):

Science
SC2015 (2015)
Grade: 9-12
Environmental Science

11 ) Engage in argument from evidence to defend how coastal, marine, and freshwater sources (e.g., estuaries, marshes, tidal pools, wetlands, beaches, inlets, rivers, lakes, oceans, coral reefs) support biodiversity, economic stability, and human recreation.

Unpacked Content

Scientific And Engineering Practices:

Engaging in Argument from Evidence

Crosscutting Concepts: Structure and Function

Disciplinary Core Idea: Earth and Human Activity

Evidence Of Student Attainment:

Students:

Obtain scientific information to generate an argument for the preservation of coastal, marine, and freshwater sources based on their foundational support of biodiversity, economic stability, and human recreation.
Consider cost, safety, aesthetics, reliability, cultural, and environmental impacts in generating the argument.
Use appropriate and sufficient evidence and scientific reasoning to defend and critique currently accepted claims and explanations.

Teacher Vocabulary:

estuary
marsh
tidal pool
wetlands
beaches
inlet
river
lake
ocean
coral reef
biodiversity
economic stability
coastal
marine
freshwater
fisheries
oil
natural gas
offshore industries
transportation
tourism

Knowledge:

Students know:

Classification of aquatic ecosystems.
Components and functions of wetlands, marine ecosystems, freshwater ecosystems, estuaries, and coral reefs.
Management strategies of aquatic sources.
Knowledge of abiotic and biotic factors and their interactions in aquatic biomes.
Economic stability is sustained by a multitude of factors, including, but not limited to, offshore drilling, fishing industry, tourism, transportation.
Environmental benefits of aquatic sources include critical habitats, breeding sites, and migratory paths for a wide variety of species.
Many humans rely on coastal, marine, and freshwater sources for food, recreation, and jobs.

Skills:

Students are able to:

Argue from evidence to defend how coastal, marine, and freshwater sources support biodiversity, economic stability, and human recreation.
Apply scientific reasoning, theory, and/or models to link evidence to claims to assess the extent to which the reasoning and data support how aquatic resources support biodiversity, economic stability, and human recreation.

Understanding:

Students understand that:

Coastal, freshwater, and marine sources support biodiversity, economic stability, and human recreation.
The sustainability of human societies and the biodiversity that supports them requires responsible management of natural resources.
Change and rates of change to systems can be quantified over short or long periods of time, and some system changes are irreversible.

AMSTI Resources:

ASIM Activities include:
Aquatic Ecosystems

Tags:

river, watershed

License Type:

Custom Permission Type
See Terms: https://www.nationalgeographic.org/terms-of-service/
For full descriptions of license types and a guide to usage, visit :
https://creativecommons.org/licenses

Accessibility

Text Resources: Content is organized under headings and subheadings

Comments

This resource provided by:

Author:

Stephanie Carver

ALEX Classroom Resource

A River Puzzle