Activity 1

How Much Water is in that River? (click to access the lesson) Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies, Changing Hudson Project

Student Objectives:

Students will:

• estimate the flow rate of fresh water in a local stream

• investigate factors that impact the flow rate of a river

• examine historical flow rate data from the Hudson River and discuss potential ecosystem impacts that predicted changes in stream flow could cause

Time: 2 hours (not including travel time to stream)

Grade Level: 6th+

Vocabulary:

• Stream flow - the volume of water that moves past a designated point over a fixed period of time

Preparation:

• Access the Teacher Guide and Student Stream Flow Worksheet for the activity, “How much water is in that River?”

Materials:

• Computers and internet access 

• Meter stick 

• Orange, ping-pong ball, or tennis ball 

• Measuring tape (best is a 50-100 foot surveyor’s tape) 

• Stopwatch or watch with seconds 

• Calculator 

• Easel or white board to show calculations 

Description: In this activity, students will learn how to estimate the flow rate of a local waterway and examine the factors that impact flow rates. Students will visit an actual stream and collect data that they will use to estimate stream flow rate. They will also calculate the volume of their classroom in cubic feet to help them visualize the unit of measure used to determine flow rates. Once the students understand how to calculate flow rates, they will access historical flow rate data from the Hudson River, investigate factors that affect the flow rate of the river, and discuss how predicted future flow rates may impact the Hudson River ecosystem.

Additional Resources:

For more information about river flow rates: http://waterwatch.usgs.gov/index.php?id=ww