Elementary Learning Activities

Water Cycle: The Earth’s Gift: This activity covers topics like, defining the states of matter, demonstrating the contents of water, exploring how clouds are formed, and comparing different types of weather. 

What is Water?: This activity introduces kindergartners to the basic concepts of water, where it comes from and why it is important in our lives. 

Backyard Water Discovery: This activity is designed for students to discover aquatic environments and the living and nonliving things that are found in them, through active observation outdoors and in classroom. They will practice skills of recording, comparing, questioning, and communicating. Science notebooks are used through the unit to help students understand and organize information. 

Where Does Water Come From: The Water Cycle: Learners will develop an understanding of the water cycle. They will then use this knowledge to create a tactile model of the water cycle and then relate these ideas to the importance of water conservation. 

The Water Cycle: The Water Cycle activity helps students understand where water comes from, it’s pathways through the environment, and how it comes into our homes.  Students use the scientific method to conduct an experiment that will help them discover and understand the water cycle on a small scale..

Scarcity Scramble: This activity teaches students about different types of water scarcity using a “resource” (ie. candy or stickers) that students know. 

Watershed Impact Learning Activity: By reflecting on their own lives and activities, students start to recognize their place in the watershed— how they depend on water and the impact their activities may have on water around them. Students explore their own power to reduce their impact on the watershed. 

Student Guide   –   Teacher Guide   –   Watershed Map

Boulder Creek-St. Vrain Creek Watershed Information

Middle School Learning Activities

The Watershed Quest: The Watershed Quest activity culminates with the creation of a watershed quest, a treasure hunt centered on a watershed in your community. The quest involves sharing and learning information about watershed in general and about the watershed in the region where students live. 

Boulder Creek / St. Vrain Watershed Ed Education Guide: (Grades 6-12)  is a resource guide for teachers and students. It provides you with the information needed to learn more about the creek or wetland near your school. It gives suggestions for what your class can do to preserve and protect waterways in the local Boulder County region. The WatershED curriculum was developed by the Boulder Creek Watershed Initiative and the City of Boulder’s Stormwater Quality Office with the help of teachers in the Boulder area.   Resources broken down by Unit and Activity  

The Water Cycle: By taking notes on a guide sheet and in their notebooks and by performing experiments and analyzing their results, students will explore the different components of the water cycle. 

Water Water Anywhere: By transforming the classroom into three “country-stations” to show students the difference between water abundance, economic scarcity, and physical scarcity. Groups must fill a water bottle with the resources that are set-aside for their particular group using specific instructions. They are encouraged to evaluate their decisions and make honest reflections about how water is accessed around the world, & how properties impact the use of water. 

The Water Cycle: By taking notes on a guide sheet and in their notebooks and by performing experiments and analyzing their results, students will explore the different components of the water cycle. Students will develop a better understanding of the need to conserve this valuable renewable resource. 

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High School Learning Activities

Groundwater as Part of the Water Cycle: Students will be able to understand the effects of soils and rocks on filtering groundwater. Students will also be able to expand their concept concerning the water cycle to include groundwater, transpiration, aquifers, and the water table. Additionally, students will consider sources of contamination in the water cycle. 

Identifying Wetlands: Students will be able to list and describe the three major categories of indicators used to delineate wetlands (hydrology, vegetation, soils). Students will also be able to identify hydrologic features that can be used to identify wetlands during a field inspection. Students will be able to list and identify several plants associated with wetlands, and they will be able to describe and identify a wetland soil. 

Boulder Creek / St. Vrain Watershed Ed Education Guide: (Grades 6-12)  is a resource guide for teachers and students. It provides you with the information needed to learn more about the creek or wetland near your school. It gives suggestions for what your class can do to preserve and protect waterways in the local Boulder County region. The WatershED curriculum was developed by the Boulder Creek Watershed Initiative and the City of Boulder’s Stormwater Quality Office with the help of teachers in the Boulder area.   Resources broken down by Unit and Activity

Water in the Arts: Using a combination of literature, music and online resources, this 3-to-5 day language arts activity highlights issues of water justice facing the world.