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"Water
Quality Assessment" Lesson Plan
Keywords: water
quality, field research, human impact
Prepared by: Barbara
Neuburger, General McKlain High School
Total Time Required:
two classes in the field/three classes in the classroom
Grade Level: eleventh
and twelfth grades
Concepts to Be Covered
- The interrelationships
that exist between the physical, chemical, and biological factors
inherent in any aquatic ecosystem
- Evaluation of water
quality through the investigation of the physical, chemical, and
biological parameters of two flowing bodies of water
- Comparison of stream's
quality when flowing through a forested ecosystem as compared
to one coursing through an area with human impact
Goals for the Lesson
- Complete chemical
testing on site
- Determine the volume
of water flowing in the stream
- Collect and identify
biological indicators from the stream
- Evaluate the quality
of the streams using the chemical, physical, and biological data
collected
- Write a position paper
explaining the stream's quality using the data collected
- Cite any differences
that exist between the two streams
- Explain the impact
of humans on the quality of streams
Materials Needed
- chemical testing kits
- dissolved oxygen
- carbon dioxide
- nitrates
- phosphates
- E. coli
- pH
- suspended solid
- thermometer
- string
- meter stick
- kick net
- collection jars
- organism identification
books
- micro/stereoscopes
Methods
- Many times it's not
obvious to students (or they just never considered it) that human
development can have such a dramatic impact on the quality of
a stream. In this activity, the students should be able to discern
differences between a stream that runs through a natural, forested
site and one that is heavily influence by human interference.
The forest's ability to absorb water, recycle elements, and reduce
sedimentation in comparison to developed areas should develop
an awareness in the students of the value of natural, forested
areas.
- The first and second
day of this activity should be spent introducing the chemical
factors to be tested. The sources and impact of each parameter
would be presented. Additionally, some students would be assigned
a test to complete and they would become experts running that
particular test
- Other students would
be assigned a physical test in order to compute the volume of
the stream. (Width, depth and velocity)
- Some students would
be given the task of being "streamwalkers" and be responsible
for walking upstream to observe the type of bottom, condition
of stream banks, flora present, upstream development, evidence
of pollution, general land use, and human impact.
- Finally, two students
would use the kick net to collect the macroinvertebrates located
in the bottom strata.
- The third and fourth
day would be in the field where the students would collect their
data. (The first day in the forested area and the second day in
the human-influenced area.)
- Back in the classroom
on the fifth day, the students would identify the macroinvertebrates
and microorganisms.
- Concluding the fifth
day, the students would research the organisms present to determine
whether these organisms are indicative of good, intermediate,
or poor quality water.
Evaluation
- Evaluation of this
lesson could be a paper written by the students defining the quality
of water in each of the streams and the determination of any effects
the forested area or human-influence area had on the water's cleanliness,
usefulness, of aesthetic values.
- The paper should include
graphs representing the data collected.
- The paper should include
a theme statement defining their findings, and it should be proven
by applying the background information presented and researched.
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