River Watch C.E.U. - 5th grade
1. To better understand the connection our smaller, more local waterways have with the Bay, we examined various maps of the Chesapeake Bay watershed and tried to locate and label specific rivers on a blank map. We looked for the location of Atholton's branch of the Little Patuxent River.
2. After viewing a slideshow on how to "give a stream a check-up," we were given two scenarios. In groups, we had to come up with a plan to ensure improved health or maintain current health of a local stream. Then we shared our devised plans.
3. We learned that the macroinvertebrates in the water are an indicator of health of the stream. But how do you use them to measure that? Here we did a simulated stream survey to calculate the biotic index of our given stream.
4. Once we understood how to calculate the biotic index of a stream, it was time to create a vehicle for informing the community of the important role the macroinvertebrates play related to stream health - and ultimately, to the health of the Chesapeake Bay. But first, we had to research that information! We worked in pairs.
5. It was decided that we would make photo-documentaries to inform the community of stream health, so we first took a trip to the lab to figure out how to use iMovie for photo-documentaries, rather than for movies.
6. Using our research, we composed our scripts on various frames of a storyboard that we used to introduce different topics, choosing pictures to go along with our recorded words.
HERE IS ONE OF OUR AMAZING PHOTO-DOCUMENTARIES!
7. A bit of arts integrations allowed us to paint our own version of a Rainbow Trout. Here's how they turned out: