Unit- E: Fresh and Salt Water Systems

Grade _8_ _BCD_ G.S. Lakie

Lesson Timing: __50__ min

Materials:
Powerpoint, notes
GLOs:
Investigate and interpret linkages among landforms, water and climate
SLOs:
Students will:

Describe the process of erosion and deposition resulting from wave action and water flow:
identifying dissolved solids and sediment loads, and identifying sources and endpoints for these
materials
Investigate and describe stream characteristics

Lesson Objectives:
Students will describe the process of erosion and deposition resulting from water flow
Students will identify dissolved solids and sediment loads, and identify the source and endpoints
for these materials
Students will investigate and describe stream characteristics
Intro/Hook:
Science question of the day Why do we need to pee on Jellyfish stings?
This is actually a myth, peeing on jellyfish sting is not advised.
Jellyfish stings are caused by contact with the creatures tentacles, which triggers millions of stinging
cells called namatocytes to pierce the skin and inject venom. The best way to deactivate nematocytes is
to get out of the water and remove the tentacles with something other than your bare fingers, and
splash vinegar or some other acidic compound on the wound. The pH of urine is closer to that of water
than vinegar and it can cause the nematocytes to swell release more venom, worsening the sting. So
next time you get stung by a jellyfish, you dont have to get peed on for no reason
Body:
Unit E: Fresh and Saltwater Systems 2.2 Erosion and Deposition
Slide 1-2 Effect of streams/rivers on landforms
Weve been focusing a lot on the ocean and what are some of the characteristics of ocean water. Ocean
water can shape landscapes by eroding away the shoreline, but they can also create beaches by leaving
stuff behind. Or they are tsunamis that can cause devastating damage. Today we are going to learn that
freshwater in rivers and streams can be pretty powerful too. They can lead to incredible changes in our
landscapes

Question to the students does anyone recognize this place? A: grand Canyon and Colorado River. The
Colorado River carves a distinct course through the canyon. The rivers course tells us a lot about the
earths formation and structure. The Colorado River has carved through almost 2 billion years of the
earths geologic history at the Grand Canyon. Layers of limestone, sandstone, shale, granite, and schist
make up the Grand Canyons rock sequences. These layers continue to be worn away through water and
win erosion, creating cliffs and slopes
Slide 3-4 like people, streams and rivers are all different and unique in their own ways. We have our
individual characteristics, streams and rivers have unique qualities as well but in this case we just call
them stream characteristics.
Slide 5 - Stream characteristics describes the river or streams rate of water flow (speed) and slope (how
steep it flows downhill).
Slide 6 - 7- These 3 different rivers and streams have very different slope (the angle) and flow rate (how
fast the river is going). The differences will affect the ecosystems around them too. In general we
describe them in 4 characteristics. Streams and rivers can differ in their speed, temperature and flow
rate and source
Slide 8 - 12 to study and understand rivers and streams we create river profiles. Like facebook profiles
or youtube profiles, we put in information about ourselves to help other people get to know us.
Geologists create river profiles to better understand each river and the environment around it.

A hypothetical river may start in the mountains where a glacier is melting. This is its source. The
water collects in a channel that forms a small stream. The volume of water in the stream
increases as other streams flow into it. In the rivers early stages it flows swiftly and fairly
straight. When the river reaches lower elevations and the ground becomes more level. The
rivers flows more slowly. This causes it to move in large curves called meanders

At this point the speed of the rivers current here depends on its volume of water: the greater
the volume, the greater the speed.

As the river gets closer to a lake or the ocean, it drops much of the sediments it has picked up
along the way. This sediment forms a fan-shaped deposit called a delta

As the river gets closer to the ocean, the speed decreases, so it drops a lot of the sediments that
it has been carrying through the land to form a delta

Slide 13 how would you profile the old man river? What about its slope? Flow rate? What are the
curves called?
Slide 14 - Moving water is one of the most powerful forces on Earth. It can tear away pieces of rock and
lift and carry sand and soil long distances. Earlier in this section, you saw how waves can affect
shorelines by eroding in some places and depositing sediments in others. Streams and rivers also shape
the land as they flow through it

Slide 15 - 16 - Erosion is the wearing away and transporting of rock fragments and soil. These rock
fragments and soil are called sediments.
Slide 17 Video shows water finds the path of least resistance and pushes through to create a new path
for itself. Erodes/washes away part of the path
Slide 18 - Deposition is the laying down or depositing of sediments. A rivers sediment load is the
amount of water-borne materials, such as soil, rocks, and organic matter that the river can carry. Waterborne means carried by water. Remember that as long as water is flowing, it can carry sediment.
Slide 19 Another way water can shape landscapes is by weathering. Erosion can also occur because of
chemical weathering. Caves form when rainwater and streams dissolve limestone and other rocks. The
water collects in cracks and holes in the rock until large caverns form. Streams and rivers flowing
through these caverns cause even more erosion.
Slide 20 Weathering is the process of breaking down materials
Slide 21 Video on the formation of some caves
Slide 22 What makes a watershed? A watershed is all the area of land that drains into one main lake or
river. It can contain many smaller rivers and lakes, which all eventually drain into a large one.
Slide 23 Image showing area within the yellow dotted line is a watershed, where all the streams or
rivers on the side drains in to the main river in the middle. Towns and cities are also part of the
watershed, as it is built by the river
Slide 24 - Most rivers and lakes eventually drain into the ocean. The location of the highest land on the
continent determines the direction that a watershed drains. This high land is called the continental
divide. In North American, the major divide is in the Rocky Mountains. To the west of the continental
Divide, rivers flow into the Pacific Ocean. To the east of the continental divide, rivers flow into either the
Arctic Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean.
Slide 25 the yellow dotted line on the image is the continental divide. One side drains into one ocean
(end point). The other side drains into another ocean (another end point)
Slide 26 27 - In North American, the major divide is in the Rocky Mountains. To the west of the
continental Divide, rivers flow into the Pacific Ocean. To the east of the continental divide, rivers flow
into either the Arctic Ocean or the Atlantic Ocean.

Closing
Assessment: Students will complete check and reflect questions at the end of the of notes

Reflection:
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