Introduction to Watersheds and Catastrophic Events
5E Lesson Plan, Author: Jamie Sheahan, Yakima WATERS Project, CWU, Fall 2010
This lesson will help students understand what a watershed is, what watershed they live in, and
begin exploring how catastrophic events have shaped the Yakima Basin, and how Yakima Basin
geography shapes where catastrophic events occur locally.
This lesson is targeted to 6th grade students using the STI Catastrophic Events Curriculum Kit.
This lesson is suitable for grades 5-8. The lesson is expected to take 45 minutes.
Standards
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SCIENCE 6-8 SYSA Any system may be thought of as containing subsystems and as being a
subsystem of a larger system.
SCIENCE 6-8 INQE —Model— Models are used to represent objects, events, systems, and
processes. Models can be used to test hypotheses and better understand phenomena, but
they have limitations.
SCIENCE 6-8 ES2C In the water cycle, water evaporates from Earth's surface, rises and cools,
condenses to form clouds and falls as rain or snow and collects in bodies of water.
SCIENCE 6-8 ES3D Earth has been shaped by many natural catastrophes, including
earthquakes, volcanic eruptions, glaciers, floods, storms, and tsunami.
Outcomes
Knowledge: Students will be able to explain what a watershed is and identify what watershed
they live in. Students will conceptually map where they think catastrophic events occur or have
occurred in their watershed.
Skill: Students will create a model of a landscape. Students will improve map-reading skills,
including interpretation of shaded relief map. Students will demonstrate mapping skills, by
adding basic elements to Yakima Basin Map (title, legend, direction, etc).
Materials and Equipment
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White Paper (1 per student)
Washable markers (overhead or “Crayola Washables” work well, Dry erase markers do not)
Colored Pencils
Spray bottles (one per table, approximately 8)
Base maps of local watershed (showing rivers, streams and shaded relief, scale) (1 per
student)
Large poster sized, color, shaded relief map of local watershed showing key features
Scotch tape
Catastrophic event symbol cutouts (for taping on large map)
PowerPoint projector and computer
Prior Knowledge
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This lesson is a follow up to the Global Catastrophic Events Concept Mapping that students
completed at the beginning of the semester. They will have previous knowledge of types of
catastrophic events that occur worldwide. They will have learned little about the drivers and
locations of different event types (tornadoes, avalanches, landslides, flooding, volcanic
eruptions, earthquakes, etc). This activity serves both as an introduction of their watersheds,
and pre-assessment of their knowledge of catastrophic events in their watershed.
Students should know the basic components and order of the Water Cycle from earlier grades,
and will have a chance to review it as a class.
Students should know the basic components of a map: Title, Arrow, Scale, and Legend.
Safety
There are no safety considerations for this activity.
Engage (3 min)
To engage students, I will share with them that I study relationships between plants and
streams in mountain meadows. This topic falls in the field of Watershed Science. Inform
students that you are a Watershed Researcher here in their classroom to engage student
interest and inquiry in watershed science. We will learn more about watersheds later, but first,
let me ask you a question. Have you ever thought about where the water in a river comes from
(think of the Yakima River)? Ask students to identify the sources and write these on the board.
List on board and draw arrows between components as directed by the students. Have them
complete this as the Water cycle. Let students know that understanding the water cycle is the first
step in being able to answer the question – where does the water in a river come from?
Explore (10 min)
Let students know that they will be creating models of landscapes and using them to answer
the question posed to them – where does the water in a river come from? Demonstrate how to
make a landscape. Take a piece of white paper. Holding the center the paper, with the other
hand and crumble the paper into a wad. Spread the paper open and lay it in the table (you may
wish to place on trays to avoid tables from getting wet) so that the edges touch the table, but
there is still a distinct peak in the center. Pass out paper and markers to tables (1
paper/student, 4 markers/table). Have students draw where they predict the rivers would flow
on the landscape in blue. Then allow them to precipitate on their model landscapes and see if
the water goes where they thought it would. Pass out spray bottles (one per table) and have
students test their prediction. Now have them highlight in another color, the boundary of the
area in which they think water drops will flow into their river (this should be a thick line). Have
them spray water on the model again. Ask the students to put materials down. Ask students to
share their observations (take 2 or 3). Ask if they were surprised by any of their findings.
Explain (10 min)
Explain to students that what they just outlined in red is the watershed boundary. In their
science notebooks, have students write down how they would define a Watershed in words
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based on their observations. Once all students have written their definition, have them share
their definition with their neighbor.
Present the PowerPoint presentation to students, Introduction to Watersheds. The presentation
introduces the concepts of mountain building, erosion, levels of watersheds, and how water,
sediment, and other materials move downstream. Then point them to the map poster hung in
the classroom of the Yakima Basin and have them help identify key features or landmarks.
(Cascade Mountains, Wenatchee Mountains, Yakima, Ellensburg, Snoqualmie Pass, the Tricities, Yakima River. . .).
Extend/Elaborate (20 min)
Concept mapping of catastrophic events that have shaped or influence our Watershed
Need: maps, colored pencils
In this class, we are learning about Catastrophic Events. I am here to tie what you are learning
about Catastrophic Events are related to the shaping and influence of the Yakima River Basin.
You just learned about what a watershed is. And you have already thought about what types of
catastrophic events occur globally. Before we dive into learning why and how catastrophic
events occur, let’s see what we know!
Ask students to list types of catastrophic events that have had a role in shaping our watershed.
(List on board). Tell them we are going to map these on a watershed map – where we think they
have most influence. Make a sample legend on board for each catastrophic event type.
Handout student’s individual base maps. Students will be asked to map on their watershed
map, where they think different types of catastrophic events occur or have occurred in the
Yakima Basin. They should think about events that have shaped the watershed landscape as
well as how they shape of the watershed landscape plays in where events might occur. They
can discuss with groups. Each type should be in the legend with a symbol. Do not have to do
catastrophic event types, but should do at least three types.
Evaluate (5 min)
Following completion of mapping at least three types of catastrophic events on their local
watershed map, student groups will be asked to select one individual from each group to come
up to the front of the local classroom to map a catastrophic event on the large classroom
watershed poster. Have students map the event by taping one of the symbols on to the map in
the desired location. Have the students share what event they are mapping and explain why
they chose that location. (Example: I mapped a flood occurring here, because the land is flat, or
I mapped a landslide here, because it is mountains here and the land is steep. Their answers
may or may not be correct at this time. Each class will add to the map for the completion of the
pre-assessment concept map of catastrophic events in the local watershed. It would be helpful
to take a photo of the classroom map for comparison of the pre-assessment and postassessment.
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Point to a location on the poster map; ask the student if this is within the Yakima River Basin.
How did you know? Repeat for a few locations in and out of the watershed.
Ask students to open their Science Notebooks. They should glue in their map on the next blank
page and make sure they have included all of the basic map elements. Then have them write
their definition of a Watershed in their Science Notebook. Have them write down all the ways
in which water reaches the Yakima River. These will be grade in the notebook check.
If time allows, have students reflect on what it means to them to be part of the Yakima River
Basin. Is it different from what it means to be part of Ellensburg? This can be shared in front of
the class.
Follow-up: As students learn about specific types of catastrophic events during the semester,
they will be asked to refer to the Classroom poster map and make any revisions they see fit.
Performance Rubric
The rubric here is an example. Replace with your actual assessment piece or rubric relevant to
your lesson.
Element
Knowledge
(1, 50%)
Skill (1,
50%)
Excellent
(5 pts)
Student is able to
provide a clear,
concise, and
accurate
definition of a
Watershed.
A watershed is
the area of land
between two
ridges in which all
the water drains
into a common
body of water, a
river, lake or
stream.
Student is able to
produce a legible
and complete
map with all the
basic map
elements.
Good
(4 pts)
Student is
mostly able to
provide a clear,
concise, and
accurate
definition of a
Watershed.
A watershed
surrounds a
river and
includes its
tributaries.
In Development
(3 pts)
Student is
somewhat able
to provide a
definition of a
Watershed.
A watershed is
ariver or A
watershed is a
place with a
river.
Needs Rethinking
(2 pts)
Student has
trouble providing
a definition of a
Watershed. A
watershed stores
water.
Not Scorable
(1 pt)
Student is unable
to provide any kind
of definition of a
Watershed. No
answer.
Student is
mostly able to
produce a
legible and
complete map
with all the
basic map
elements.
Student is
somewhat able
to produce a
map with the
basic map
elements.
Student has
trouble producing
a map with the
basic map
elements.
Student is does not
produce any
mapping.
Teacher Background Info
A watershed is defined as the area of land from ridge top to ridge top in which all water drains
into a common body of water. It is made up of all the joining streams and tributaries and the
land surrounding them up to the ridge tops. All precipitation that falls within that watershed
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boundary will eventually make its way into that body of water through runoff. Tributaries are
small streams that join together to form larger streams that join together to form rivers.
Watersheds can be divided up into smaller units, whereas a Basin is the largest watershed unit,
made up of several watersheds. A watershed can be further divided into Subwatersheds,
further divided into catchments (of perhaps individual streams).
We live in the Yakima Basin, which stretches from the Wenatchee and Cascade Mountains in to
the North and West, the Simcoe Hills to the South, and the Vantage plateau to the east. Within
the Yakima Basin, all water drains into the Yakima River, where it eventually enters the
Columbia River near the Tri-cities.
Catastrophic events are naturally caused events that cause an incredible amount of change or
havoc in a short period of time. These could include hurricanes, tornadoes, earthquakes,
volcanic eruptions, floods, and more. Landslides, mountain building, volcanic eruptions, and
floods have shaped the Yakima Basin as evidenced by geologic features in the landscape. Where
floods, avalanches, landslides, and storms occur in the watershed are a result of the formation
and shaping of the Yakima Basin watershed.
Resources
Yakima County
Yakima basin watershed assessment
www.yakimacounty.us/ybwra/assessment/Section2_4.pdf
Water Institute
Crumbled paper watershed exercise
http://www.oaecwater.org/watershed/crumpled-paper-watershed-exercise
Amber Palmeri-Miles
Introduction to Watersheds Presentation
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Attachments
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Powerpoint presentation
Yakima Basin Map (small version)
Catastrophic Event Symbols