EDUCATOR’S GUIDE–Intermediate
TABLE OF CONTENTS
About this topic .....................................................2
Connecting with the classroom...........................3
Resources ................................................................5
Minnesota Academic Standards..........................5
At the museum activities
Chaperone page .................................................6
Student pages.....................................................7
Answer key.........................................................10
IN THIS GUIDE
This self-guide will help your students explore
the Mississippi River Gallery by encouraging
interdisciplinary exploration of the River,
examining personal connections to the River
that show the interdependence of humans and
rivers, and supporting development of personal
responsibility and care for river environments.
HOW TO USE EXPLORATIONS
• Give chaperones copies of Explorations
student pages and the chaperone page.
• Components are not sequential. You can
start anywhere in the exhibit.
• If your time in the exhibits is limited, choose
just a few stops. Don’t try to rush your students to finish the Explorations suggestions.
Some questions may leave students with more
questions. Use these as the basis for after-trip
discussions or group research.
• Divide your class to work in teams. Each team
can be responsible for one of the “scientist”
arenas, which allows time for more open
exploration. A team could also begin with
their assigned river research focus, then work
on the others as time allows.
• Bring extra pencils and stiff cardboard for students to write on. You can also try using card
stock for group activities.
• Visit the museum before your field trip.
The Science Museum offers a free ticket for
school employees to preview the museum.
Call 1-800-221-9444 or (651) 221-9444 for
details.
• Visit the museum’s website to get an overview
of the museum. (www.smm.org)
• Share the floor plans from the website with
your students. If you need a copy of the floor
plans, please contact us:
[email protected] or
(651) 221-4554.
• Review with your students:
–The schedule of your trip
–Curriculum
connections
–Behavior
expectations
–Activities to be completed at the museum or when you
return to school
Notes to the teacher—INTERMEDIATE
1
ABOUT THIS TOPIC
Rivers connect. Rivers connect all living things
through watersheds. A watershed is an area of
land that drains into an individual stream or
river system. This connects all of us with our
environment and nearby rivers. Ultimately,
everybody lives on a river.
Rivers connect organisms. Even in the
middle of the city, rivers can bring
animals to your neighborhood
because the river corridor provides
protection, a source of water and
food. Riparian (the area on and
around the banks of a river ) habitats may
provide conditions which are quite different
from those nearby and encourage the migration
of plants and animals.
Rivers connect people with each other and with
other living things. We use rivers for many
things. We get water and food, use them for
transportation, recreation and removal of waste
and excess storm water. The interconnections
are not always healthy for us or for the rivers.
Studying the River
Using this guide, your students can study the
river from different viewpoints:
Hydrologist
Hydrologists study the distribution of water.
They may research the flow or discharge of
water along a river or over a dam.
Geographer
Geographers ask where things are located on
the surface of the earth, why they are located
where they are, how places differ from one
another, and how people interact with the
environment.
Zoologist
Zoologists study all aspects of animal
life, including where and how animals
live and how they interact with their
surroundings.
Ecologist
An ecologist studies the relationship between organisms and their
environment, sometimes specializing
in one particular species of plant or
animal, or one type of habitat.
Aquatic biologist
Aquatic biologists study living
things which live in water
environments, plants, animals
and microorganisms, and their
interaction with each other and with
the environment.
Notes to the teacher—INTERMEDIATE
2
CONNECTING WITH THE CLASSROOM
Before Your Visit
• Ask students to make a concept map about
the Mississippi River.
• Brainstorm: Organisms that live in or near
rivers in Minnesota. Keep a running tally.
• Review needs of organisms for survival. What
could river habitats provide for organisms?
• Keep a file or bulletin board of stories about
the Mississippi River. Why is it in the news?
• Ask students to write and illustrate a personal
story about rivers, including a description of
the setting using vivid details.
Back in the Classroom
Review the information that students gathered
at the museum by discussing the investigation
from the student pages.
Ask students to present their museum research
in a “scientific conference.” Group students
according to the type of research they did at the
museum (e.g., hydrologist, zoologist, etc.) Ask
students what each kind of scientist studies.
Capture answers on the board. Each group can
include in their scientific report:
• what kind of research they do as hydrologist,
zoologist, ecologist, etc.
• a summary of what they discovered at the
museum in their area of expertise (the
answers to the questions) and the answers to
“What the most important thing you discovered you would want other people to know?
And why is this important?”
Build a river model in your classroom.
(Investigation #1)
Further information with detailed instructions
can be ordered from the resource list at the end
of this packet.
Notes to the teacher—INTERMEDIATE
3
Back in the Classroom (continued)
Who lives near the Mississippi?
(Investigation #3)
Using information gathered from the map at
the museum, identify river cities by using an
atlas, the library or Internet . Write to the
Chambers of Commerce for those communities.
Brochures or pictures received can be posted
near the community's location on a large outline or land use map.
Review which animals live in or near the water of
rivers. (Investigations #2 & #4)
What do they all have in common? What adaptations or special structures allow animals to
live in the water? Investigate the animals students studied. The Minnesota Conservation
Volunteer, a publication of the Minnesota
Department of Natural Resources, has articles
about many Minnesota animals. Find copies in
your school media center or call (651) 296-0888
for further information about this publication.
You can also find information on their website:
www.dnr.state.mn.us/young_naturalists/index.html
Review how people change rivers or effect the
habitat of rivers from the things students observed
at the museum. (Investigation #5) Brainstorm
solutions for each problem identified.
Ask students to keep track of how much water
their family uses in a week. Investigate where
this water comes from and where used water
goes.
Identify your nearby storm sewers and where
they drain. Many storm sewer systems drain
into a river. Observe and list the materials in a
gutter near your school ( or near the student's
home). Review the path of these materials to
their final destination, evaluate the impact and
devise ways to avoid the pollution they may
cause in your community’s river(s).
Visit a nearby river. Sketching and observing all
aspects of the river you visit can reinforce and
extend the learning of the classroom and at the
museum.
Brainstorm some ways that students can share
knowledge or act on concerns about the health
of our rivers.
Notes to the teacher—INTERMEDIATE
4
MINNESOTA ACADEMIC STANDARDS
The Science Museum of Minnesota provides a
field trip destination that allows teachers and
students to reinforce Minnesota Academic
Standards. Use of the materials in this Journey
on the River Explorations will help you link
learning experiences to the following content
standards.
Science
Grade 4
Earth Science
4.3.4.1.1 Describe how the methods people
utilize to obtain and use water in their homes
and communities can affect water supply
and quality.
Grade 5
Nature of Science and Engineering
5.1.3.2.1 Describe how science and engineering
influence and are influenced by local traditions
and beliefs.
Earth Science
5.3.1.2.2 Explain how slow processes, such as
water erosion, and rapid processes, such as
landslides and volcanic eruptions, form features
of the Earth's surface.
5.3.4.1.3 Compare the impact of individual decisions on natural systems.
Life Science
5.4.1.1.1 Describe how plant and animal structures and their functions provide an advantage
for survival in a given natural system.
5.4.2.1.2 Explain what would happen to a system such as a wetland, prairie or garden if one
of its parts were changed.
5.4.4.1.1 Give examples of beneficial and harmful human interaction with natural systems.
RESOURCES
Hands On Save Our Streams: Science Project
Guide for Students and Teachers’ Manual
Izaak Walton League of America
707 Conservation Lane
Gaithersburg, MD 20878-2983
(800) BUG-IWLA
www.iwla.org
Adopt-A-River
Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
Contact Paul Nordahl, 651-297-5476
http://www.dnr.state.mn.us/trails_and_waterways/adoptriver/
The Indoor River Book—A Common Roots
Guidebook
Kendall/Hunt Publishing Co., 1997
ISBN 0-7872-3602-0
Building a model river and watershed.
Website:
http://www.seek.state.mn.us/
The SEEK directory is a clearinghouse for all
types of environmental education resources,
from a variety of organizations throughout
Minnesota.
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/
education/topics/rivers/?ar_a=1&audiences=1
Find other links, activity suggestions, and background information for you and your students.
Notes to the teacher—INTERMEDIATE
5
CHAPERONE PAGE
Trip Tips
Z This gallery starts with the
Z Don’t worry about finishing
Z Check your Chaperone
beginning of the Mississippi
River at Lake Itasca and follows
the River to the Iowa border.
The giant postcards hung from
the ceiling show the areas.
everything on the student
pages. Encouraging students to
look at exhibits, think about
and talk about what they are
seeing is most important!
Guide for other suggestions.
Ask a staff person if you do not
have one.
Journey on the River student pages guide them to study the
Upper Mississippi River (From Lake Itasca to Iowa) in many ways.
Each type of researcher looks at different exhibits. The pictures next
to researcher types are often the same as the “postcard” hanging
from the ceiling in the gallery above the exhibits they need to find.
(Lake Pepin, The Gorge, Port of St. Paul) There is also a photo of the
large lake scene at the entrance to the gallery, showing the
Mississippi River Headwaters at Lake Itasca.
Hydrologist: studies the flow of the river’s water.
Look for answers
?
What do you think?
.
Draw what you
learned
Geographer: studies the location of places
The next two researchers use the large scene of the Mississippi River Headwaters at
Lake Itasca.
Aquatic biologist: studies living things that live in water environments
Zoologist: studies animal life
Ecologist: studies interrelationship of living things and the environment, in this case,
humans and the environment (the whole Mississippi River Gallery)
If you have questions about location of things in this gallery, ask any staff member
in a blue vest or apron.
Chaperone page—INTERMEDIATE
6
The postcards hanging from the ceiling of the gallery will help you on your
journey down the Mississippi.
Take on the role of the scientists below and investigate the river.
1. HYDROLOGIST: studies the flow of the river’s water
exhibit to visit: the gorge
Watch how the water of the river changed st. paul’s riverfront in the
gorge.
?
What happened to the giant waterfall?
Student page—INTERMEDIATE
7
2. AQUATIC BIOLOGIST: studies living things that live in water environments
exhibit to visit: Headwaters
Draw 2 fish you see.
.
how are they alike?
3. GEOGRAPHER: studies the location of places
exhibit to visit: Port of St. Paul
floor puzzle map of the mississippi river. if the puzzle is apart, put it together.
Find a city that is close to the source of the river.
List four cities which are on the mississippi river in minnesota.
1. ____________________________________ 2. _____________________________________
3. ___________________________________
4. ____________________________________
Student page—INTERMEDIATE
8
4. ZOOLOGIST: studies animal life
exhibit to visit: Headwaters
What animals can you find in this scene?
Remember to look up and in or under any “water,”too!
What other river animals can you find in this gallery!
5. ECOLOGIST: studies interrelationship of living things and the environment
exhibits to visit: whole Mississippi River Gallery
Find at least three examples of how people use the river today.
1. _________________________________________________________________
2. _________________________________________________________________
3. _______________________________________________________________
Student page—INTERMEDIATE
9
The postcards hanging from the ceiling of the gallery will help you on
your journey down the mississippi.
Take on the role of the scientists below and investigate the river.
1. HYDROLOGIST: studies the flow of the river’s water
exhibit to visit: lake pepin and the gorge
Watch how the water of the river changed st. paul’s riverfront in the gorge.
On the same spot where the Science Museum is today.
?
What happened to the giant waterfall?
Over the last 10,000 years, the water gradually eroded the layers of rock underneath, which would collapse, causing the waterfall
to be slightly more upstream. This waterfall ended up at the area which is now St. Anthony Falls in Minneapolis. Human control
of the river here makes it very improbable there will be future erosion and consequent waterfall migration of this kind.
Student page answer key—INTERMEDIATE
10
2. AQUATIC BIOLOGIST: studies living things that live in water environments
exhibit to visit: fish tales
Draw 2 fish you see.
.
how are they alike?
There are several kinds of fish in the scene. Discuss: How are they all alike?
Some possible answers: coloring, elongated bodies, all have fins, eyes on side of head, etc.
How does each of these attributes help the animal survive in Lake Itasca?
Some possible answers: camouflage, swim to get food or away from predators, see food/predators, etc.
3. GEOGRAPHER: studies the location of places
exhibit to visit: Port of St. Paul
floor puzzle map of the Mississippi River. if the puzzle is apart, put it together.
Find a city that is close to the source of the river.
List four cities which are on the mississippi river in minnesota.
1. ____________________________________ 2. _____________________________________
3. ___________________________________
4. _____________________________________
Ask students to check their answers with a classroom or library map of Minnesota. See other post-visit examples
for follow-up suggestions on page 3 of this guide.
Student page answer key—INTERMEDIATE
11
4. ZOOLOGIST: studies animal life
exhibit to visit: Headwaters
What animals can you find in this scene?
remember to look up and in or under any “water,” too!
See other post-visit examples on page 3 of this guide for follow-up suggestions to investigate Minnesota wildlife
and how they use river habitats.
What other river animals can you find in this gallery!
5. ECOLOGIST: studies interrelationship of living things and the environment
exhibits to visit: whole Mississippi River Gallery
Find at least three examples of how people use the river today.
1. ____________________________________________________________________
2. ____________________________________________________________________
3. ____________________________________________________________________
See other post-visit examples on page 3 of this guide for follow-up suggestions about
water use and the consequences of our use of water.
Student page answer key—INTERMEDIATE
12