This unit challenges students to learn more about the relationship between land and water in their natural environment by conducting a series of classroom investigations that center on a stream table. Using this model, students study the properties of earth materials and observe how runoff causes stream formation, how soil is deposited, and how water shapes land. They study groundwater, learn about the source of their drinking water, and how plants control erosion. They also test the effects of land formation on water flow by placing rocks and hills on the land and building a dam. The stream table also serves as a basis for investigations of the water cycle.
Students create and use aerial diagrams to examine the parts of a stream system in their models.
In a final embedded assessment, students apply their knowledge gained in the unit by creating their own landscapes and selecting an appropriate place to situate a homesite.