Land and Water

Lamotte's Pondwater Tour

Preface

The Pondwater Tour is an invitation to study the basic chemistry of any surface water body: stream, lake, river, creek, bay, marsh, swamp, pond, or even aquariums. The material covered in The Pondwater Tour is general enough to apply to any of these forms of surface water. The environmental changes demonstrated in the Pondwater Tour experiments will produce more dramatic results in fresh water than in salt water.
The goal of the Pondwater Tour is for students to examine, discover, and experiment with several important chemical properties of water.

Real Science

The procedures used in the Pondwater Tour are simplified, but similar to those used by water scientists throughout the world. Tell your students that they are scientists while on the Tour. The Tour introduces the underlying scientific principles of water science while stimulating curiosity and enthusiasm by involving students in hands-on investigation of their own water samples.
Your students will become familiar with the chemical concepts of:

Dissolving
Concentration
Reaction

Active participation in this project involves the processes of:

Observing
Communicating
Comparing
Measuring
Organizing & Classifying
Relating
Analyzing
Summarizing
Applying

Outline:

Unit 1 Introduction

Discussion
"Pondwater" really means: surface water
Handout
Pond Cycles Drawing
Discussion
Dissolved Materials/Suspended Materials, pH
Discussion
Cycles: gases, nutrients
Handout
Research Contract
Game
Pollution Maze

Unit 2 Adopt a "Pond"

Discussion
Maps, the watershed concept
Activity
Use or draw map, visit, video, observe (plants, animals, human activities in watershed).
Handout
Pond Cycles/Pollution Work Sheet
Activity
Each student sketches on individual handout, consolidate into large poster or chalkboard in class.
Activity
Collect water for classroom experiments (8L)
Game
Land Use Matching Game

Unit 3 Create Classroom "Mini-ponds"

Discussion
Demonstrating and measuring cause and effect
Activity
Using fish tanks or other clear plastic 1-liter containers, set up experiments.
Handout
Experiment Setup Worksheets
Discussion
Control sample vs. variable samples
Discussion
Variables: plants, plants in dark, animals (goldfish), nutrients

Unit 4 Methods: Getting Data

Discussion
Review procedure with students
Handout
Group Data Sheets
Activity
Each group measures each factor for its sample, once upon set-up, and again each day for several days.
Game
Crossword

Unit 5 Analyzing Results

Discussion
Guide for helping students analyze their results - questions to ask and answer
Activity
Group Research
Handout
Conclusion Work Sheet
Game
Frog Folding

Unit 6 Water Quality Factors

Reference Material
Background information to help interpret results

The Scientific Method

The experiments in the Pondwater Tour are designed to exaggerate and isolate several natural or human influences on surface water so that the effects of these influences can be seen and measured.
The influences we will study are: plants, fish, and nutrients. We will divide a large sample of water into five portions. One portion will be the "CONTROL" sample - no experimental influences (called variables) will be applied to it.
VARIABLE: Added material or physical treatment that makes a sample different from the others.
The variables we choose are based on things you will probably observe in your adopted pond or ideas that come up during the watershed study. The Pondwater Tour experiments are designed to demonstrate or test these ideas.
For the duration of the experiment, all five samples are stored in the same place. This means they will all receive the SAME temperature, light, and other environmental influences that are not part of our experiments. (Of course, in the foil covered sample, the light is blocked, but this is a variable in the experiment.)

Teacher Tips

Preparation
Read instructions ahead of time to familiarize yourself with the procedures and concepts for each section.

Shopping List and Materials Check Lists
Be sure to have everything on hand before it is needed. Encourage students to "recycle/reuse" containers by rinsing them and bringing them into class for this project.

Organization
The Pondwater Tour is designed to allow 35 to 40 students in five groups to perform every procedure, each group testing their own sample. Let the teams give themselves names.
The Pondwater Tour is designed to be presented directly to your class as a lecture/lab activity. You can easily incorporate other activities such as map skills or use the Pondwater Tour TesTabs® for additional experiments designed by students.

Vocabulary
Terms like "apparatus", "solution", "variable", and "eutrophication" may be new to your students but they are part of the scientific vocabulary your students can learn on the Tour. Try to use and encourage the use of these terms as you lead your students through the Pondwater Tour.

Record Keeping
Have students make folders with a pond related theme to store their data sheets, daily observations, activity sheets, pictures, and drawings. Make a poster to record the class results. Display it as a permanent record or part of a bulletin board display.

LaMotte Company, P.O. Box 329, Chestertown, MD 21620, USA

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