The Mighty Arkansas Basin

The Mighty Arkansas Basin
Doug Boardman
Chase High School
Chase, Kansas

Overview:: This activity will acquaint students with the Five Themes of Geography to help them understand the Arkansas Basin. It will help the students gain an understanding of the water usage in Southwest Kansas agriculture and municipalities.

Grade Levels: Grades 9-12

Time: Two class periods

Geographic Themes:: Location, Movement, Place, Region, Human/Environment Interaction
Kansas Social Studies Standards for Benchmarks, Grade Levels 12-K:: The student will understand the connections among people, places, and environments in the local school and community, Kansas and its surrounding states, the United States and its region, and the world.; The student will understand the roles of government and civic ideals and practices in the local school and community, Kansas, the United States, and different nations in the world.
National Geography Standards, Grades 9-12:

# 1 The geographically informed person knows and understands how to use maps and other representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.

#13 The geographically informed person knows and understands how the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of earth's surface.
Outcome:: Students will use the five themes of geography to understand the importance of water usage to the region of southwest Kansas.
Performance Objectives:: The students will be able to:

Identify the Arkansas River Basin, its source of water, and the end use of the water.
Explain the effect of water usage from Basin on agriculture and municipalities and how that relates to the 5 themes of Geography.

Procedures:
First Class Period:

Discussion:
Give a background to Southwest Kansas and their source of water counties found in the Arkansas Basin - also discuss how the Basin is recharged, etc. Ask students where they think the water comes from and write these down on the board. (It might be helpful to have an individual from your County Extension Office or from the Ground Water Office to come out and talk to the students.)
Hand Out maps of Kansas that show the major rivers and their basins. Have students study these maps and ask them why they think water is important. Where does the water come from? What do the people of Southwest Kansas use their water for?

Second Class Period

Break the class into groups of 3 or 4, depending on the size of the class. Hand out maps of Kansas that show the different climates of Kansas and annual rainfall in Kansas. Also hand out new maps of the Kansas rivers and basins.
Have students locate the counties found in the Arkansas River Basin on the climate map of Kansas.
Once the counties are located on the climate maps of Kansas, have the students draw in the Arkansas River Basin on that map. Also have them study the annual precipitation map of Kansas.
While the students are in their cooperative groups, ask them to try and determine why water is so important to Southwest Kansas (farming and cities). Also have them compare and contrast the use of water by wheat farmers to corn farmers in the Southwest. They could show the usage of each with a graph that each group makes.

Conclusion

What will happen to Southwest Kansas farmers if water continues to be pumped at the same rate?
What will happen to the cities of Southwest Kansas if water continues to be pumped at the same rate?
How does climate contribute to the need for water?
What can the farmers of Southwest Kansas and the cities of Southwest Kansas do to make sure there is water for everyone?
Students will write an essay describing the Arkansas River Basin, its source, and its end use. They will explain how the basin, agriculture, and the municipalities relate to the 5 themes of Geography.


Assessment:

Check the essay for the inclusion of Basin information.
Check the accuracy of the 5 themes relationship noted in the essay.


Extensions:: To extend the lesson you can have members of the farming community come in and speak to the students on measures they are taking to preserve the water and their farming heritage. You can also have the City Manager come in and speak to the students on what the cities are doing to try and preserve the water for municipal use. After the speakers come in, have the students write a report on ways water is being conserved by the farmers and the cities today.

Materials:: Overhead projector and transparencies

Resources:

Buchanan, R., & Buddemeier, R. (1993). Kansas ground water (Educational Series #10). Lawrence, KS: Kansas Geological Survey.
Kansas Geological Survey. (n.d.). Climate and weather atlas of Kansas: An introduction (Educational Series #l2) Lawrence, KS: Author.
Socolofsky, H. E., & Self H. (1972). Historical atlas of Kansas. University of Oklahoma Press.
Rand McNally. (1994). World atlas. Author.
Any all material you can acquire from the Kansas Water Office, 109 S.W. 9th St., Suite 300, Topeka, KS 66612.
Any and all material you can acquire from the Division of Water Resources, 901 S. Kansas Ave., Second Floor, Topeka, KS 66612.
Any and all materials you can acquire from your local Conservation District.
Any and all materials you can aquire from your local Conservation District.

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e-mail: pphillip@fhsu.edu

irc staff 11/29/97 (updated judi 06/17/99)
judi 04/19/00
Disclaimer

# 1	The geographically informed person knows and understands how to use maps and other representations, tools, and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.
#13	The geographically informed person knows and understands how the forces of cooperation and conflict among people influence the division and control of earth's surface.