It's Not My Problem

IT’S NOT MY PROBLEM!

Karen Reinert
Herington Elementary School
Herington, KS

Overview:
This lesson will help students realize that non-point pollution upstream is a problem for everyone downstream. They will be able to see how the river system in the central United States, and most importantly the Kansas River and Lower Republic River are connected as they make their way to the Gulf of Mexico.

Grade Level: 2-3

Time Needed: Two class periods

Geographic Themes:
Location and Human/Environment Interactions

Kansas Social Studies Standards for Benchmarks, Grade Levels 5-K:
The student will use problem solving and decision making strategies to formulate, evaluate, and defend plans for addressing issues or problem situations in the local school and community, Kansas and its surrounding states, the United States and its region, and the world.

National Geographic Standards:

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

#14 The geographically informed person knows and understands how Earth’s physical and human systems are connected and interact.

#15 The geographically informed person knows and understands the consequences of the interaction between human and physical systems.

Outcome:
The student will be able to identify the actual location of the rivers as they flow toward sea level.

Performance Objective:
The students will be able to realize that rivers cross county, state and even country boundaries by tracing the rivers and observing the teacher model. The pollution caused upstream eventually effects everyone below that point.

Vocabulary:

river sea level

pollution

Materials:
For Teacher Model:

2ftX3ft piece of Styrofoam with outline of rivers- beginning in the upper Republican valley traced with a pencil lead to the Mississippi River. Make the indentations deep enough to accommodate the path of a drop of water. Paint each river bed a different color with tempera paint.
2ftX3ft piece of laminating film (doubled) with Kansas and bordering states, plus states bordering the Mississippi River to the Gulf of Mexico. Trace the state boundaries on the overlay.
colored pencils
eye dropper
tempera paints
water
map of central United States to locate rivers.

Procedures:
Day1:
Today we are going to talk about rivers. Have any of you ever seen a river? What rivers have you seen? There are many rivers all over the world. We are going to look at the rivers in our area. Pass out copies of a map with the rivers labeled showing Kansas and it’s bordering states. It should also include all of Missouri and the states that border the Mississippi River. Teach the song Them Rivers below. Each child will be instructed to use colored pencils and trace each river a different color. Display them so they can refer to them for tomorrows lesson.

Music:
Them Rivers sung to tune of Them Bones (The hipbone’s connected to the..)

Chorus:
Them rivers, them rivers, just keep a flowin’
Them rivers, them rivers, just keep a flowin’
Them rivers, them rivers, just keep a flowin’
to the Gulf of Mexico!

The Big Blue’s connected to the Republican
The Republican’s connected to the Kansas
The Kansas is connected to the Missouri
to the Gulf of Mexico!

Chorus

The Missouri’s connected to the Mississippi
The Missouri’s connected to the Mississippi
The Missouri’s connected to the Mississippi
to the Gulf of Mexico!

Chorus

Day 2:

1. Read the book by Lynne Cherry entitled The River Ran Wild.

2. Discuss what makes a healthy river. Why do we need rivers? Who is responsible for keeping rivers clean? Who and what depends on the river to survive? Who’s problem is it if the river becomes polluted?

3.

Show the class your teacher created Styrofoam model of the rivers and the overlay with the state boundaries drawn on it. Each river should be indented in the Styrofoam and painted a different color. With the eyedropper, drop some water down the path of a river. Watch its path to the Gulf. Demonstrate with other rivers. Ask the students what would happen if each/drop of water were pollution added to the river. What will happen to this pollution that is deposited in the rivers?

Teacher Information:

Animals along the river: otters, skunks, muskrat, opossums, bass, sunfish, trout, carp, catfish, pelicans, herons, ducks, geese, migratory birds.
Trees along the river: oak, maples, hickory, gum, cypress, cottonwood
Mississippi River facts: It is 2,348 miles along. Its depth ranges from 9 feet to 100 feet deep. Barges are used to move freight up and down it.

Extensions:

Field trip: Your class may want to visit a reservoir in your area. Discuss where the water goes when it is released. Is this water used for your drinking water? If so is it important that it be pollution free? You may want to read these books to your class as a further extension about floods and rivers:

Flood Friday-Lois Lenski J.B. Lippincott Co., New York, 1956.
The story of a group of children who’s town is flooded and evacuated. There are many people involved in its recovery.
The Boats on the River- Majorie Flack, Troll Associate, New York, 1951.
The story of a river and many kinds of boats that use it.
Minn of the Mississippi- Holling Clancy Holling, Trumpet Club, New York, 1951.
The story of a turtle’s journey down the Mississippi River from its mouth to its delta.
One of the Third Grade Thonkers- Phylis Reynolds Naylor, Bantam Doubleday Dell, New York, 1988. The story of a boy who’s father works on the barges on the Des Plaines River, Illinois River, and Mississippi River.

Sometimes reservoirs are asked to release water downstream to raise the water level so the barges can operate more efficiently on the Missouri and Mississippi Rivers.

Sand Pile/play ground:

Build a river bed with sand. Use a garden hose to show what happens with erosion. What happens to the pesticides and insecticides that are on the adjoining land when there is too much rain? Does it go into the river? Where does it go from there? (downstream)

Resources:

Atlas of North America
Kansas River Basins and Federal Lakes figure-attached
Assorted trade book titles listed above

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FHSU Geoscience | Kansas Geographic Alliance
National Geographic Society | Kansas Water Office
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e-mail: pphillip@fhsu.edu

irc staff / jh 03/16/98 (updated kn 06/23/99)
Disclaimer

#1	The geographically informed person knows and understands how to use maps, globes, and other graphic tools and technologies to acquire, process, and report information from a spatial perspective.
#14	The geographically informed person knows and understands how Earth’s physical and human systems are connected and interact.
#15	The geographically informed person knows and understands the consequences of the interaction between human and physical systems.

1.	Read the book by Lynne Cherry entitled The River Ran Wild.
2.	Discuss what makes a healthy river. Why do we need rivers? Who is responsible for keeping rivers clean? Who and what depends on the river to survive? Who’s problem is it if the river becomes polluted?
3.	Show the class your teacher created Styrofoam model of the rivers and the overlay with the state boundaries drawn on it. Each river should be indented in the Styrofoam and painted a different color. With the eyedropper, drop some water down the path of a river. Watch its path to the Gulf. Demonstrate with other rivers. Ask the students what would happen if each/drop of water were pollution added to the river. What will happen to this pollution that is deposited in the rivers?