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Wonders of a Watershed 
 
Developed by: Drew Macko and Madison Rush, 2020. University of Oregon Environmental Leadership 
Program.
 
 
Time:​ ​ ​ 60 minutes  
 
Overview​: 
This  activity  introduces  middle  school  students  to  the  water  cycle  and  functions  of  a  watershed  using 
hands-on  activities.  Students  will  become  familiar  with  the  definition  and  functions  of  a  watershed  and 
the  impacts  that  climate  change  has  on  the  ecological  regions  within  it.  Students  will  demonstrate  their 
understanding  of  the  water  cycle  and  its  connection  to  watersheds  through  inquiry  questions  and 
participation  in  an  activity  that  shows  the  functions  of  a  watershed  through  models  that  students  will 
build  out  of  foil,  clay,  and  other  natural  materials.  After  building  their model, students will look at data in 
the  form  of  graphs  taken  straight  from  the  HJA  site.  Using  the  data  found  in  the  graphs  and  the  models 
they build, students will discuss the impacts of climate change on their models.  
 
Rationale​: 
By  understanding  the  functions  of  a  watershed  and  the  watershed(s)  students  are  located  in,  they will be 
better  equipped  to  relate  to  environmental  issues  specific  to  water  use as the functions of a watershed are 
directly  related  to  water  use.  Students  will  know  the  ways  in  which  this  essential  resource  interacts  with 
their  local  environment,  and  how  to  apply  what  they  have  learned  to  their  own  education  and  personal 
lives.  The  activity  also  functions  to  engage  students  in  their  kinetic  senses  so  that  more  information  is 
retained. 
 
Learning Outcomes:  
By the end of the station, 6th grade students will be able to: 
1. Describe what a watershed is and demonstrate basic functions of a watershed through models.  
2. List all five parts of the water cycle as learned in the water cycle aerobics. 
3. Describe impacts of climate change and their relation to temperature, precipitation, and 
snowpacks on a watershed.  
 
Links to Standards with Accordance to NGSS​:  
1. (MS-LS1-8) - Cause and Effect: ​Cause and effect relationships may be used to predict phenomena 
in natural systems. This station meets this standard by discussing the cause and effects of 
pollution and climate change on the functions of a watershed.  
 
2. (MS-LS1-3) - Systems and System Models: ​Systems may interact with other systems; they may 
have sub-systems and be a part of larger complex systems. This station provides students with 
knowledge pertaining to systems within a watershed and their interrelationship to other 
ecoregion systems and the Earth's water cycle as a whole.  
 
3. (MS-ESS3-3) - Earth and Human Activity:​ Human activities have significantly altered the 
biosphere, sometimes damaging or destroying natural habitats and causing the extinction of other 
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species. But changes to Earth’s environments can have different impacts (negative and positive) 
for different living things. Our station meets this standard by showing students the effects of 
anthropogenic change on the functions of a watershed through a model.  
 
Materials Needed​: 
● 4 large foil turkey trays (malleable enough to create a watershed model!)  
● Modeling clay (enough for 4 groups of 10 students)  
● Map of the HJA watershed 
● Laminated scenario questions 
● Laminated data graphs from HJA 
● 3 trowels  
● Bead, stamp or other reward for student completion on passport questions  
 
Background Material​:  
Watershed:​ ​an area or ridge of land that separates waters flowing to different rivers, basins, or seas. 
 
Ecoregion: ​a major ecosystem defined by distinctive geography and receiving uniform solar radiation and 
moisture. 
 
Water Cycle: t​ he cycle of processes by which water circulates between the earth's oceans, atmosphere, and 
land, involving precipitation as rain and snow, drainage in streams and rivers, and return to the 
atmosphere by evaporation and transpiration. 
 
Climate Change​:​ Is the long-term change in global & regional climate patterns, in particular a change 
apparent from the mid to late 20th century onwards and attributed largely to the increased levels of 
atmospheric carbon dioxide produced by the use of fossil fuels. 
 
Projected Changes Due to a Changing Climate and their Correlating Impacts on a Watershed:  
 
● Warmer air temperatures:  
 
○ Less total streamflow, owing to evapotranspiration (​the process by which water is 
transferred from the land to the atmosphere by evaporation from the soil and other 
surfaces and by transpiration from plants.)  
○ Reduced flow duration and discharge from seasonally flowing streams. This is due to a 
reduction in snowpack that occurs seasonally due to a major flux in the amount of 
precipitation we typically receive in the form of snow to precipitation in the form of rain. 
(less snow seasonally+more rain=less snowpack and less seasonal discharge) 
○ More erosion and stream sediment pollution from fires, floods and landslides.  
 
● More frequent, longer dryer droughts:  
 
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○ Larger and more frequent fires, caused by lower summer soil moisture, warmer 
temperature, more wind. This causes reduced vegetative cover on watersheds and 
short-term increases in water yield and flooding.  
○ Reduced groundwater recharge. 
 
● Changes in precipitation amounts and timing:  
 
○ Altered timing and volume of runoff.  
○ Changes in drought severity 
○ Changes in vegetation. 
○ Altered channel forms reflecting changes in runoff, peak flows, and sediment loads 
 
● Less snowfall, earlier snowmelt, and increased snowpack density: 
 
○ Higher winter flows and lower summer flows. 
○ Earlier and smaller peak flows in spring 
○ Changes in stream channels because of altered flows and modified sediment and wood 
inputs. 
 
Activity Description: 
 
Timeline:  
 
Step 1. Getting Started: Introductions (5 minutes) 
 
Students will be given a run-down of what to expect for this station and facilitators will set expectations 
on environmental stewardship. This will be done in a standing circle in order to prepare everyone for the 
next activity.  
 
Step 2. Water Cycle Aerobics (10 minutes) 
 
Video of what this looks like: https://youtu.be/dLl9dXXJmhw    
 
● Students will begin by helping explain the steps of the water cycle through inquiry questions. 
○ Can anyone tell me, what exactly is the water cycle?  
○ Lets go around the circle, and can anyone tell me with a raised hand part of the water 
cycle?  
 
● Then  transition  with  something  like…  “Awesome!  So  in  order  to  better  understand  each  of  these 
parts,  we  are  gonna  give  a  movement  to  each  one  and  then  perform  the  whole  cycle  by doing the 
water cycle aerobics!”  
 
● Each  step  of  the  water  cycle  (groundwater,  surface  water,  evaporation,  transpiration, 
condensation,  precipitation,  surface  run-off  and  back  to  groundwater) will be given an associated 
movement that you will walk through individually with your students.    
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● Students  will  do  all  the  movements  together  in  order  to  model  the  water  cycle  while  saying  out 
loud each part they are modeling.  
 
● Then  students  will  then  be  challenged  to  see  how  fast  they  can  run  through  the  cycle  to  beat  the 
“fastest  person  ever  to  do  the water cycle aerobics” which will be you the facilitators! (I personally 
like to make up some ridiculous time like 3 seconds just to see them try and beat it!)  
 
● This  game  will  allow  students  to  get  all  the  wiggles  out  before moving on to the next activity that 
requires a little more attention and critical thought.   
 
Step 3. Explanation of Activity & Expectations (2-5 minutes)  
 
Facilitators  will  describe  the  activity  and  cover  behavioral  expectations  for  handling  plants  and  other 
additional activity materials. 
 
Step 4. Watershed activity (20-30 minutes) 
 
● This activity will teach students the definition and functions of a watershed. Through 
participation in this activity students will explore the ways in which climate change is affecting 
the watershed at HJA by interacting with graphs and building models.  
 
● Facilitator will begin by giving students a definition of a watershed. This can simply be shown 
through a set of hand movements that students can repeat and do with you. 
You can create your own hand movements to match the select blue words below. 
“A watershed is an a​ rea of land​, where ​water flows​, to a common b​ ody of water​”  
 
● To demonstrate what a watershed actually looks like, students will be numbered off into 3 groups. 
Each group will be given a piece of paper and asked to crumple it up into a ball. Then each group 
will unravel their piece of paper which will act as a mini model watershed. Facilitators will ask 
students some questions about their model: 
 
○ Where are the boundaries of the watershed? (From the peaks of the mountain ridges, 
down to the valley, and back up to the peak of the mountain ridges on the other side).  
○ Talk about the ridges & valleys. 
○ What path would water flow if it were to rain? 
 
Have each group outline where water would flow on their paper with a marker.  
 
● After students have a better understanding of the boundaries and paths of flow on the paper 
watershed, students will have the opportunity to build a bigger model out of foil turkey trays. 
○ Each group will be given a foil tray and clay materials.  
○ Students will be asked to make another model out of the tray based on what they learned 
from the small paper one.  
○ Students can use clay, soil and forge for items in the nearby area to help build their model.  
○ Students will share with the group the model that they created.  
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○ Facilitators ​should already have an accurate example model​ hidden away that they will 
take out to compare to the students. Have students notice the similarities and differences 
between their model and yours.  
 
● Once the three groups have created their models and presented them, each group will be given one 
of the following graphs from HJA to interpret and discuss. Be sure to go over what x,y axes are and 
perhaps provide them an example by going over one with them: 
○ Plot of Precipitation Values at Andrews 1957 - current 
○ Plot of Annual Temperature Values at Andrews 1958 - current 
○ Snowpack Density at Andrews 1958 - current 
(Graphs are currently being collected and found by Mark for us to use! We will have them in the 
Spring)  
 
● Discuss with students how each of these graphs help show our regional environmental response to 
climate change. 
 
● Students will then have the opportunity to use their models to help explore climate change 
impacts on the functions of a watershed. Facilitators will give each group a card with a specific 
climate scenario that matches the graphs they previously looked at.  
 
○ Scenario 1: “Look at that! Andrews is now experiencing more rain through the Winter! 
Instead of snowing up on the mountain this Winter, precipitation came in the form of 
rain! This must be due to a warming climate, but how will this affect the functions of this 
watershed?” 
 
○ Scenario 2: “This is a first! The temperature is 43° C (109° F), which is 2° C above the 
former record here at HJ Andrews. We’re seeing the warming climate in action, but how 
will these warmer temperatures affect the functions of this watershed?” 
 
○ Scenario 3: “Oh no, the snow which has always lasted year round is disappearing! This 
must be due to the warmer climate, causing higher temperature at the highest peaks. Now 
there is no snowpack up in the mountains. What will happen to the watershed in the 
Spring when there is no snowpack to melt?”  
 
● After each group has discussed their scenario amongst themselves, they will read out loud their 
scenario to the rest of the group and explain their hypothesis for what might happen to their 
model in that scenario.  
 
Step 5. Assessment (10 minutes)  
 
Students will be passed their individual passports and instructed to turn to the page on watersheds. There 
they will find two questions they will need to answer in order to get a stamp or other equivalent reward for 
this station.  
 
Question 1: “Today we went through the water cycle aerobics and learned how they function in a 
watershed. Please list all 5 steps of the water cycle”  
 
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Question 2: We learned a little bit about how precipitation, temperature, and snowpack will change in our 
watershed due to climate change. Choose one (temperature,precipitation, snowpack) and write a sentence 
or two about how climate change will affect it, and how the topic you chose will impact the watershed.   
 
Additional Reading/Resources: 
● https://oregonwild.org/about/blog/new-mapping-tool-shows-shocking-extent-logging-across-or
egon?fbclid=IwAR1XAryPXu5E7BIvdLBhDmPOW_aaUr1RJAlEoUSF6Bd88gACHEeLVFY2XJw 
 

● Water, Climate Change, and Forests: Watershed Stewardship for a Changing Climate 
 

● https://www.usgs.gov/faqs/what-difference-between-weather-and-climate-change-1?qt-news_sc
ience_products=0#qt-news_science_products