Life Is a River is a year-long unit written for third grade gifted students. It introduces the concepts of water, changing states of matter, the water cycle, the man-made water cycle, rivers, streams, and tributaries, pollution, and conservation. Students learn how to conduct visual, chemical, biological, and bacterial assessments of a river and visit a local stream on a monthly basis to evaluate the health of the waterway.
The goal of this unit is to help students develop a sense of pride, awareness, and appreciation for their environment. It is to understand the interdependence between animals and their environment and to nurture a realization that they can help save our most precious natural resource; water. The ultimate goal is to create life-long guardians of the environment.
