Water Resources

CFWEP World Water Monitoring Day Teacher Resource Guide (pdf format): Designed for high school level lessons, this short guidebook can be useful to any teacher interested in water monitoring. Provides detailed definitions of water monitoring terms, as well as local Montana examples of water quality issues. Indicator Fact Sheet (pdf format): From World Water Monitoring […]

Water Glossary

Chemistry Terms Acid Adhesion Anions Aqueous Solutions Base Capillary Action Cations Chemistry Cohesion Compound Covalent Bond Dipole Electric Charge Electrolyte Electron Gas Hydrogen Hydrogen Bond Hydronium (Ions) Hydroxide (Ions) Ionic Bond Ionization Ions Liquid Metal Molecule Oxidation Oxygen Polarity Precipitate Purified (Distilled, Deionized) Water Salt Saturation Solid Solute Solution Solvent Specific Heat Surface Tension   […]

Extension Activities

There are many opportunities to extend and expand the activities listed in this module. Several examples are listed below. Extension 1 Drop in the Bucket Activity: From Project WET, this straightforward activity is a fun and easy way to illustrate the relative scarcity of freshwater on Earth, and the importance of protecting our water resources. […]

Step 4: Analyze & Communicate Your Data

Was my hypothesis conclusively right or wrong? What next?  At this point, you should be able to tell if your data not only proves or disproves your hypothesis, but whether it does so conclusively. Conclusively means you can say without much doubt that your hypothesis was right or wrong and the reasons why. If you […]

Step 3: Observe, Collect Data & Evaluate Results

Did the data I collected prove or disprove my hypothesis?    We recommend having students keep a science notebook to record their field observations and data points. You should make detailed observations about the study site whenever you visit it. For this module, good things to note would be the presence or absence of vegetation around […]

Step 2: Formulate a Hypothesis & Make Predictions

What do you want to find out about your study site’s water quality, how will I measure it and what are your predictions? Check Your Thinking: Scenario: There is an abandoned mine dump within 5 meters of your study site stream. How might contaminants in the mine waste be impacting your stream? When would be […]

Step 1: Observation & Research

What do you know about your study site and your watershed? The steps you take in answering this question will lead you toward formulating the questions that you want to answer with respect to water quality (i.e. our testable question) through the monitoring field activity. Check Your Thinking: What watershed is your study site within? […]

How to Create a Water Quality Monitoring Plan

We know what water is. We know what water quality is. Now all we have to do is go out and monitor water quality, right? Wrong. It’s not quite that easy. While we will be putting everything we’ve just learned together to develop a plan to investigate water quality near our school or home, we […]

Water Quality Impacts: Nonpoint Source

In this short video, Matt Vincent illustrates rural nonpoint source impacts to water quality. Right-click or ctrl-click this link to download.   In this short video, Matt Vincent illustrates urban nonpoint source impacts to water quality on Blacktail Creek in Butte, Montana. Right-click or ctrl-click this link to download.  

Water Quality Impacts: Point Source

In the short videos on the next several pages, Matt Vincent illustrates impacts to water quality at several different western Montana sites, starting with point source impacts. Right-click or ctrl-click this link to download.   In this short video, Matt Vincent illustrates a second type of point source impact to water quality. Right-click or ctrl-click […]