Wetlands are a valuable resource! The plants that grow in wetlands help to keep the environment in balance by absorbing and breaking down chemicals and impurities in polluted water. Wetlands are also a significant source of food and water and provide an important habitat for many different kinds of animals, fish, insects, plants and other wildlife. Wetlands also help prevent erosion, act as flood barriers, and even provide recreational enjoyment! Unfortunately, more than fifty percent of the wetlands in the continental United States have been irreversibly altered or destroyed! In this activity, students will develop an appreciation for wetlands by exploring them and learning how many different kinds of living things depend upon wetlands for survival.
Students will learn how important it is to protect and appreciate wetlands when they discover how beneficial wetlands are to humans, animals, fish, plants, birds, insects and other wildlife!
K - 2
Field trip to wetlands will vary - at least one hour is recommended
Colorado State Standards (CDE)
NSES: K-4: F – Science in personal / social perspectives
National geography standards: Environment and society
Teacher brings binoculars, water, pens/pencils, paper and Wet Ones.
Each student will need to wear sturdy shoes that can get muddy, a hat, and sunscreen and bring a jacket and water.
Scavenger hunt will require a list of items to find in the wetlands, preferably with pictures. Things to look for: dragonflies or other insects, Great Blue Heron, cattails or reeds, droppings, tracks, flowers, butterflies, song birds, water, black mud and minnows or frogs.
Scavenger hunt list, pens and paper for each student.
To help students learn what a valuable resource wetlands are, take students on a field trip to investigate and explore wetlands and learn how many different kinds of living things depend on wetlands for survival. Students can work in pairs or individually and go on a scavenger hunt to find different kinds of animals, insects, grasses and signs of life. Things to look for: dragonflies or other insects, Great Blue Heron, cattails or reeds, droppings, tracks, flowers, butterflies, song birds, water, black mud and minnows or frogs. Each student gets to share the various items that he or she found. Students can try to guess whose tracks or droppings they found.
Have students spread out and find a quiet place to sit. The children will need to close their eyes, so they can listen to the many sounds of wetlands and count all the different sounds that they hear. Have the class discuss the different sounds and try to determine what made them.
The final activity is called, “Survival Hopscotch.” To illustrate how important wetlands are to birds and butterflies and what a burden it is to them when people eliminate wetlands, have the students pretend that they are birds migrating from Canada to Mexico. Draw a hopscotch pattern in gravel. Each square represents a wetland for the migrating birds to rest at and refuel. After each student hops through the hopscotch pattern, erase one square. Students are eliminated if they miss a square. The game continues until each student is finally eliminated.
Terms used: Wetlands, marsh, bog, habitat, ecosystem, pollution, migration, dragonflies, Great Blue Heron, cattails, reeds, droppings, tracks, flowers, butterflies, song birds, water, black mud, minnows and frogs.
Assesses each student's participation in the activities and class discussions.
“What signs of life do you see?” “How many different living things can you find?” “What do you hear?”
Discuss different smells as well as sounds. Can also discuss how wetlands serve as cleaning agents for polluted water. Have a list of different kinds of footprints (tracks) that can be found in wetlands and have the students go on a track hunt. Have them take samples of different kinds of plants and try to identify them. Dig a two-foot hole and examine the different layers of soil.
If a student is unable to hop, teacher may choose to have only a small group participate, while the rest of the class observes.
