MATERIALS:
Per Each Team of 4 Students:
• 1 large glass jar (quart)
• Tap water
• 1 small colored square sponge
• 1 small weight (large washers work well)
• 1 12-15 cm length of string
• 1 pencil
• 6 small Dixie cups with 2-3 tablespoons of

• 2 or 3 drops each of red food coloring and green food coloring

Per Teacher:
• Alum (available through a science catalog such as Carolina Biological or Science Kit & Boreal Laboratories)
• One funnel
• One paper filter
• One small cup of sand and gravel mixed (activated charcoal can be added to the mix if desired. This is used to filter aquariums and can be found at any pet supply store)
• One cup of dirty water
• One clear clean cup

PREP FOR TEACHERS:
Prior to teaching this lesson prepare the hands-on element of the lesson by:
1. Cutting sponges
2. Filling quart jars half full with tap water
3. Labeling Dixie cups
4. Filling Dixie cups with all materials except cooking oil. This will have to be done during class, as the Dixie cups will leak if they are filled with liquid before hand.
5. Mix sand, gravel, and activated charcoal for teacher demonstration filter.
6. CUE the video to the segment showing the map of Louisiana with a star for the location of New Orleans. The narrator is saying, “People in New Orleans, the city near the mouth of the Mississippi river drink water that comes from the river.”
7. Bookmark the following website on each computer in your classroom.
<Replacement link: http://www.epa.gov/OGWDW/kids/>

When using media, provide students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION, a specific task to complete and/or information to identify during or after the viewing of video segments, Web sites, or other multimedia elements.

INTRODUCTORY ACTIVITY:
1. Tell students that they are going on a field trip in their imaginations. Have everyone close his/her eyes.
2. Now you will read the following:
Imagine a sparkling clean river as it flows through the wilderness. Imagine the trees and plants that grow along the banks of the river. Now imagine the animals that live in this area. In your imagination, smell the air; notice how clean it smells. In your imagination, listen to the sound of the clean water bubbling and splashing over the rocks of a small waterfall. Take a closer look into the river; look at the different forms of life. Especially notice one particular fish. He’s swimming right in front of you. Do you see him? What color is he? What does he look like? Do you see him? Open your eyes.
3. At this point students are eager to describe their fish.
4. Tell students that today we will follow this fish as he encounters many dangers.

LEARNING ACTIVITIES:
1. Divide students into teams of 4, assigning each student a number 1-4. Students will use their numbers to divide tasks evenly. Give each team of four the string, the sponge, the pencil, and the weight. Have each team make a “fish” using the following instructions. Students who were assigned the # 1 will complete this task by tying one end of the string around a pencil and tying the other end around the fish. She should also tie a weight on the fish so it will hang from the pencil into the water. When the “fish” is finished, give each team a jar half-filled with water. Have student #1 put the fish (sponge) into the jar of water.

2. Give out the Dixie cups and the food coloring to each group.

3. Read the following aloud to the students:
The fish has lived in this stretch of the river since it hatched from its egg. Now that it is older, the fish explores the area downstream. It will encounter many dangers, but the fish will still swim.The fish swims into an area where there are farms on both sides of the river. The farms have just recently been plowed in preparation of planting. As the fish swims, rain begins to fall. The rain washes soil from the freshly plowed fields into the river.
Have students who were assigned the # 2 dump the soil into the jar. Ask them to imagine how this must look to the fish. How does this affect the fish? (Students will probably say that the fish won’t like to swim in muddy water, or that he won’t be able to see very well)

4. Read the following aloud to the students:
The fish continues to swim. It enters an area with lush green lawns and flowerbeds that have been fertilized and watered frequently. The people who live in this area have watered their lawns and gardens so much that some of the fertilizer has washed into the river.
Have students who were assigned the # 3 add the fertilizer to the jar.

Read the following aloud to the students:
Even more of the fertilizer washes into the river when it rains. The increase in nutrients in the river caused the aquatic plants to grow very fast and thick. These plants grew so fast that eventually the river could not furnish them with all the nutrients they needed. The aquatic plants died and began to decay. The decomposition of the plant material used up much of the oxygen in the river. How does this affect the fish? (Students should deduce that without oxygen in the water the fish couldn’t live.)

5. Read the following aloud to the students:
The fish quickly swims away from this polluted area. As the fish swims, it passes under a busy highway bridge. Some of the cars traveling over the bridge are leaking oil and gasoline. These pollutants have been washed into the river by the rain.
Have the students who were assigned the # 4 add cooking oil to the jar. Ask students how this might affect the fish. (Students will probably say that the oil could stick to the fish and that the gasoline may burn him)

6. Read the following aloud to the students:
The weather begins to turn cold. Rainwater left on the bridge and road freezes during the night. To avoid accidents, the highway department sends out trucks to spread salt on the roads and bridges. The next day, the temperature increases enough so the ice begins to melt. As it melts, the water and salt are washed into the river.
Have the students who have been assigned the # 1 add salt to the jar. Ask students how this affects the fish. (Accept any reasonable response. Guide students to the fact that a river is a freshwater system and that fish that live here do not like salty water.)

7. Read the following aloud to the students:
As the fish continues on its journey, it swims past a city park. Some people did not put their trash in receptacles. Now the wind is blowing trash into the river.
Have the students who have been assigned the # 2 add punched paper dots to the jar. Ask students how this might affect the fish. (Likely responses will be that the fish doesn’t like to swim with trash. He might get caught in it. The fish won’t like it when the trash starts to smell and rot.)

8. Read the following aloud to the students:
Down river from the city are several factories. The city regulates the amount of pollution the factories can dump into the river. However, the factories do not always do the right thing, and many pollutants are being dumped into the river today.
Have students who have been assigned the # 3 add liquid detergent to the jar. Ask the students how this might affect the fish. (Student answers may vary. Accept any reasonable response.)

9. Read the following aloud to the students:
Also on this part of the river is the city’s wastewater treatment plant. A section of the plant has broken down and raw sewage is being dumped into the river. Have students who have been assigned the # 4 add 2 or 3 drops of green food coloring to the jar.
Ask students how this might affect the fish. (Students will probably squeal in disgust at the thought of this. Most will say that this could kill the fish very quickly.)

10. Read the following aloud to the students:
The fish continues to swim downstream. It passes a hazardous waste dump located on the banks of the river. Rusty barrels of toxic chemicals are leaking into the river. The rain is washing even more of the toxic chemicals into the river.
Have students who have been assigned # 1 add 2 or 3 drops of red food coloring to the jar.
Ask students how this will affect the fish. (Accept any reasonable response)

11. At this time have the student who has been assigned the # 2 lift the fish out of the water.
(Discuss how the fish’s appearance has changed as a result of the various pollutants. Guide students to the realization that if one type of animal or plant in the food chain is harmed, it can affect the whole ecosystem.)

12. Ask students about the different types of water pollution we learned about today. Write responses on the board. (Students will likely say: soil erosion, runoff of fertilizer, leaks from vehicles, litter, pollutants from factories, sewage, pollutants from chemical plants.) Ask students if any of these types of pollution can be prevented. Guide students to understand that these types of pollution are all caused by humans.

CULMINATING ACTIVITIES:
1. Ask students if they would want to drink this water? (Students will most likely say no way.) Tell students that some people have to drink water from rivers. Explain to students that they will now be looking at a piece of a video to see how people in New Orleans, Louisiana have to clean the water from the Mississippi River so they can drink it.

2. Insert Enviro-Tacklebox™, Program number 2: Water: From The Earth To You into your VCR. Provide your students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION, asking them to identify the purifying process of water from the Mississippi River. START the tape at the map of Louisiana showing a star for the location of New Orleans. The narrator is saying, “People in New Orleans, the city near the mouth of the Mississippi river drink water that comes from the river.” PAUSE the tape when the screen shows a full screen picture of muddy water, and the male narrator says, “The large particles settle to the bottom”

Check for comprehension. (Water from the Mississippi River goes into the water treatment plant. It is very muddy. They add a chemical called Ferric Sulfate to the water. This makes the particles in the water stick together and settle at the bottom of the tank.)

3. Have students who were assigned the # 3 to bring the polluted water in the jar to you. Tell your students that you are going to add a chemical to our polluted water called alum. Explain that Alum is a chemical that works a lot like Ferric Sulfate. It is a widely used coagulant used in the treatment of water. Remind students that this chemical will make particles in the water stick together and settle at the bottom. Add one tablespoon of Alum to the jar. Discuss the results with the students.

4. Provide your students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION, asking them to identify what happens to the water after it is treated with chemicals and how we know the water is then safe to drink. PLAY the tape from the previous pause point until you see a full screen of rushing water. The audio will simply be the sound of rushing water. STOP the tape.

Check for comprehension. (After the water is treated with various chemicals it goes through a filter. There are 30,000 tests done on the water every year to ensure that it is safe drinking water.)

5. Tell your students that you will now clean our polluted water by pouring it through a filtering system. Explain that you will use some of the same materials used in the filtering system they saw in the video clip.

6. Line the funnel with the paper filter. Place the gravel, sand, and charcoal mixture into the paper filter. Pack it in. Hold the funnel over the clear cup. Slowly pour the dirty water into the funnel.

7. Ask the students, “What has happened to the dirty water?” (Students will likely say that it is clean.) Guide students to understand that though the water looks cleaner than before, it is not safe to drink.) Ask them why they think our water is not safe to drink. (Students will likely say that we didn’t add the same chemicals that they did in the video clip.)

8. As an assessment of this lesson have students illustrate one type of water pollution. Tell students that there is a Web site on the computer for them to look at when it is their turn at the computer this week. Show students how to find the book marked website. http://www.epa.gov/region4/water/drinkingwater/pollution.htm. Provide your students with a FOCUS FOR MEDIA INTERACTION by telling them to look for pictures of the different types of water pollution we learned about today. Explain that these pictures may give them some good ideas for their own illustrations. Along with the illustration, students should write about the simplified process of surface water purification.