Lesson 3: Water Above the Ground

Water above the ground, surface water, is the water we see in lakes, rivers and other water bodies. Surface water is easily observed and studied by students.

The concept of permeability is briefly discussed in this lesson. Permeability refers to the rate at which water moves through soil. This rate would depend on the makeup of the soil. Is it composed mostly of sand, silt or clay? For more information about soils and soil types, contact the local office of the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) or your county soil and water conservation district (county government). (Look in your telephone book under U.S. Government for your local NRCS representative and under County Government for soil and water districts.)

1. Have students look at the illustration in part 1. Tell your students that this lesson is about surface water, or water we can see above the ground.

2. Have students read parts 1 and 2.

Ask discussion questions:

(part 1)

• What is water above the ground called?
• Are all water bodies natural?
• Why might it be necessary to build a reservoir?

(part 2)

• What makes water drain from one area to another?
• Discuss the illustrations at the bottom of part 2. In which illustration would the water drain quickly? What would happen if plants were not growing on the slopes?

3. Have students read and discuss “Imagine that!” in part 2.

4. Have students read parts 3 and 4. Ask discussion questions:

(part 3)

• What does permeable mean?
• Through what soils does water move quickly?
• Why does water move slowly through clay?
• What does stormwater runoff mean?

(part 4)

• Name some examples of things storm water can pick up as it travels over land.
• Where might stormwater runoff go in rural areas?

5. Have students read and discuss “Imagine that!” in part 4.

FCAT-style questions based on the content of Lesson 3 have been prepared to assist students in preparing for the Florida Comprehensive Assessment Test.

• Lesson 3 FCAT-Style Questions
• FCAT Reading Rubric
• Sample Responses

1. Have students list examples of surface water bodies in their county and in northeast or east-central Florida. Let your students see how many water bodies they can name before posting the maps.

2. Have students determine where the school’s stormwater runoff drains.

• Are there steep or gentle slopes around the school yard?
• What types of pollution would this storm water pick up as it drains?

3. FCAT-Style Questions, Lesson 3 Online Quiz or Lesson 3 Quiz worksheets may be used.*

1. Have students navigate to the Lesson 3 Experiment, “A drainage basin with chocolate.”

2. Divide class into cooperative groups and have them read “What you will learn,” “What you will need” and “Here is what you do.”

3. Have each student begin the Make A Prediction lab report worksheet.

4. Have students do the experiment “A drainage basin with chocolate.” The emphasis here is that vegetation will slow down stormwater runoff and help filter out pollutants.

5. Have students answer “What do you think?”

6. Have students complete the Make A Prediction lab report worksheets and discuss.

7. Have students read and discuss “Make a difference!” Reinforce the potential dangers of pesticides. You may want to bring in containers or labels from home to show “good” examples. (Stormwater runoff will be discussed again in Lessons 7 and 8.)

8. Do the extra activity “Where is the surface water?” as a class activity or as homework. Students will need a county map for this activity.

Answers for the FCAT-style questions and the online and offline quizzes can be downloaded at answers.html. The quiz answer keys are password-protected. You can obtain the password by registering via a short form.