Pre-Visit Lesson Suggestions:
exploring nature

Background Information

Natural resources are materials found in or on the earth that are used by humans and other living things. Two of our most precious natural resources are water and soil.

Water is life – we can’t survive without it. We need clean water for drinking, for showers and baths, to cook with, to swim in… All of the water that exists here on Earth is the same water that was here during the time of the dinosaurs! There will never be any new water. That same water continues to move through the water cycle: precipitation, evaporation, condensation, precipitation… and it happens all over again. We must work together to protect our water and keep it clean since we can never get any new water!

Soil is another very important natural resource in Iowa. Think of all the different things that we can grow in our soil! We have some of the richest, most fertile soil in the whole world, and this allows us to grow many different plants and crops. We must work together to protect our soil, as well, for us and all of the living creatures that depend on it.
 

Vocabulary

Watershed: An area of land that drains to a common point
Natural Resources: Materials found in nature that are used by humans and other living things
Pollution: Waste found in nature that doesn’t belong
Bacteria: Germs
Organism: Living thing
Nutrients: Things in food that help us grow (vitamins and minerals)
Soil: Medium that plants grow in
Erosion: When soil is washed or blown away
Residue: Dead or decaying plants
Parent Material: Rocks that break down and become soil
Conserve: Save, keep, or protect

Books

A River Ran Wild by Lynne Cherry
The Water’s Journey by Elinore Schmid
Jump Into Science: Dirt by Steve Tomacek
Dirty Gert by Tedd Arnold
Dirt Boy by Erik Slangerup
The Life and Times of the Ant by Charles Micucci

Videos

Music Videos:
We All Live in a Watershed
Conservation Dogs
What Does a River Want To Do

Adventures of the Conservation Pack
      Episode 3 (Video and Worksheet)
      Episode 6 (Video and Worksheet)
      Episode 8 (Video and Worksheet)
      Episode 9 (Video and Worksheet)
      Episode 18 (Video and Worksheet)