Watery Wildlife

STAFFORDSHIRE WILDLIFE TRUST EDUCATION CENTRES

Programme: WATERY WILDLIFE (exploring the underwater world of ponds, lakes and rivers).

Suitable for Key Stages 1 and 2 and available as a half-day activity.

Watery Wildlife gives an insight into the diversity of life associated with freshwater. Children will investigate the type of creatures living in water, gain an understanding of the life cycles of some and look at the relationships between creatures (food chains/webs, etc.). Results are collected using simple identification keys. The activity can be adapted to focus on comparing the different watery habitats and to investigate different micro-environments.

ACTIVITY DETAILS
Watery Wildlife begins in the classroom with a discussion about pond and river life. Children are asked about what aquatic wildlife they have seen and what they expect to see today.  Slides illustrating the diversity of freshwater aquatic life can be shown if time allows.  An outline of the pond/river dipping activity is given; how best to sample for invertebrates and health and safety points. The children are split into groups and pond dipping equipment given to each group.

Pond/river dipping
After walking to the activity site, the children are told about the general ecology of the area, including an outline of what plants and larger animals can be found there. They are then shown simple invertebrate keys/identification charts (a variety of keys are available with varying degrees of complexity) and how to use them. A demonstration of how to pond/river dip is then given.

The children get into their groups and carry out the pond/river dipping activity, with an adult in each group. They sample using nets and observe what they have caught in a white tray. Once invertebrates have been caught, the following can be carried out:

• Identification of each invertebrate using a simple key.
• Looking at how species are adapted to their environment (for example how they move).
• Investigating which animals are herbivores and which are carnivores, and looking at relative numbers of each caught.
• Exploration of food chains and webs – what eats what?
• Exploration of similarities between these animals and animals that the pupils are already familiar with (such as hoglice and woodlice, pond snails and garden snails, etc.).
• Counting the numbers of different species found, and relating this to water quality and pollution.
• Recording species found and numbers caught.
• Filling in a ‘freshwater creature profile’ sheet, which allows a more detailed look at a particular animal.

Findings are recorded on an activity sheet. The activity can be repeated at both pond and river sites, and results compared and contrasted.

Return to classroom
On returning to the classroom, a list of all the invertebrates found is drawn-up. The session is concluded with a discussion about the children’s findings.


CURRICULUM LINKS

Key Stage 1
Watery Wildlife links with National Curriculum attainment targets in English, Science and Mathematics.
English        The whole speaking and listening section
Reading (2a, 2c, 7b)
Writing (1a, 2a, 9a, 9c, 9d)
Mathematics        Number (1g)
Science        Scientific enquiry (1, 2a, 2b, 2e, 2f, 2h)
Life processes and living things (1b, 1c, 2a, 2b, 2e, 2f, 2g, 4b, 5a, 5b, 5c)

Key Stage 2
Watery Wildlife links with National Curriculum attainment targets in English, Science and Mathematics.
English        The whole speaking and listening section
Reading (3a, 3d, 3e, 9b)
Writing (1b, 9b, 9d, 10)
Mathematics        Number (1f)
Science         Scientific enquiry (2a, 2b, 2e, 2i, 2j, 2k, 2l)
Life processes and living things (1a, 1c, 4a, 4b, 4c, 5a, 5b, 5c, 5d, 5e)