BIOGRAPHY OF A RIVER

answer depends on many factors such as the size and type of surface waterbody.Discuss the types and characteristics of surface water. What differences would theability of light to reach various levels have on the characteristics of a lake?B. This activity will introduce students to features of a lake that contribute tooverturning (or layering) and familiarize them with the terminology.II.ActivityA. Give the students a copy of the Background Information.B. When all have completed reading, divide the class into 4 (or multiples of 4)groups giving each group a large sheet of paper with either Fall, Spring, Summer, orWinter written on the top and a box of crayons.C. Instruct each group to draw a representative lake during the assigned seasonincluding both of the two categories (depth and temperature). Ask students to beprepared to explain to the class how or if the process of overturning takes place during theirassigned season. (This could also be done on a chalkboard, white board, or drawn on acomputer.)D. For a temperature inversion experiment:1. Put a volume of cold water in a glass jar followed by a smaller volumeof hot water that has food coloring in it. Try adding the hot water to thejar containing the cold water without disturbing the cold water too much(use a small funnel with tubing attached and a soup ladle).2. With the funnel and tubing, pour the water into the soup ladle first,letting it gradually fill up with hot water. Then gently overflow to thesurface of the cold water. Do this for two jars, keeping the volumes consistentbetween the two.3. Take a fan and direct airflow over the top of one of the jars. Observe howthis wind affects the stratification of the water in the jar (similar to windon a lake).4. Repeat, but keep one jar at room temperature and the other jar hotter orcolder and compare the changes in the two.y y