Why People Build Near Water

Supplied materials

• Paper and pencil; drawing or spoken answers are welcome.
• Topic notes: Drinking supply: water used to meet people’s drinking needs. Irrigation: supplying water to crops. Transport: moving people or goods along a water route. Flood risk: the possibility of water covering normally dry land.
• Original exercise cards: A fictional town treats river water for its drinking system. / A fictional farm sends canal water to dry fields. / A fictional boat carries cargo down a river. / A fictional river overflows onto homes during heavy rain. / A grower waters crops using stored water. / A ferry takes passengers across a bay. / A low-lying neighborhood is marked as vulnerable to overflowing water. / Residents obtain safe drinking water from a well.

Learn the idea

Water can support drinking supplies, farming and transportation, but flood risk also matters. A location can have both benefits and risks. These fictional cards distinguish uses of water and a hazard; no single feature proves a settlement is safe or suitable.

Drinking supply: water used to meet people’s drinking needs. Irrigation: supplying water to crops. Transport: moving people or goods along a water route. Flood risk: the possibility of water covering normally dry land.

Look for water used for drinking, crops or travel, or water overflowing onto dry land. Ask an adult to read the notes and cards aloud. Point, draw or say your answer.

1. Ask an adult to read the four notes. Find the words Drinking supply, Irrigation, Transport, Flood risk.
2. Look for water used for drinking, crops or travel, or water overflowing onto dry land.
3. Read the worked answer. Then try the other cards and explain which words helped you choose.
4. Point to, draw or say two different examples: one for Drinking supply and one for Irrigation. Explain how their clues differ.

Check your reasoning

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Take it further

New card: “Residents obtain safe drinking water from a well.” Match it with a note, then point to or say the words that helped. Check: The card says: “Residents obtain safe drinking water from a well.” That matches Drinking supply. Drinking supply is water used to meet people’s drinking needs.

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