Trace a watershed

Supplied materials

• All measurements and observations below are supplied classroom examples. They are not data from actual learners or a claim about a particular real site.
• Paper or a browser document for a labeled drawing, table or explanation.
• Worked problem inputs: A supplied stream map connects an upstream waste source to a downstream pond. Explain the pathway and the evidence gap.
• Assessment case 1: Three model slopes drain toward one river outlet. What happens to upstream runoff? Which inference or prediction is best supported?
• Assessment case 2: Which scientific label fits the specifically described step or feature? Supplied case: Ridge separates two drainage areas.
• Assessment case 3: Which scientific label fits the specifically described step or feature? Supplied case: Site before another along water route.
• Assessment case 4: Which scientific label fits the specifically described step or feature? Supplied case: Site after another along water route.
• Assessment case 5: Which scientific label fits the specifically described step or feature? Supplied case: High ground splits drainage directions.
• Assessment case 6: A spill is modeled upstream with a connected flow path to a later site. What is warranted? Which inference or prediction is best supported?

Learn the idea

A watershed is land draining toward a common outlet. Boundaries often follow high ground. Water and transported materials can connect upstream actions to downstream effects.

Watershed means land draining to a common outlet. Divide means boundary separating drainage areas. Upstream means location closer to the water source. Downstream means location later along flow path.

For the supplied mechanism problem, A supplied stream map connects an upstream waste source to a downstream pond. Explain the pathway and the evidence gap. Water can transport material downstream along the mapped connection. The map supports a possible pathway, but measurements are needed to establish contaminant amount and actual impact.

1. Read the supplied problem and mark the structures, processes or quantities named: A supplied stream map connects an upstream waste source to a downstream pond. Explain the pathway and the evidence gap.
2. Draw the relevant boundary, pathway or comparison and label it using the scientific ideas above.
3. Write a causal explanation or calculation, showing how each observation supports the result.
4. Compare your reasoning with the worked solution; name a condition that would change or limit the inference.

Check your reasoning

Your answer is temporary and is not saved to an account. Download your current answer before leaving or reloading. Written work on paper or in another app stays in your own file.

Take it further

New task: draw two hillsides separated by a ridge, each draining to a different outlet. Expected: label the divide and two watersheds; do not route downhill water across the ridge without a stated mechanism.

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