Host an Event
"Science isn't a collection of facts. Science is a way of knowing."
-- M. Whitmore, Science Educator
"Everywhere that land exists on Earth is in a watershed, and all watersheds on Earth are connected to each other through the planetary hydrologic cycle. No matter where on the planet they are found or what the local environment is like, all watersheds have these eight characteristics. "
--Mary Manner, LTTR Naturalist
Supported by a National Science Foundation Grant - Informal Science Division
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Plan an Event
Go to the Watershed Discovery section in the Community Guide for complete details on:
- The underlying principles we applied to all activities
- Our list of essential watershed terms and characteristics
- Discussion of delivery models
- Menu of activities
- Field trip planning
- Sample forms, cover letters, schedules, surveys (see appendix)
Three different options for planning events emerged from the Listening to the River project work. Based on decisions you make about age groupings, amount of time available, and how many local organizations are involved, your community can choose to use them in combination - or as stand-alone offerings.
Program delivery models: What works best?
A Three-Day (24-30- hour) Workshop: This is a 24- 30-hour (minimum) series that combines an overview of watershed science and introduction to the equipment with extended time both in the field collecting data and in the multi-media production lab, leading to more polished products for the LTTR web site, radio spots and video documentation. The workshop could be organized as a:
- Three- or four-day institute during a school break;
- Weekly After-school Workshop Series Weekly or week-long summer class;
- Media Mentor working with one or two youth on an on-going bases.
A One-Day, Focused Event co-hosted with another local organization, such as:
- SoundWalks - where and organization sponsors an early morning or late evening walk with a naturalist/audio producer team to record wildlife and then returns to the multi-media lab to upload the data onto the LTTR web site.
- Family Hike and Geocaching Adventure - A community day Geocaching and watershed exploration event for families or groups
- Information/Recruitment Session - A 1.5 hour overview offered at the key organization or on site at a school or club meeting. Agenda includes a project overview, GPS simulation activity, a sneak preview of the equipment tool kits, the digital mapping concept, and an outline of watershed discovery options, time commitments and expectations.
A Single-Media Academy, offered over an extended time (e.g., Radio Academy)
The three models vary in how much time is spent on each of the five core topics that make up the Watershed Discovery Experience and in how much actual media production is done by the participants, but all three adhere to the guiding principles described below.
Watershed Discovery
The Watershed Discovery process forms the basis of the LTTR program. Direct experiences in a local watershed provide project participants with a starting point for learning watershed science concepts, collecting visual images and audio clips, and preparing to tell a nature-based story.
Four main topic areas make up the core of the Watershed Discovery process:
- Watershed Science Concepts
- Technology/Media Capture
- Media Production
- Story/Product Development
Goal of the Watershed Discovery (WD) Activities
The WD activities engage teens in direct exploration of their watershed community so they gain understanding of watershed concepts and acquire new skills in using technology to create multi-media stories. These stories contribute to increased public understanding of the wonder, mystery and science of watersheds.
The Watershed Discovery events, no matter what the length, involve learning that is focused on gaining understanding of the watershed, using state-of-the-art technology as the vehicle. The challenge to participants - via guided inquiry - is to discover and gain knowledge and refine skills so their Watershed Discovery experience contributes to what people know about their watershed.
Ultimately, the participants' perceptions and increasing knowledge are transformed to tell the stories of their watersheds via radio broadcasts (SoundScapes), video or photo documentaries and interactive maps on the project web site (MediaScapes), or in exhibits (WaterScapes). These stories are springboards to stewardship for both the youth producers and the community audiences that hear and see them.
Guiding principles for all LTTR activities and events:
- Youth and adults choose to participate because they have a highly personalized interest;
- The concepts and issues explored are of concern to the residents of a given watershed;
- A process of inquiry-based science investigation is modeled: e.g., information is gathered through observation and direct experience;
- Hands-on, authentic and relevant watershed science, technology and media production experiences for youth are offered in a mentored environment;
- Youth are given the tools to meaningfully interpret this information using appropriate technology to disseminate and communicate findings to the larger community.
Essential Watershed Characteristics
LTTR developed a description of eight essential watershed characteristics (in bold below), grouped into four categories, to be used throughout ALL program events and activities as we describe watersheds.
Essential Watershed Characteristics - Adopted by LTTR Programs
Change: Watersheds are constantly changing through natural processes and human activity. Seasons influence the input and output of water, rivers shift their channels, hillsides erode-even rocks have a "life cycle"! The change can be slow and steady-or, in the case of hurricanes, floods and earthquakes, dynamic and dramatic.
Community: A Watershed is a community of plants and animals connected by the flow of water. It might contain a single ecosystem-like a desert, but more likely contains two or more over-lapping ecosystems. A watershed defines a community of people, too, based on a natural resource boundary rather than political or economic borders.
Movement of Water: All the water that falls on land goes somewhere. Some of it evaporates. Some of it stays in the upper soil levels to support plant life. Some of it percolates through the soil and becomes groundwater. As water flows along the gradient (slope), it carries materials and does work. The water that doesn't soak into the soil or become groundwater drains off the land, ultimately flowing to a common outlet. Remember these key words: input/output, drainage, energy transfer.
Topography: The shape of the land's surface and underlying geology control the flow of water and the boundaries of the watershed. Ridges, called drainage divides, separate watersheds. Watersheds can be as big as a continent (or even a planet) or as small as the area that drains into a puddle in your backyard. Water flows downhill, following the gradient (slope) of the watershed. In our global watershed, the oceans are at the lowest level, so most continental water flows into the ocean.
Support Materials*
- Guiding Principles for Watershed Discovery
- Essential Watershed Characteristics cards
- A Guide for Planning Your Watershed Media Project
- Watershed Discovery 24-hour Event by Topics and Staffing Needs
- Three Day (24-hour) Watershed Discovery Full Schedule
- Watershed Discovery Component Activity Menu, Descriptions and Instructions
- Field Trip Preparation Guide
- Quick Survey on Watershed Discovery Sessions
- Hands-on Watershed Essential Activities for Young Kids
- Radio Academy Purpose and Parent Information Sheet
- Radio Academy: 10 Possible Ways to Get Started on a Radio Story
This page last updated on 1/13/2010.
For more information, contact LIAA: 324 Munson Ave. | Traverse City, MI 49686 | 231-929-3696 | info@liaa.org | www.liaa.org