Students will visit and observe water in the Winters Creek Wildlife Refuge or nearby wetland through the use of the naked eye, "glass" bottom buckets and microscopes. 

Students will:

• Develop skills in observing and collecting data about life in water in a wetland.
• Generalize that wildlife is present in area all over the earth.
• Understand that contamination of the wetland water can harm the wildlife that lives there.

A1, A2, A4, A11, A14, B1, B3, B5, C3, C6, C7, C8, C13, E3

• "Glass" bottom buckets
• Microscopes

Items for "Create a Wetlands Creature:"

• Periscope (eyes on top of head)
• Nose plugs (able to close nostrils under water)
• Swimming flippers (webbed feet for faster water movement)
• Wet suit (protective skin and warmth)
• Down vest (warmth)
• Oil cans (oil glands to maintain water proof)
• Spear (long beak for food collection)
• Stilts (long legs for wading) 

A wetland is an area that is low lying and collects water or intersects the water table. There are a variety of wetlands including:

• The temporary wetland in a pasture or field
• A seasonal wetland, a place where the water is normally there during a specific season.
• A semi-permanent wetland that holds water throughout the summer and doesn’t dry out unless it is an unusually dry year.
• The permanent wetland that holds water throughout the year and only goes dry after the area has experienced several successive years of no precipitation.

Pollution that is put in wetland water can cause harm or kill the wildlife that relies on the water for a home or for drinking purposes. The balance of wildlife can be upset when one species is either eliminated or the number present is reduced drastically. When the balance is disturbed it can cause a chain reaction of problems for all wildlife living in the wetland area. Being aware of the results of pollution can help people be more responsible when making decisions about where to dump or throw pollutants away. 

1. The following activity to synthesize wetlands adaptations is used with permission from the Bronx Zoo. It originally was shared as part of their H.E.L.P curriculum training.

Create a Wetlands Creature:

1. Explain to students (with a twinkle in your eye) that scientists have found an amazing new wetland's creature right here in the area of your school. It was so exciting to see it and you can’t wait for the students to see it, too. This creature seems to be very well adapted to the wetlands. Maybe they can get an idea of what this new (imaginary) creature looks like.
2. Have a student volunteer come up to help you. You will "dress" this student with clothing and items, which symbolize adaptations for the wetlands environment. As you add each item to the student lead the children to discover why that item would be a helpful adaptation for the wetlands environment.
3. Enjoy the laughter as the "creature" is developed. Remind them if they see this new creature, they should report it to you immediately! As you remove items, review their function and adaptation concepts. Students might want to create and draw their own creatures with adaptive functions.

2. Discuss with students these concepts:

• Definition of a wetland.
• Importance of being respectful to the area, so as to preserve it.
• Where students might find wildlife living.
• Does wildlife only live in trees, bushes, tall grass, or hollow logs?
• What type of life would you find in water?

3. When you get to the wetland (Winters Creek is a great spot to do this activity) discuss the safety factor of being around the water if the wetland is very deep.
4. Sit along the edge of the water and talk about the environment and what needs of wildlife are being met here. What would the wetland look like, during a different season? How would changes in the lake, such as water temperature, water level, and plant life living or dying, affect wildlife such as fish? Are fish the only wildlife that would be affected?
5. Ask the students what they might see, if they could look on the bottom of the lake or pond? What life other than fish do you think you will see? How will the bottom of the pond look different than the ground around the lake or pond?
6. Let the students use the "glass" bottom buckets to look at the bottom of the lake and then collect samples to look at under the microscope.
7. Discuss what they observed and help the students draw the conclusion that wildlife is everywhere even though it may be too small for us to see without a microscope.
8. Have the students make observations of specific wildlife adaptations for living in the wetlands.
9. Take a jar of pond water back to the classroom to allow the students to continue observing and collecting data.

• Using the jar of pond water, develop experiments with your students to determine the effect of a variety of changes that could occur in a pond or lake.
• Divide the water into several smaller jars, observing what the water looks like under the microscope first, then freeze one sample, heat one sample, add a pollutant to the third such as oil. Then observe all of the samples again and draw conclusions as to what happens when nature or people change the balance of the water.

• Have students name three places where life can be found in the wetland.
• Students can name things they saw, heard, or smelled that proved to them that wildlife lives at the wetland.
• Name some adaptations of wetland creatures. 

• Project Wild Aquatic Activity Guide, 1992.

5430 Grosvenor Lane
Bethsada, MD 2081 Phone: (301) 493-5447

 

Materials:  

• 5 gallon plastic bucket
• Plexiglas - 1/4 inch thick
• Clear silicone sealer
• 4 inch square template from cardboard
• 4 1/4 inch square template from cardboard
• Optional: rivets 

Directions: 

1. Collect as many plastic 5-gallon buckets as you will need for your class activity. 
2. Use the 4-inch template to draw a square on the bottom of the bucket. 
3. Cut the square out of the bottom of the bucket. Drilling a starter hole on the bottom makes it easier to cut the square out. 
4. Cut a square of Plexiglas that is 1/4 inch larger around than the square in the bucket. 
5. Apply the clear silicone sealant liberally to the edge of the square in the bucket, then push the piece of Plexiglas into the sealant until some of it squishes out the edges. 
6. Optional: Drill a hole in each corner of the Plexiglas and put rivets in to help prevent water leakage.