Aims and objectives
This complete set of interactive activities introduces students
to rivers and bridges. They will find out how the water cycle works
and, as well as going on a guided tour of a river system, they also
will learn about bridge types and their construction.
Previous knowledge
Students will need to have a basic understanding of how to read
maps and an awareness of river systems. Some background information
relating to bridges and their construction would be advantageous.
In the classroom
This activity takes students on an interactive tour of rivers and
bridges in and around the Hull area. The tour is divided into 2
sections: Rivers and Bridges.
In the Rivers section, the students are presented with an interactive
tour of a river system which extends the students’ geographical
vocabulary. They can then test what they have learned by taking
the River System Test. They can learn how the water cycle works
and relate this to the rivers in their local area. This information
on the local area will provide a bridge between the classroom and
the real world. There are three tasks that will encourage independent
research. These tasks, together with outline maps of the UK and
the local area, are all printable.
In the Bridges section, the students are guided through the different
types and construction of bridges. There are fact files for use
in independent research on local bridges. Whilst carrying out the
Types of Bridge activity, they can also complete the Timeline activity.
Both sections have a fun quiz in which the students can test their
knowledge of river systems and bridges. The Rivers Quiz consists
of 10 questions and the Bridges Quiz tests knowledge of different
types of bridge using photographs of local bridges.
The Rivers and Bridges activity can be used in the classroom as
part of a Geography or Science scheme of work based around a topic
on the local area. The water cycle activity in the Rivers section
is suitable for use at KS2 and above and the other activities can
be used at KS3. Students could work on the tasks individually or
in groups. The class could be divided so that one group researches
bridges and the other rivers, and the work is shared later in discussion.
The Rivers activities can be carried out in the classroom and the
tasks could then be used as a homework activity. The inclusion of
photographs, technical details and grid references can support field
trips to the locations in the activity. This could also be used
as the basis for a Design and Technology activity where the pupils
make their own bridges using the knowledge they have acquired.
| Support materials description: |
Resource type: |
| There is also a sample Scheme of Work covering
the Water Cycle available. Included
are medium term plans and lesson plans for use in the classroom,
a suggested book list and additional web links. |
Notes.htm |
Curriculum references
KS2 Geography 1a 2acdfg 3ab 4b 6ac
KS2 Science Sc1 Sc3 2e
KS2 History 4a 7
KS3 Geography 1a 2acdfg 3ac 4ab 6d(ii) 7ab
KS3 Science Sc1 Sc4 2befg
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