Watershed Investigations

Deep Dive for Title I Schools

Our deep dive, watershed investigation is a program for educators and students in grades 6-8 in the Pontchartrain Basin. It is inquiry-driven and hands-on.

Our educators will provide an orientation session at the beginning of the semester. Students will learn what a watershed is and identify possible issues to investigate through fieldwork near their school.

Once a month for a semester, students will conduct relevant tests on their chosen field site. These field visits provide the perfect opportunity for students to be exposed to actual data collection, as well as graphing and charting their data, forming hypotheses, and drawing conclusions as they learn how the data they collect on each testing parameter correlates with the others.

At the end of the semester, your students present the data they collected in the format of their choice to the audience of their choice.

Equipment for the investigations is provided by PC. It may include water quality testing kits, micro-plastics filtration equipment, aquatic macro-invertebrate equipment, etc.

We are currently accepting applications for Fall 2023. If you are interested in participating in this program, please complete our online application here.

Expectations

What you can expect from us...

One visit a month for a full semester: an orientation (at school), three field days, and a presentation day (at school)
Access to relevant equipment for use in the watershed investigations
Guidance for the duration of the program and facilitation at each visit
Online and digital materials and lesson plans to help extend the learning between visits.

What we can expect from you...

Coordinating of logistics for each visit including buses, lunches, chaperones
Timely return of materials including photo releases, evaluations, etc
Engaged chaperones for field visits who work with students as they rotate between activities
Integration of the Watershed Investigation into the weeks between visits using provided materials

FAQ

How many students can participate? All of one educator's students can be included in the program. The actual number will vary depending on the number of classes you teach. This number averages about 85 students for each semester.
Do all students participate at the same time? No. Each class will rotate in to orientation, individual investigations, and data collection with PC educators. Other classes can be engaged in related activities, or content determined by the educators acting as chaperones. This is to ensure hands-on, high-quality interactions with PC educators and equipment for each class.
Does this program have any fees? No. We facilitate the program and provide the equipment for free to Title I schools. The schools provide transportation and lunches for field days.
Can we have more than one day a month? Though we want the watershed investigation to be a semester long experience, PC educators will only be physically present with your students once a month. However, support can be offered throughout the semester via the online and digital resources designed to extend the learning.
Do I already have to know a lot about a watershed and what we would be investigating? No. This program is designed for educators who will benefit from the hands-on and facilitated aspects of this program.

Spotlight: Roseland Montessori, Tangipahoa Parish, Fall 2019

Educator: Heather Chadwick

Grade: 7th & 8th

Number of students: 87

Location: Roseland, LA

Investigation question: How does the water quality of the Tangipahoa River compare to our nearby quarry water?

Orientation to dissolved oxygen kits

Testing dissolved oxygen in the field

Testing the river's water clarity

Ms. Chadwick tests the river's salinity