Water World – Unit Of Work

This unit of work introduces students to the significance of water from its source through to it being bottled and being a course of conflict. The features of rivers are explored along with the hydrological cycle and how rivers are used. The students carry out and write up an investigation studying how different surfaces react to water which leads into the human and physical causes of flooding, looking specifically at the Queensland Floods and the social, economic, and environmental impacts. Hard and soft engineering techniques are discussed within a ‘decision making exercise.’

Water as a right and conflict is debated. Drawing upon The Ilisu Dam, Turkey, the students debate from various countries points of view its construction. This leads to the debate around bottled water and how fact and opinion can sway viewpoints. The human and physical impacts of shortage of water are reviewed in addition to short and long-term aid.

A range of individual and group activities are incorporated within this booklet, including, gathering research from print and video, annotating maps, students thoughts and ideas, drawing graphs, participating in group investigations and discussions, and writing up their findings appropriately.