Water in the World:
Pollution and the Minnesota River
Developed by Juli Peterson
Science Teacher, Bloomington Valley View Middle School, MN
Topic - Pollution and the Minnesota River
Grade & Subject - 7th grade science class
Objective - Introduce the students to some basic history of the Minnesota River and what are some of the factors that have led to its pollution. It has proceeded a Service Learning day where the students go out into the community and do different projects in the city - some doing “clean-up.”
Introduction - Due to the fact that the Minnesota River runs the length of the southern border of our city ( Bloomington ) we have a discussion about how many students have been into the river bottoms, what were their reasons for being there and what were their impressions of the river and the area surrounding it. We then talk about what they know about the history of the river.
Activities -
1. History of the Minnesota River. Using the PowerPoint (Who Polluted the MN River) I go through a general history of how the Minnesota River was formed.
2. Uses of the Minnesota River. How is the river used differently now than it was in the past?
3. Google Earth - This can either be done individually or in front of the class. Choose different points along the MN river and determine what are the uses of the land that border the river. Then discuss how those uses might affect the quality of the water in the river. Prairie vs. corn crop, animals vs. wetland, parking lots etc.
4. Determine what are some of the uses of the river itself and what impact does that have on the river. (Boating, transportation etc)
Wrap - up
Determine what % of our city’s water comes from the Minnesota River and how our activities around and in the river might effect our drinking water. What can students do to help with water quality?