The Juniata Clean Water Partnership (JCWP) has been assisting community groups,
organizations, and area schools in implementing watershed conservation projects,
activities, and environmental education throughout the region for years.
The JCWP is a non-profit coalition
of conservation groups, county planners, conservation districts, watershed
associations, and citizens. JCWP
can help area teachers meet the Pennsylvania Academic Standards for Environment
and Ecology by providing environmental education programs or field trips.
Educational programs include a variety of hands on activities, experiments, and
live animals. Most of the activities are designed for one classroom
at a time, but most can be adapted to larger audiences. All programs can
be adjusted to meet the needs and interests of the group. Each lesson's
objective addresses one or more of the Pennsylvania Standards for Environment
and Ecology. All the educational programs are free
of charge to any school, home school, library, civic or youth group based in
The activities can include Live Macroinvertebrates, EnviroScape, Abandoned Mine Drainage (AMD) Field Trip, Watershed Presentation, Wetland Field Trip, Invasive Species Presentation, or any other requested related subject or field trip. The educational programs would demonstrate (depending on the specific program) the water cycle, dynamics of watersheds, physical factors, characteristics and functions of wetlands, and impacts of watersheds and wetlands. The students will be able to become active participants and problem solvers with real environmental issues affecting them, their homes, and their communities. They will become aware of how they affect their own drinking water and their own environmental surroundings.
For more information, contact the JCWP office at 814-506-1190 or by e-mail at jcwp@jcwp.org.
Examples of Activity Lesson Plans
EnviroScape
The
activity will consist of using the EnviroScape Model to demonstrate the role of
the local watershed, how real world actions affect the health of the
environment, how watersheds and wetlands impact humans, and how water quality
affects aquatic animals and the environment. Students
will learn to identify pollutions, discuss ways to reduce or eliminate
pollutions, and identify what a watershed is and consists of.
The affects of pollution will be demonstration on the model.
Live Macroinvertebrates
The students will identify various types of water
environments, explain the difference between lotic and lentic water systems,
identify Macroinvertebrates, identify the affects of water quality on the life
of organisms, explain bio diversity, and to describe how human actions can
affect the health of the local environment. Depending on the setting, JCWP will
either bring live macros into the class room or assist the students collecting
live macros from a stream or river on a fieldtrip.
AMD Field Trip
The students will visit an Acid Mine Drainage
reclamation site to see the process of treating the contaminated water and the
impacts of both the untreated and treated water on the environment.
Other agencies might be invited to help teach the treatment process.
Wetland Field Trip
Students
will learn about wetlands soils, water, plants and animals in a variety of
activities and games. They will learn the defining characteristics of a
wetland and watershed, why wetlands are important to protect, and how to
identify wetlands in their home communities. This is a hands-on field
trip.