About the River Habitat Program

In 2003, AWS launched this exciting program to meet the needs of teachers of third, fourth, and fifth grade students. This program is adapted from the Watershed Explorers program and is designed to support and enhance elementary school science curriculum standards. The focus of the program is on animal adaptation and habitat needs. River Habitat supports science and social studies standards that require students to make a connection between school and community, and to apply science in a real life context.

Students learn about the wildlife residents of the Anacostia River and study the adaptations they've made in order to survive. The students also learn how land use practices inside the watershed impact the animals' ability to use the river as their home. Other skills taught through this program include map-reading, identification of common animals, and the evaluation of the impact human lifestyle choices residents can enhance or change in order to have a positive impact on the river. The program is set up to include three in-classroom lectures and discussions and one field study experience on the tidal Anacostia River. A service-learning restoration event is included in the third classroom session on the school grounds or may involve an off campus restoration at another time.

River Habitat Curriculum

The Belted Kingfisher is a common sight on the Anacostia.

Day 1—

Adapted for Survival (animals in the Anacostia River habitat).

This session introduces students to habitat requirements and discusses features of animals that are native to river environments. The focus is on birds and their adaptations for food gathering. The bald eagle, osprey, egret and greats blue heron are featured. Students are asked to make a list of things an animal living in a river would need to be able to survive and to complete a specially designed puzzle-page to help them retain this knowledge.

RH students learn about the link between plants and water quality on the rivier.

Day 2—

Plants and Water Quality (healthy habitat)

Students learn how plants keep the river clean. A review of additional information is discussed concerning the animals found in the Anacostia Watershed and students are asked to look at the adaptations for survival and the need for a healthy habitat. Students will begin to analyze and identify problems in the watershed that have an impact on the wildlife population. One activity is for students to look at a picture of a watershed and identify degrading factors that exist, then to draw the same watershed without the polluting components.

Day 3—

Restoration Efforts in the Anacostia Watershed

This is an exciting service-learning experience. Students participate in a restoration activity on the school grounds, such as cleaning up trash and debris, tree-planting or wetland restoration projects in the mudflats of the Anacostia River. Students also study and work with maps to find the location of the Anacostia River and their proximity to it. This activity helps students to better understand the relationship of the Anacostia River and its tributaries to the Chesapeake Bay.

RH students on a pontoon tour.

Day 4—

Pontoon tour and viewing the wildlife on the tidal Anacostia

This is a field study experience where students will learn how to identify wildlife and to conduct water quality tests (including temperature, pH, turbidity and some basic chemical analyses) and hear more about the historical and social aspect of what they see. The focus is to expose the students to the habitat they have been studying and to show them a healthy way (both for the river and them) to enjoy it. Students are instructed to write a letter describing their experience on the river and indicate specifically what they are going to do to keep the Anacostia River healthy.

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