Children will benefit significantly from learning about the parts of a river. Our Parts of a River material encompasses many other natural processes studied in the Montessori Geography curriculum: types of clouds, the water cycle, glaciers and glacial landforms, and land and water forms.
Alison’s Montessori
Water found on land originates from snow and rain. The precipitation then follows a course on land until it reaches a lake, a sea, or an ocean. There are three types of courses, also known as zones: the source zone (upper course), the transition zone (middle course), and the floodplain zone (lower course). Each zone contains distinctive characteristics. The source zone is steep, allowing water to run fast to the next zone. The transition zone is less steep. Erosion and deposition are well balanced, creating a stable terrain for the river to flow. Some tributaries also feed the river from runoff water that meets the mainstream river. Meanders are formed in the floodplain zone where obstructions such as large boulders force water to take a different path. The floodplain is usually flatter than the transition zone, so the water begins to slow down, pushing the water to expand in width. At the bottom of a river, the terrain is flat, causing a slower flow and sediment deposit (silt, alluvium), making the soil rich in minerals.
Materials
- Parts of a River Wooden Puzzle with Control Chart and Wooden Arrows
(the parts represented are: river, source zone, transition zone, floodplain, ocean, sediment, glacier, waterfall, rain and snow, rapids, lake, tributary, floodplains, oxbow lake, delta, salt marsh) - Parts of a River Classified Nomenclature Cards
(includes booklet, control chart, reproducible booklet, reproducible blackline master)
How to Use the Materials
When children have studied the parts of a river, they can transfer this knowledge to other topics such as the Fertile crescent, windward sides of mountains, and the water cycle. To present our puzzle “Parts of a River,” you may have pictures of different rivers worldwide (Amazon river, Nile river, Yangtze river, Yellow river, Mississippi river) and an Atlas. Have children name some of the rivers they know. Let them observe and discuss the similarities and differences among the pictures. Children can search for rivers in their own country using an Atlas and follow the trajectory of a river, from its source to its mouth. Following an introduction, present the parts of a river using our puzzle. Remove each piece from top to bottom and label the parts. Read the Nomenclature Cards descriptions and place them in a vertical fashion (the control card on the left, the picture on the right, the label below the picture). Invite children to see where the material is located on the shelf. They may work with the materials independently at any time. You may provide children with a copy of the backline masters to color and label the parts.
To provide children with a memorable concrete experience, have children create labels with the parts of a river glued on toothpicks. Take the children to a sandy place (sandbox, beach,) and let children create their own model of the parts of a river. As an extension, children can also create their own 3-dimensional models of the Parts of a River using salt dough. The model should be painted and labeled. A 3D model would reflect how water, under the force of gravity and inertia, descends from the source (high altitude) to the mouth (low altitude.)
Our Puzzles as a complete set are all inclusive. The puzzle is a perfect manipulative that offers children a tangible way to process knowledge and repeat the experience. The Nomenclature Cards are designed to respond to a variety of learners. Cards can be matched according to children’s level of comfort with the newly acquired knowledge.
Make sure to check out our curriculum materials designed to support the Montessori geography curriculum: Parts of a Mountain, Parts of a Fold Mountain, Glaciers and Glacial Landforms, Layers of the Ocean, Layers of the Earth and Its Atmosphere, and many more!
