Teaching Activities

Flood Days and Good Canoeing Days at Congaree National Park
Mark C. Rains (University of South Florida), David C. Shelley (National Parks Service) and Len Vacher (University of South Florida) Cover page by Len Vacher, University of South Florida
SSAC Geology of National Parks module/Geology of National Parks course. Students calculate probabilities using USGS hydrograph data, a spreadsheet of daily stage heights, and the COUNTIF function.

Stream Gages and GIS
Brian Welch
Utilize the online GIS of the USGS real-time stream gage network to introduce basic concepts of data-driven maps and GIS. This exercise can be used independently or with other hydrology exercises. -

Floods over time: death vs. destruction
Anna Tary, Bentley University
This exercise looks at the dollar losses and deaths caused by flooding in the US, and at the causes of, and relationships between the two trends.

Rivers: Short In-class Activity
Heather Macdonald, College of William and Mary
Images of the James River in Virginia, including one at flood stage, and of potholes, all of which can be used to have the students make observations, estimates, and interpretations. -

Floods on the Minnesota River
Ben Laabs, SUNY College at Geneseo
Students download and manipulate data from historical floods on the Minnesota River (could be done for any river) and use to establish a flood hazard zone for St. Peter, Minnesota. This lab was developed by ...

Analysis of USGS Discharge and Channel Geometry Gage Data
Andrew Wilcox, University of Montana-Missoula, The
Analysis of USGS peak flow and streamflow measurements (velocity, channel geometry) data.

The 1997 floods of Bozeman Creek, Montana
William Locke, Montana State University-Bozeman
This project involved student provocation of community response along a local creek in response to accumulation of twice-normal winter snowpack in the winter of 1996-7.

Flooding
Contributed by Carol Ormand, Wittenberg University. Related Links Floods and Flooding Recurrence Intervals Probability
Students calculate recurrence intervals for various degrees of flooding based on historical data. Students then do a risk assessment for the surrounding community.

The Grand Canyon
Rebecca Teed, Wright State University-Main Campus
This interdisciplinary lesson plan deals with the consequences of damming in the Grand Canyon area. The students, role-playing as scientists, write a proposal to try experimental flooding. -

Floods on the Minnesota River
James Welsh, Gustavus Adolphus College
In this lab, students make a flood hazard map for the city of St. Peter, MN.

Lahar Risk Assessment
Declan De Paor, Old Dominion University
Students act as first responders assessing Lahar risks associated with eruptions. Teacher sets an alert placemark on the Google Earth web browser plug-in and gives students X minutes to decide whether to evacuate a down-slope town. Students collaborate by text messages.

Flood Recurrence Intervals
Norlene Emerson, university of wisconsin - richland
This lab activity has students use stream discharge data obtained from the USGS Water Resources Division web site in order to calculate recurrence intervals for a local stream. Using the recurrence data generated, ...

Quantifying Our Stream: A Field Lab on Stream Channel Morphology and Stream Discharge
Emma Agosta, Shoreline Community College
In this field and lab activity, students will collect field data and take measurements at specified cross-sections at a local stream. They will later analyze in lab the data collected and use it to calculate stream discharge and to draw conclusions about stream channel dynamics.

Using Google Earth Layers to Understand Local Geomorphology
Ralph Hitz, Tacoma Community College
Using Google Earth to understand how geomorphology may control shallow groundwater flooding and surface hydrology.

Old Sticks in the Mud: Hazards of Lahars from Mount Rainier Volcano
Patrick Pringle, Centralia College
Volcanic debris flows (lahars) flow long distances, bury and aggrade river valleys, and cause long-term stream disturbances and dramatic landscape changes. Students will evaluate the nature, scale, and history of ...