The assignment is designed for either an undergraduate hydrology or hydrogeology course. Modifications to the assignment could be made in order to be more appropriate for graduate students.

Students should have an understanding of the hydrologic cycle and the mass balance equation. Complete mastery of those concepts is not required. Familiarity with Excel is suggested, but again not required.

The exercise is introduced after a discussion of both the hydrologic cycle and the water budget (mass balance) equation.

Through modeling, both conceptual and mathematical, students will analyze the roles of the various water pathways on the reservoirs within a basin.

Students will create a conceptual model of the hydrologic cycle for a basin. Using the conceptual model, students will design a mathematical model using Excel. Through variations in the input (or output) parameters, students will evaluate how various changes in the hydrologic cycle affect the basin.

Students will gain experience in using Excel.

This exercise is designed to evaluate the students' understanding of both the hydrologic cycle and the water budget (mass balance) equation. In my course, the exercise is the students' first exposure to models in the course. While the exercise may seem basic, students gain experience in creating conceptual models and then generating mathematical models from the conceptual model. The exercise provides students with an introduction (or refresher) to some basic Excel formulas. Finally, the exercise can be modified to include more "what if" scenarios that require critical thinking and analysis from the students.

Students submit the conceptual model, the Excel spreadsheet, and answers to the questions for grading.