delta landform model river channel sediments

What are ways that rain might affect the land? Could typical rainfall change the shape of the land? Record your answers in your notebook.

Read the introduction and look for key ideas

How can moving sediments create problems for construction?

Complete the procedure and record your data

SCORING GUIDE: Group Interaction

How do your observations relate to the topography of Boomtown? Share your thoughts with the class.

What landforms in Boomtown correspond to the top of the model?

What area of Boomtown corresponds to the bottom of the model?

Why do you think an area of sand built up in the catch basin in your model? Share your thoughts with the class.

Analysis question 1 a. How is your river model like a real river? b. How is it not like a real river?

Analysis question 2 Describe the biggest changes that you observed during the river model investigation.

Analysis question 3 Observe the photograph at right. It shows a river at the bottom of a canyon with hard rock walls. a. Explain how the water flowing down the river created the canyon. b. Explain what happened to the rock that once filled up the canyon.

Analysis question 4 How did the movement of sediments help make each of the following landforms? a. marsh b. hillside c. cliff

Analysis question 5 How could the movement of sediments cause a problem if someone builds on: a. Delta Marsh b. Green Hill c. Seaside Cliff

How can moving sediments create problems for construction?

Key vocabulary definitions Delta - A fan-shaped area that develops in the flat, low area where a river empties into a large body of water. Landform - A feature of the earth’s surface such as a lake, stream, valley, canyon, hill, ridge, or mountain.

Key vocabulary definitions Model - Any representation of a system, or its components, to help one study and understand how it works. River channel - The depression in the land through which a river flows.

Key vocabulary definitions Sediments - Small bits of decomposed earth materials such as rocks, minerals, and shells.

Investigate Investigate how the steepness of the land affects the movement of sediments in the river model. Model a steeper hill by placing a book or books under the base of the river model and then repeat the investigation. Compare your results from the steeper slope with those from the less steep slope.