Freshwater Habitats
Background Information & Activities

Your children should understand that Earth is made up of different ecosystems, and their actions can affect the world around them. Review with your children that an ecosystem is a community of living things and their environment. Ecosystems can vary in size—from a puddle to an entire ocean. An ecosystem can host many different habitats, or places where plants and animals live. Plants and animals in a habitat rely on each other to survive. Your children should be familiar with different freshwater habitats such as ponds, lakes, rivers, and streams and their roles in the environment.

About three quarters of Earth is covered by water, but only 1% of it is freshwater. Freshwater is water that has very little salt in it and people as well as many plants and animals need freshwater to survive. A pond is a small body of fresh or salt water that is surrounded by land. The water is mostly still and some ponds freeze in the winter or dry up during drier weather. A pond can sustain a wide range of life, from microorganisms to mammals. Remind your children that plants and animals that live in or near a pond have special adaptations, or ways to survive in their environment. For example, the water lily has roots that grow at the bottom of a pond. It has a long stem that grows up in the water, and large flat leaves that float on top of the water to get sunlight. The water lily provides food and shelter for pond animals.

A stream or a river is a long body of moving water. Rivers and streams get their water from rain, but also from melting ice and snow in mountains. The longest river in the world is the Nile River in Africa, which flows through nine countries. Have your children think of rivers or streams near where they live. Discuss the plants and animals they have seen in and near these bodies of water, and think of other ways the water provides for the community (energy/transportation/drinking water). Point to different rivers on a map and discuss their importance to the area. Remind your children that plants and animals that live in or near rivers also have special adaptations to survive in their environment. Some plants that grow on river beds have strong, thick roots that prevent erosion and keep the plants from washing away. Animals such as otters have physical adaptations that help them swim in the water and move on land. Encourage your children to think of familiar animals and how they survive in their habitats. How do they move? How do they get food? What body parts do they use to get what they need to survive?

A lake is a large body of water that is surrounded by land. Some lakes are salt water, while others have fresh water. Lakes get their water from rain and some are fed by rivers and streams. Have your children think of nearby lakes and look for them on a map. Many people get their water from freshwater lakes. What might happen if our freshwater lakes and rivers got polluted? What might happen to the plants and animals?

Encourage good environmental practices and remind your children that they should treat the environment with respect. Their actions affect not just themselves, but other living things.

Freshwater Habitats Teacher Activities – Click Here!

Freshwater Habitats Family Activities – Click Here!

Freshwater Habitats Teacher Activities

Freshwater Habitat

If possible, take your students to a freshwater pond, river, stream, or lake. On your trip, have your students bring their notebooks to write down their observations. What animals do they see? What plants do they see? How do these living things rely on each other to live? How might the habitat change in the winter or summer? Have students write down their observations, draw pictures, or take photographs and create a class field guide for the area. You may also wish to do a scavenger hunt where you provide a list of pond animals or plants to observe and have your students find and study them.

Pond Mural

Create a mural of a pond habitat with the entire class. Students can pick different pond animals or plants and draw them, cut them out, and add them to the mural. Students can conduct research at the library or on the Internet to learn more about their plant or animals. Then they can write captions on index cards to add to the mural, describing each animal’s adaptations to its habitat, or write riddles about their animal so that viewers can try to match the riddle with the animals depicted. You may want students to prepare a short presentation about their plant or animal so they can share what they know with the entire class. Use this opportunity to talk about the importance of ponds to living things and to people and discuss different adaptations plants and animals have in order to survive in their environment.

Freshwater Habitats Family Activities

Clean Up

Together with your child or with the entire family participate in a clean-up day. You may want to check your local parks and recreation department for special opportunities. If possible, help clean up a pond, lake, river, or stream so your child can understand how people can negatively affect the environment and impact other living things. How can garbage or pollution affect plants and animals in an area?

Seasons

If possible visit a freshwater habitat such as a pond, river, stream, or lake during different seasons. Try to go to the same spot and have your child take make observations. What does a pond look like in the winter? What does it look like in the spring? When is the water level highest in a stream? When is it the lowest? You may want to bring different tools with you such as a waterproof ruler to measure water level. Your child can take photographs or draw pictures of the area during different seasons and make inferences. Where do the animals go during winter? How do they survive? Encourage your child to ask questions and make connections. You can look up more information at the library or on the Internet or by asking a park expert.