Rivers

The drainage basin

http://techalive.mtu.edu/meec/module01/HydrologicCycleQuiz.htm

The hydrological cycle

• Listen to the song....see what you can remember from last week

Keywords

• Geog.GCSE, P74• Q3: match up the keywords +

meanings, copy in to your book

The drainage basin

• All rivers receive a water supply and the area of land this comes from is known as a drainage basin.

• The boundaries of the basin are known as the watershed and will usually be marked by areas of high land.

River drainage basins

• Rivers begin in upland areas and flow downhill, becoming deeper and wider until they reach the sea.

• A drainage basin is part of the water cycle where water is transferred in a continuous cycle between the sea, atmosphere and the land.

• As the river flows downstream its characteristics change through the three main sections of

The Upper CourseThe Middle CourseThe Lower Course

Drainage basin diagram:

• River basins are an open system with inputs and outputs of water

Any rain falling here will flow within this basin

Erosion reminder: River erosion is similar to coastal

erosion

• Jot down the ways that rivers erode the land

Hydrological cycle reminder

• Watch the Evian advert

• Jot down the names of processes that happen during the clip, e.g. condensation

Hydro song/poem

• Using the textbook and all the keywords, write a song or poem to describe the hydro cycle

• Use pages 66 and 67 to help with terms

Common exam Qs

• These Qs come up often in exams: - Locate features on diagram of

river- Explain the main ways rivers

erode- Explain how rivers transport

material

• Your book

• A template

• A stick of glue

• Scissors

• Pencil crayons- blue and brown

• A pen

Template

Cut out the template.

Make sure you cut up the vertical line.

Using a brown crayon, shade around the circumference of the circle.

Using a blue crayon, shade the left triangle, draw some blue lines running from the top of the triangle and branching out towards

the edge of the circle.

Watershed the area of high land forming the edge of a river basin.

Source where a river begins.

Mouth where a river meets the sea.

Confluence the point at which two rivers meet.

Tributary a small river or stream that joins a larger river.

Channel this is where the river flows.

Drainage Basin this is the area of land drained by a river and its tributaries.

1

You will now need a pen. Number the following features on your template.

2

3

4

5

6

7

Glue the remaining blank triangle.

Stick the glued triangle under the shaded triangle, so it fits neatly.

Open your book to a double page. Glue the triangle and the bottom sides of the

diagram. Stick this firmly across the cease of the book. The tip of the triangle should

correspond to the cease.

It should look like this!

Watershed the area of high land forming the edge of a river basin.

Source where a river begins.

Mouth where a river meets the sea.

Confluence the point at which two rivers meet.

Tributary a small river or stream that joins a larger river.

Channel this is where the river flows.

Drainage Basin this is the area of land drained by a river and its tributaries.

1

2

3

4

5

6

7

Give your diagram the title ‘River Basin’. Provide a date.

Write neatly the numbers and corresponding definitions into your

book.

Close your book!

Open your book!

Badge off E-Bay!

Amazon

• Watch the film clip

• Take notes on the River Amazon• Describe the landscape, landforms

and how the river + the land is used.

Stages of a River

Source Mouth

Upper Stage Middle Stage Lower Stage

Erosion

Gradient

Depth

Velocity

Width

Volume

Landforms

ICT extension

• Room 47

• Use the internet to research how deforestation affects the hydrological system

• What difference can it make?