“What is a Watershed” Educational Video and Classroom Lesson
Teachers & Youth Leaders
The young people you teach are the future stewards of our water, and we hope that the ‘What is a Watershed’ video, links and worksheet provided here will serve as a helpful tool and resource for you to use as a lesson and activity.
Developed to meet New Mexico’s core standards, the video and worksheet focus on our regional watersheds—our youths’ very own backyard and the source of their drinking, agricultural and recreational waters, as well as for our grasslands, forests, and wildlife.
It is simple to use!
- Share the ‘What is a Watershed’ video in your classroom or online. Your students will recognize
where they live, identify their own watershed, learn how a watershed works and follow the link
under the video to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to learn about any impairments in
their watershed.
Link to EPA website: https://mywaterway.epa.gov/
- Download ‘What is a Watershed’ worksheet and hand it out or share it online. The worksheet
will guide students in their learning and provide an opportunity for them to identify good
stewardship actions in their own watershed. Students can complete the worksheet as
individuals or as a group!
3. Share your good stewardship actions! Share with one another!
- You and your students can share what you have identified as your stewardship actions with
others. Simply email your worksheets and photos as PDFs to
hpwa@hermitspeakwatersheds.org. We will post them right here on our website and share
them through Facebook with our whole watershed community.
If you have questions, please email hpwa@hermitspeakwatersheds.org. Thank you for educating the next generation of watershed stewards here in northeastern New Mexico!
We would like to thank Defenders of Wildlife and the New Mexico Environment Department for their continued support.
Supplemental Videos
These videos are included to provide extra information about watersheds (what they are and how they work), if needed.
What is a Watershed? – Produced by Niagra Peninsula Conservation Authority
The province of Ontario requires the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA) to manage the Niagara Peninsula watershed. This complex watershed includes land and watercourses throughout the entire Niagara Region, parts of the City of Hamilton, and parts of Haldimand County. It primarily consists of the Niagara River, the Welland River, the Welland Canal, Lake Erie, and Lake Ontario.
What is a Watershed – Illustration – San Jacinto River Authority
The key thing to know about watersheds is that water does in fact all flow downhill, and that when all the “hills” in a certain area send water (or at least try to, only to be stopped by dry soil, lakes, swimming pools, or puddles) to the same place, that area makes up a watershed.
