Local Landforms Field Trip

Grade: 3
Course: Science
Curricular Content: (1) Observable changes in the local environment caused by erosion and deposition by wind, water, and ice. (2) Major local landforms.
Time of Year: Early spring or late fall (when roads are still good but the temperature is cool)

This would be such a fun unit to teach! The East Kootenay’s are LOADED with really interesting landforms. As I began working on this post, I “went down a rabbit hole” and started exploring a bunch of the less known, but amazing local sites that I could take the students on a field trip to. I, finally, decided on a field trip to Radium Hot Springs. Along the route there are rivers, hoodoos, floodplains, mountains, canyons, valleys, lakes, marshes, and cliffs (just to name a few).

The Fairmont hoodoo’s (pictured above) are a spectacular work of art that can be observed easily as the highway passes right below them. The Sinclair Canyon (pictured here) has some rich history, including a strong connection with the Red River Colony from 1841, which can be used to tie in some cross-curricular opportunities with Indigenous Education. Amazingly, this small creek carved through the limestone rock to create this spectacular canyon. More information on the geology of the canyon can be found here: http://parkscanadahistory.com/geology/misc-report-9-1964.pdf. The best part about this canyon is the highway drives right through it! The students can experience this canyon without us having to stop and take up a great deal of time.

While the drive is loaded with interesting land forms, the “cherry on top” will be a soak in the natural hot pools at Radium Hot Springs. A little summary of how the water gets hot is included in the link I already shared above. Being that it’s operated by “Parks Canada,” the admission prices are very reasonable.

To keep the students engaged during the drive, I would print off a worksheet with various landforms listed. I would have the students record when/where they saw that landform (maybe even take a picture?) on their drive up to Radium. On our drive home, we would discuss some of the interesting landforms we saw and what stood out.

I wonder if there’s a “treat” I could give the students who complete their worksheet; you know, to keep them motivated! It would need to match the theme of landforms. Pop Rocks? Maybe. Mountain Dew pop? Nah, I don’t like caffeine. Cliff Bar? Meh, probably too expensive. Island Bar? Maybe, but do kids like coconut chocolate bars? Toblerone? No, too expensive.

What about if we made (or I made the night before) these little mountain Rice Krispies? That could be fun, and inexpensive! Good thing for Pinterest! Otherwise my poor students would have no treat on their field trip.

CROSS-CURRICULAR OPPORTUNITIES:

(For more details/ideas, check out my Pinterest board here: https://pin.it/IHjts4O)

Art – Have the students create landforms through paint, clay, paper, or any other medium. Check out my Pinterest account for lots of ideas.

English Language Arts – There are tons of great books out there about landforms! Check out this blog that discusses some of these books and how to write about landforms in more detail by clinking on the image.

Indigenous Education – Talk about what brought James Sinclair to the Kootenay area. What was the “Red River Colony?” There is a large wooden carving/statue of Chief Skookumchuk along the drive (in the little town of Skookumchuk). See if you can find more information about him. (Update: Check out the article, “The Indigenous Connection to Our Natural Hotsprings” from September 2022)