Classroom Visits

 

Scheduling/Availability

The Water Rocks! team travels to schools across the state of Iowa to offer our signature in-classroom presentations throughout the school year. We provide 2-3 Iowa State University staff and/or student interns to present to your class and lead high energy, hands-on, interactive student activities! 

From our experience, the most effective learning occurs when we work with students in relatively small groups - one class at a time (maximum 30 students per class). This allows the greatest opportunity for hands-on learning, interaction, and dialogue. We are happy to offer multiple presentations back-to-back in order to reach multiple classes and/or grades.

Our spring 2024 schedule is full—we are not able to accommodate any additional requests at this time. Our online request system for fall classroom visits will open in August 2024—subscribe to our e-news for notification when requests open each season!


Presentation Length

We require a minimum of 30 minutes per presentation (ideally 45-50 minutes per presentation).  We are not able to present at events when the presentation times are less than 30 minutes.
 

Age Groups

Water Rocks! classroom visits are designed to primarily target students in Grades 3-8. We have limited availability for Grades K-2 and HS, but know that scheduling priority goes to the upper elementary and middle school age groups.
 

Cost

Water Rocks! classroom visits are available free of charge.  Many thanks to our partners for making this possible! 
 

How to Request a Visit

Our spring 2024 schedule is full—we are not able to accommodate any additional requests at this time. Our online request system for fall classroom visits will open in August 2024—subscribe to our e-news for notification when requests open each season!

We often receive 2x-3x as many requests as we are able to fulfill—therefore we implement a rolling lottery system to determine which schools we'll be able to visit each season.


 

Schedule of Events

Check out what schools we've been to and where we're headed next on our Calendar page.


I have other questions about classroom visits. Who can I talk to?

Liz Ripley
ejuchems@iastate.edu
515.294.5429


What We Teach

The Water Rocks! team offers multiple learning modules to choose from when we visit schools, including:

  • Ecosystems & Biodiversity (Grades 4-8)

  • Pollinators (Grades 4-8)

  • Wetlands (Grades 3-8)

  • Water & Watersheds (Grades 3-8)

  • Exploring Natural Resources (Grades K-2)

We will work with teachers to determine which module(s) best fit the audience and the time constraints for the event. Each lesson is adapted for grade level appropriateness and can easily be scaled up or down when visiting multiple grades within the same school. Each of our modules is aligned with the Next Generation Science Standards—descriptions of each module are included below.

Biodiversity Bonanza

  • Grades: 4-8

Students will learn about the importance of biodiversity, niches within ecosystems, the ecological food chain, trophic levels (who’s eating who!), and more in this highly interactive unit. Get ready to test your skills in a competitive game of Biodiversity JENGA!

The Power of Pollinators

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Students will be a-buzz learning about the importance of pollinators around them, the challenges pollinators face, and what we all can do to help! Depending on presentation timing and available space, this in-classroom presentation will include the much-beloved game(s) Monarch Migration Madness and/or Pollinator Jenga.

The Wonderful World of Wetlands

Explore the wonderful world of wetlands and the importance of these vibrant ecosystems and the biodiversity they support! Students are transported to a wetland through audio and visual means, and interactive games of Habitat Hopscotch and Wetlands BINGO are woven throughout the in-classroom presentation.

We All Live in a Watershed

Dive in to the water cycle, watersheds, and water quality with this highly interactive module. We all live in a watershed and play an important role there! Students each receive a “puzzle piece” of land and $5M, then are given free reign to be creative and build whatever they’d like with their money. How will the shared water resources be impacted by the cumulative effect of everyone’s choices?

Exploring Natural Resources

Through stories, songs, and guided by our mascots the Conservation Dogs, students will learn about Iowa's natural resources, like water, soil, and pollinators, and the importance of working together to protect the world around them.

Frequently Asked Questions

 

We have a date set for a Water Rocks! school visit.  What's next?

We highly encourage you to explore our Pre-Visit Lesson Suggestions page. Prior to your scheduled Water Rocks! presentation, consider utilizing the resources there to introduce students to the topics that will be covered. From our experience, we observe the highest levels of engagement and students gain the most from our classroom programs (plus we can go deeper in-depth with the content) when they’ve had a basic introduction to the material prior to our visit!


Do you have any programs available for high school students?  

Interested in a school visit or presentation for high school students?  Contact Ann Staudt via email or phone (515.294.4878) to discuss details.


We are a big school. Can you come and present for multiple days?

At this time, we are only able to offer single-day programs.
 

What do teachers and students have to say?

Teachers and students think Water Rocks! classroom presentations are out of this world!  Check out our Testimonials page to hear what teachers and students have to say.