Guiding Questions for Parents.

Definition: to be amazed at and/or curious about something that is pleasantly unexpected, beautiful, or mysterious. In short: Curiosity sparks endless discovery. Summary: This story takes us down a river from its source to its destination. It meanders through cities, past farmers’ fields, down mountains, into the dark jungle with its mangrove forests until it finally reaches the ocean. Readers will enjoy the journey as they learn about this fascinating part of our natural world! Lesson Objectives:

Students gain a new appreciation for one of the amazing parts of nature; they learn about the wonder of rivers.

Guiding Questions:

Have you ever seen a river?
Where do you think rivers begin?
Do rivers go through cities?
What do you think makes rivers flow? How are they different from lakes and oceans?
Where does this river end up?
The person who tells the story imagines she travels down the river to the place it ends. She continues her journey in her imagination. Where does she go and what is it like?
What are some reasons why rivers are important to people?
Would you want to live by a river? If you could take a boat and go down the river, what would you see?
Ask your family members to share about any experiences they’ve had around rivers.
Draw a picture of a river!

🌿 Virtue Connection: Wonder means staying curious about the world around you.

Activities for This Story.

Activity: Students view the video and perform sink or float experiments.

Materials needed: a tub of water; various items, some that sink, some that float, enough so that each student can have one item to test Optional: aprons for the students or one they can share when it’s their turn to experiment; a tarp to cover the floor around the tub (or do it outside)

Directions: Put all the sink or float items in a big bag and set aside. Introduce the video by explaining that it’s about water that flows in a river. Emphasize how important water is to us. Ask students to tell you why it’s important. Show the video. Ask students if they think things can float down the river. Tell them they will conduct an experiment to see if an item will sink or float. Students take turns picking items out of the bag, one per student. Gather students around the tub, and invite them one by one up to the tub. Ask all the students to give a thumbs up if they think an item will float and thumbs down if they think it will sink. The item is placed in the tub for all to see. After the activity is completed, ask students to share about anything they noticed: (a) Could you tell every single time whether or not something would float? (b) Did anything surprise you? (c )Why do you think some items floated while others sank?

Wrap it up: Use the questions under “Directions” to wrap up the activity. Then: “Next time you’re around water, a river, a lake, the ocean, look and see if there is anything floating. You can even do the sink/float experiment at home if you have a bathtub. Ask your parents first!”

About the Story.

This guide is part of the Values & Virtues library, a free collection of 400+ book guides and activities organized around 12 core virtues for children from pre-K to 6th grade. Each guide includes Guiding Questions designed to open a real conversation with your child in 10 minutes or less.