The waterfall above Carding Mill Valley, Shropshire.

Following hot on the heals of Y6 who went camping at the Coven Outdoor Centre in September, Y5 undertook the same river survey which Y6 did.

There was slightly more water in the stream, but the river source is always one of disappointment! "It's just a muddy puddle!" said one Y5 pupil expecting water to spout out of the hillside!

But that's how rivers start. I gather that the source of one river which rises in the Lake District does spout out from the rocks quite dramatically, but the longest river in England, the Severn, which rises above Carding Mill Valley and meets the sea in the Bristol Estuary starts life in a muddy puddle!

Y5 were very focussed and impressed the Coven staff with their knowledge about rivers.

Mapping the river

The tape measure does have to be held at right angles to get an accurate measurement of the near bank and far bank

Work in progress

"12.5 metres!"
The tape had feet and inches (ah those were the days!!) on the reverse side. It was important not to mix your metres with your feet!

Pupils eagerly awaiting lunch.
It started to rain and lunch was served on the coaches

Instructions given about how
to monitor the flow of the Severn tributary

Plastic balls are floated downstream and timed between two points Y5 thought it was a race and I had to stop them placing bets on the winner!

The "England Ball" was the first to pass the point downstream. The activity was repeated three times to make sure that the test was scientific.

After lunch on the coaches (it did rain quite heavily) we set off on our trek to the source of the River Severn. Our Coven guide made use of the National Trust map on the wall to explain where exactly we would be going.

Tired Y5 pupils are told why waterfalls happen. It's due to the nature of the rock. When water meets hard rock and can't push it downstream, a waterfall is formed.

Quote from a Y5 pupil "This is a magic way of doing Geography!"

"I'll take the high road if you take the low road, and I'll get to Scotland before thee!"

The pupils couldn't believe all the rocks they were sitting on were once under the sea and pushed up by a volcano.

A close up photograph showing the layers of rock They are just like slices of toast one on top of the other

That wispy grass in the foreground is a sign of water. AS we climbed the hill, we could see how the stream had changed course over the years by looking for this type of grass.

And that's the muddy puddle! One of many sources of the Severn we could see above the Carding Mill Valley, Shropshire.

M Tibbetts Thursday, 09 October 2003