Glossary

Breakwaters/Groynes
Breakwaters/Groynes are structures that
extend into a body of water to deflect and
diffuse the offshore eroding power of
waves before they reach the beach.
Bulkhead
Bulkheads are wall-like structures that
contain the shorelines and prevent them
from being eroded by water and ice.
Classroom-BasedAssessment
Classroom-based assessment is a cyclic
process within everyday instruction and
learning that encompasses ongoing
planning, observing, scaffolding,
responding and reflecting on learning and
teaching to improve student learning.
Coliforms
Coliforms are a group of bacteria that live
everywhere in our environment, including
in our body.
Condensation
As water vapour rises, it cools and
eventually condenses, usually on tiny
particles of dust in the air.
When air condenses it becomes a liquid
again or turns directly into a solid (ice, hail,
or snow). These water particles then collect
and form clouds.
ControlledVariables
Controlled variables are the factors that will
need to stay consistent.
ConvectionCurrent
Convection current is the transfer of heat
through water.
DependentVariable
Dependent variable is the factor that you
will measure or observe.
Ecosystem
An ecosystem is a community of living
organisms that interacts/works with other
living and non-living things within the
environment they inhabit. The parts of an
ecosystem include soil, atmosphere, heat
and light from the sun, water, and living
organisms.
Eutrophication
A process by which waters, soils, or habitats
acquire a high concentration of nutrients
such as phosphates and nitrates.
Evaporation
The process by which water changes state
from a liquid to a gas.
Gabions
Gabions are rock-filled wire cages that are
used to stablize the shore against erosion.
Groundwater
Groundwater is water held in cracks and
pore spaces in the Earth’s upper crust.
Depending on the geology, the
groundwater can flow to support streams.
Groundwater can also be tapped by wells.
HeatCapacity
Heat capacity is the ability of a substance to
hold heat.
IndependentVariable
Independent variable is the factor that you
can purposely change.
Infiltration
Infiltration is seeping of water through the
ground.
Nitrates
Nitrogen is the main component of our
atmosphere, and is also a necessary element
for plant growth. Nitrogen is not used by
plants in its gaseous form, but, rather, in the
form of nitrates or ammonia.
PH
The pH of water is a measure indicating
whether a body of water is acidic (e.g.,
vinegar), neutral, or alkaline (e.g.,
ammonia).
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Phosphates
Phosphorus is a nutrient that is found in
water in the form of phosphates. It is
present naturally in soils and rocks, but can
also enter water sources because of human
activity.
Precipitation
Precipitation in the form of rain, snow, and
hail comes from clouds. Clouds move
around the world, propelled by air currents.
When clouds rise over mountain ranges,
they cool, becoming so saturated with water
that water begins to fall as rain, snow, or
hail, depending on the temperature of the
surrounding air.
Rip-rap
Rip-rap is the large rocks/boulders/
concrete blocks that are often piled along a
shoreline so that it can better absorb the
crash of the waves and withstand the
eroding power of the water.
SecchiDisk
A Secchi disk is one device used to measure
turbidity.
StrategicTeaching
Strategic Teaching means making
deliberate, informed decisions about the
best tools to use for each learning task and
to reach each learning outcome of a
curriculum, given the particular needs and
characteristics of students.
SurfaceRunoff
Excessive rain or snowmelt produce
overland flow or surface runoff to creeks
and ditches.
Runoff is also the visible flow of water in
rivers, creeks, and lakes as the water stored
in the basin drains out.
SustainableDevelopment
An approach to decision making that takes
into consideration how the consequences of
the decision will affect the environment, the
economy, and the human health and well-
being (social).
TextSets
A collection of oral, print, and other media
texts related to a common element, topic,
theme, inquiry, or type of text.
Transpiration
The process whereby water vapour is given
off by plant leaves.
Turbidity
Turbidity is an indication of how clear or
murky the water is.
Watershed
The area that drains into a single lake or
river.
WaterTable
The water table is the depth/level of the
Earth’s crust at which water will rise when
an open well or pit is dug.
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