

Watershed Watch is a one-day science event to help gather data about the health of the Boise River. Watershed Watch is a one-day science event to help gather data about the health of the Boise River. The event will take place on September 21, 2023 with upper elementary students in the Treasure Valley. We encourage any adults who wish to contribute to water quality data collection to attend an IdaH2O Master Water Stewards workshop and borrow our water monitoring kit.
Each upper elementary class is assigned an accessible site along the Boise River and is guided in hands-on water quality testing by water professionals from one of our partner organizations. Students wade into the river to test the chemical, physical and biological health of the Boise River by conducting tests and searching for macroinvertebrates (water bugs) and invasive species. Data from the sites is compiled and shared after the event to get a snapshot of the health of the Boise River. This event is a unique opportunity for students to do hands-on science in the field with local scientists and engineers.
In 2020, we offered Watershed Watch as a virtual program – the information and videos remain on this website (see below) for any who wish to use it.
Please contact us if you have questions about the program.
Teacher Resources
- Teacher Packet (PDF)
- Worksheet (Word Doc)
- Worksheet (PDF)
- Worksheet Answers (PDF)
- Watershed Watch Intro Video
- Watershed Watch Physical Parameters (video)
- Watershed Watch Chemical Parameters (video)
- Watershed Watch Biological Parameters (video)
- Lower Boise Watershed Watch Map (PDF)
Data
- Watershed Watch Citizen-Collected Data (Excel Spreadsheet)
Virtual WaterShed Watch
Is the Boise River Healthy?
Explore the Boise River virtually through videos and worksheets below to assess the health of the Boise River.
Week 1: How Does Water Management on the Boise River Affect Water Quality?
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Week 2: Temperature and Turbidity
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
- Use this river video if you can't get to the Boise River to answer challenge 3 questions.
Watch Week 3: Invasive Species
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (PDF) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Watch Week 4: Organisms in the River
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Watch Week 5: Nutrients
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Watch Week 6: Environmental Engineering
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Watch Week 7: Rules and Regulations
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
Watch Week 8: Lab Analysis
- Video (English)
- Video (Spanish Subtitles)
- Assignment (Word Doc) (Assignments designed for 5th-8th grade students)
2022 Sponsors
City of Boise
City of Meridian
City of Caldwell
Idaho State Department of Agriculture
Idaho Department of Environmental Quality
Intermountain Bird Observatory
Partners for Clean Water
Veolia
United States Bureau of Reclamation
United States Geological Survey