A river is fresh water flowing across the surface of the land, usually towards the sea.
A river flows in a channel. The bottom of the channel is called the bed and the sides of the channel are called the banks.
All rivers are different, but they all work in a similar way. The key idea to remember is that water flows downhill.
Most rivers don't dry up though. That is because at the same time as water is leaving a river, more water is joining it from rain coluds in the sky. This is part of the water cycle.
Rivers are constantly changing. Some of the changes are to do with space or location along a river. These changes are spatial. Some of the changes are to do with time, especially the season of the year. These changes are temporal. Some changes happen suddenly, others happen much more gradually.
Rivers change the landscape through which they flow. They alter it by erosion, transportation and deposition.
The of the moving water in a river erodes or removes material - rocks, soil, vegetation - from the bed and banks of the river. This is the process of erosion.
The flowing water transports or moves the eroded material, or the load downstream. This process is called transportation.
When the of the water is not enough to move or carry the material - when the flow of the water is too slow the material is deposited or dropped. this process is called deposition.
Rivers usually begin high up on mountains or hills as streams formed by the rain. Streams flow down the hill and join together to make small rivers. These small rivers join together to make bigger rivers.
Rivers continue to flow until they reach the sea, or sometimes a lake. Where the river ends is usually called the river mouth, or the estuary.
A river flows in a channel. The bottom of the channel is called the bed and the sides of the channel are called the banks.
All rivers are different, but they all work in a similar way. The key idea to remember is that water flows downhill.
Most rivers don't dry up though. That is because at the same time as water is leaving a river, more water is joining it from rain coluds in the sky. This is part of the water cycle.
Rivers are constantly changing. Some of the changes are to do with space or location along a river. These changes are spatial. Some of the changes are to do with time, especially the season of the year. These changes are temporal. Some changes happen suddenly, others happen much more gradually.
Rivers change the landscape through which they flow. They alter it by erosion, transportation and deposition.
The of the moving water in a river erodes or removes material - rocks, soil, vegetation - from the bed and banks of the river. This is the process of erosion.
The flowing water transports or moves the eroded material, or the load downstream. This process is called transportation.
When the of the water is not enough to move or carry the material - when the flow of the water is too slow the material is deposited or dropped. this process is called deposition.
Rivers usually begin high up on mountains or hills as streams formed by the rain. Streams flow down the hill and join together to make small rivers. These small rivers join together to make bigger rivers.
Rivers continue to flow until they reach the sea, or sometimes a lake. Where the river ends is usually called the river mouth, or the estuary.