11.34 Irrigation Lesson

Irrigation is an important part of your life. In this lesson, you will explore how irrigation is used daily, how important it is to your survival, and how you can have fun with irrigation! Continue reading to learn more.

What’s Irrigation?

Can you imagine being at a park on a hot, summer day? You are having lots of fun, but you want to cool off. All of a sudden, you notice there are sprinklers on the other side of the park, and lots of kids are splashing around in them and having fun! So you run towards the sprinklers to join in on the excitement. Have you ever wondered how the water from the sprinklers got there? Well, it is through a process called irrigation. Irrigation is the process of watering the ground, or when water is taken from one place and sent to where it is needed.

Kids running through sprinklers

1. Main points:

• The text describes the process of irrigation, explaining it as the method by which water is distributed from one place to another for purposes like watering the ground.

2. Questions:

• Content Analysis: What is the process of irrigation as described in the text?
• Contextual Analysis: In the scenario described, how is irrigation used?
• Linguistic Analysis: What tone does the text use to introduce the concept of irrigation to the reader?

3. Further Discussion:

• Why do you think irrigation is important in places like parks or farms?

4. Answers:

• Content Analysis: The text defines irrigation as "the process of watering the ground, or when water is taken from one place and sent to where it is needed."
• Contextual Analysis: In the described scenario, irrigation is used to operate sprinklers in a park to cool off and provide fun for children.
• Linguistic Analysis: The text uses a conversational and engaging tone, inviting the reader to imagine a scenario and then introducing the concept of irrigation in a relatable context.

Why is Irrigation Important?

Irrigation is important to your survival. Can you imagine having to walk to a river or lake daily to get the water you need to drink, cook, clean and bathe? That sounds pretty tough! Well, irrigation helps you with this daily. Your home’s water supply is there because of irrigation, which brings water into your home from a local water supply.

It takes an enormous amount of farmland to grow enough fruits and vegetables crops for us to eat. Although these crops may get rain, sometimes it is not enough to grow the largest and tastiest fruits and vegetables to keep us healthy. Therefore, farmers use irrigation to supply necessary water to their farms. Did you know that the farm animals also need to eat those fruits and vegetables and drink the water from irrigation? As you can see, irrigation is an important process that keeps us healthy and clean.

1. Main points:

The text highlights the crucial role of irrigation in providing water for drinking, cooking, cleaning, bathing, farming, and supporting animal life, emphasizing its significance in daily survival and health.

2. Questions:

• Content Analysis: How does irrigation contribute to our daily water needs according to the text?
• Contextual Analysis: Why is irrigation especially important for farming, as mentioned in the text?
• Socio-cultural Analysis: How does the text suggest irrigation impacts our daily life and health?

3. Further Discussion:

• Can you think of other ways water is used in our lives that might rely on irrigation?

4. Answers:

• Content Analysis: Irrigation is described as important because it brings water into your home from a local water supply for needs like drinking, cooking, cleaning, and bathing.
• Contextual Analysis: Irrigation is crucial for farming because it provides necessary water to farms, especially when rain is not enough for growing fruits and vegetables.
• Socio-cultural Analysis: The text implies that irrigation impacts our daily life and health by ensuring we have enough fruits and vegetables to keep us healthy and that it keeps us healthy and clean by providing water for various domestic uses.

Where Does the Water for Irrigation Come from?

Oceans cover about 70% of the Earth’s surface, making them the largest bodies of water on the planet. However, they are made of saltwater, so we cannot use this source of water to drink and water plants. But freshwater sources, such as rivers, lakes, springs, melted snow and underground bodies of water, can be used in irrigation for farmland and for us to drink. Did you also know your city’s water department makes sure that this water is clean and sterilized before it comes into your home?

1. Main points:

The text explains that oceans, covering 70% of Earth’s surface, are primarily saltwater and unsuitable for direct use, whereas freshwater sources like rivers, lakes, springs, and underground water are essential for irrigation and drinking, with the city’s water department ensuring their cleanliness and sterilization.

2. Questions:

• Content Analysis: What is the difference between the water in oceans and freshwater sources as explained in the text?
• Contextual Analysis: Why can’t we use ocean water directly for drinking and irrigation, according to the text?
• Socio-cultural Analysis: How does the text describe the role of the city’s water department in providing water for our use?

3. Further Discussion:

• If oceans cover such a large part of the Earth, can you think of any ways we might be able to use ocean water in the future?

4. Answers:

• Content Analysis: The text states that oceans are made of saltwater which is not usable for drinking and watering plants, while freshwater sources can be used for these purposes.
• Contextual Analysis: Ocean water is unsuitable for direct use in drinking and irrigation because it is saltwater.
• Socio-cultural Analysis: The city’s water department is described as ensuring that freshwater is clean and sterilized before it comes into homes.

Irrigation on Farmland

I bet you’ve used irrigation before! Have you ever planted a garden or flowers? If so, you probably watered your plants from a pitcher, bucket or watering can. This is a simpler form of irrigation, or moving water to where it is needed. Many farmers use a more complex form of irrigation to water large farms. This is when water is brought to the farm from rivers or lakes through extremely long pipes that can be miles long! Farmers may also dig wells and push water up through tubes to water plants from below.

Another way to water plants is called drip irrigation. Farmers place tubes with holes in them throughout the farmland and push water through the tubes. Then the water drips out of the holes in the tubes to water the farm. Another way irrigation works is when farmers dig pathways or canals from a water supply, which allows the water to flow towards the crops.

Sometimes irrigation also occurs naturally. For instance, if a mountain has a stream or river that flows down it, and a crop is located at the bottom of the mountain, then farms can get water that way too. Irrigation systems were used in ancient times, and have progressed with new technology to provide easier ways to supply water to farms.

Farm Irrigation System

1. Main points:

The text describes various methods of irrigation, ranging from simple watering with pitchers or cans for gardens to complex systems using long pipes, wells, drip irrigation, and canals for large farms, highlighting the evolution of irrigation from ancient times to the present, including natural irrigation from mountain streams.

2. Questions:

• Content Analysis: What are some different methods of irrigation mentioned in the text?
• Contextual Analysis: How has irrigation technology changed from ancient times to now, according to the text?
• Thematic Analysis: What is the importance of irrigation in agriculture, as described in the text?

3. Further Discussion:

• Can you imagine how farming would be different if there was no irrigation technology?

4. Answers:

• Content Analysis: The text mentions using pitchers, buckets, or watering cans, long pipes from rivers or lakes, wells with tubes, drip irrigation, and pathways or canals as different methods of irrigation.
• Contextual Analysis: According to the text, irrigation systems have evolved from ancient times with new technology to provide easier ways to supply water to farms.
• Thematic Analysis: The text highlights the importance of irrigation in agriculture as it helps in moving water to where it is needed for the growth of plants and crops.

Irrigation at Homes and Buildings

A more complex form of irrigation is the water system used at your home or in other buildings. This irrigation system comes from outside bodies of water. As you know, the water sources are usually lakes, rivers, or springs. Water from these sources can be stored in an enormous tank for your city’s use. Then extremely long pipes and plumbing are used to pump water into your home. Plumbers and workers at the water department ensure that our water is safe and runs correctly during irrigation.

Irrigation Moves Water to Sinks

1. Main points:

The text explains that a complex form of irrigation is used for home water systems, where water from lakes, rivers, or springs is stored in large tanks and pumped into homes through long pipes, with plumbers and water department workers ensuring the water’s safety and proper functioning.

2. Questions:

• Content Analysis: What are the components of the home irrigation system described in the text?
• Contextual Analysis: How does the role of plumbers and water department workers contribute to the irrigation system, according to the text?
• Ideological Analysis: What underlying idea about water safety and management is presented in the text?

3. Further Discussion:

• Why do you think it’s important for water to be stored in large tanks before it’s used in our homes?

4. Answers:

• Content Analysis: The text describes the home irrigation system as consisting of outside bodies of water like lakes, rivers, or springs, an enormous tank for storage, and extremely long pipes and plumbing to pump water into homes.
• Contextual Analysis: Plumbers and water department workers are important as they ensure the water is safe and runs correctly in the irrigation system.
• Ideological Analysis: The text presents an idea that managing water involves ensuring safety and correct functioning, implying a responsibility for water safety and management.

Lesson Summary

Irrigation is the process of watering the ground, or when water is taken from one place and sent to where it is needed. Irrigation is necessary for our survival since it provides water to plants and vegetables that we eat. Irrigation also brings water into our homes and buildings so that we can drink, cook and stay clean. Irrigation can be manmade by using tubes, canals or wells to transport water. Or it can occur naturally, such as water flowing down a mountain towards a crop. Irrigation is an important part of our daily lives and our survival.