What Makes a River ‘Fast’ or ‘Slow’?

Rivers move at different speeds because of how steep they are. Imagine a slide, if it's really steep, you zoom down quickly. If it’s flat, you just slowly scoot along. Rivers work the same way! Steeper rivers go fast, and flatter ones go slow.

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Examples

A river near the top of a mountain flows fast like a racehorse.
The same river becomes calm and slow as it reaches a flat lake.
Children playing in the river feel the rush when they're at the mountainside, but it's gentle near the lake.

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Categories: Environment · rivers,water flow,geography