🔍 Key Concepts

• River bend dynamics – how water behaves on the inside vs. outside of a bend • Current speed vs. channel width – does current generally speed up or slow down when a river/channel widens? • Where erosion and scouring occur compared to deposition (shoaling) in a bend

💭 Think About

• Think about where a river cuts into the bank and causes erosion: is that usually the inside or outside of a bend? • If you drop a stick in the middle of a river, will it usually move faster near the center or along the edges? • When a channel widens, does the same amount of water pass through a larger cross‑sectional area—what does that usually do to the speed?

✅ Before You Answer

• Identify which option correctly places faster current and greater depth on the same part of the bend • Eliminate any choices that conflict with basic conservation of flow (more area with same flow usually means lower speed, not higher) • Check which option matches where you’d expect shoaling (shallower water) versus scour (deeper water) in a river bend