George Stengren Return to Earth Sciences Menu
Summer 2001
Water
Resources
This lesson is designed to encourage project based learning
Students will design, build, and test a model water
treatment plant
Project Descriptors
This project is intended
for midyear and will encompass 12 instructional periods over 6 weeks.
Working in groups of 4,
students will design, build, and test a model water treatment plant. Students
will write mini-grant proposals to get materials.
The design parameters
will include simplicity, low cost, and readily available materials.
The water product must
meet the following minimum standards: demonstrably free of microorganisms,
optical density within 10% of distilled water.
Each group must present
their design, results, and model to the class in a modified poster session.
Each design will be
communicated over the internet to a class in the less developed world for
possible testing/evaluation. Feedback will be solicited on the designs.
If any of the designs
show promise in a wider sense, further actions will be taken to promulgate the
work.
Materials
Water
samples from varied sources, including water with microorganisms.
General
school supplies
Plastic
Columns
Support
Stands with clamps
Plastic
tubing
General
Labware
Large
quantities of Earth Materials such as sand, clay, marble and granite chips,
clay, charcoal, and plastic beads.
Strainers,
funnels, and filter paper
Bleach
Isopropyl
alcohol
Agar
Plates, or Carolina Biological Water test Kit
Triple
Beam Balances
Microscopes,
Slides, Lugol’s, and droppers
Petri
Dishes
2-TI83
Graphing Calculators and CBL base units per group
CBL
probes for temperature, pH, Conductivity, and Colorimetry
TI
Graphlink cables and software
Internet
access computers (sufficient for upload/download and email)
Video
(water resources in NYC, Lesotho, and Paraguay)
Worksheets,
lab notebooks, and rubrics
Prior Knowledge
Students will have
learned about standards and units of measure.
Students will have
learned to use basic lab instruments and the CBL system.
Students will have
already done a small project, and will be aware of assessment and planning
procedures.
Students will have some
familiarity with computer technology to include word processing, email, and
basic research.
Students will enter this
investigation with knowledge of the physical and chemical properties of water,
the basic elements of climate, and the water cycle.
Introductory Lesson
1]Show parts of videos
on water resources. Locate areas of interest on class maps.
2]Use internet to access
stories from the lesser developed world about water and water resources.
3]Key questions-
Why
is water important?
How
would your life be different if you lacked plentiful, safe water?
4] Students write
journal response, compare responses within group, and ‘polish’ their
statements for homework.
5]Questions to think
about (leading to next day):
What
are the physical properties of safe drinking water?
What are the biological properties of safe drinking water?
New
York City Standards
Social Studies Standards 3-5
Science Standards S1b, S2f, S3e, S4a-e, S5a-b, S5e-f,S6-S8.