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1) Science (Gr. 9) - Investigating Local Water

2) Geography (Gr. 9) - Water Use & Availability

3) Civics and Citizenship (Gr. 10) - Water Perspectives: Conflict & Action

 

**Resource 1 - Investigating Local Water (Gr. 9 Science)**

 

Pre-Activity –  Field Trip or Guest Speaker

[OPTION A]  An outing for students to get out of the classroom to see first-hand where water comes

from in the community. This pre-activity is relevant because it provides a context for the main exploration in this section [see:  Community Water Map]. It also provides an opportunity for students to ask questions and/or make observations of land use in the community which are relevant to explorations of water quality in Section II.

[OPTION B]  Students invite an “expert” on water in their community to the classroom and prepare questions for discussion. This pre-activity is relevant because it provides an option for the teacher to help students gather the information they need to create the Community Water Map, without taking students off-site (as in Option A).

Activity – Community Water Map

Mapping activity and research project to create a picture and understanding of water in the community. This activity is relevant because it provides a context for the scientific water quality investigation in Section II. The main goals of the activity are to develop an appreciation for:  where local water comes from, what affects it, how it is distributed & treated, how it is used in the community, and where it goes.

 

Section II:  Scientific Investigation of Local Water Quality

Pre-Activity – Water We Looking For?

Part I:  Introduction to Water Quality

The goal of this activity is to help students to understand the importance of scientific sampling & water quality analysis. Students make visual observations of several water samples and reflect on different strategies for determining water quality.

Part II:  “So-What?” Scenarios

The goal of this activity is to help students to identify and understand commonly tested water quality parameters. Students are presented with a scenario of an activity or event that has an impact on local water quality, and must decide what water quality parameters might be affected in the scenario.

Activity – What’s in the Water?

Part I:  Testing for Water Quality

Scientific investigation skills and critical thinking form the basis for this inquiry-based learning activity. Students will plan and carry out water quality sampling in the local community. They will then conduct water quality tests on the samples, using their previous learning to choose which parameters to test for.*

*Note: Before undertaking this activity with students, you must choose and order a water quality testing kit (if you don’t already have access to testing materials within your school or board). Refer to the resource section “Choosing a Test Kit” for more information.

Part II:  Interpreting the Results

Through research on water quality standards, students will determine which of their results show areas for concern. Using their knowledge of the watershed and of water quality parameters, students will interpret their test results and make preliminary conclusions about the data.

Post-Activity – Protecting & Restoring Water Quality

Part I:  Revisiting “So-What?” Scenarios

Students are asked to revisit the scenarios from Water we Looking For? (Pre-Activity, Part II). Through basic research and application of critical thinking skills, students will outline protection/ mitigation/ restoration measures for the water quality impacts present in a scenario of their choice.

Part II:  Ask an Expert

Students work in teams to develop questions for an “expert” about local water sources, impacts to water quality, and potential protection and/or restoration measures. 

 

**Resource 2 - Water Use and Availability**

 

Section I:  Water Use

Activity 1 – What About Our Water?

10-Question quiz to get a sense of students’ awareness and perceptions around:

(a) Global and Canadian freshwater sources/ supplies;

(b) The influence of environmental, economic, social and political factors on water supplies in Canada and around the world

Activity 2 – Personal Water Use Inventory

[OPTION 1]  Water Audit:  Students complete a take-home activity where they record their direct water usage over a 24-hr or 1-week period.

[OPTION 2]  Water Use Habits Questionnaire:  Students complete an in-class activity where they answer a series of questions related to their personal water use habits. During the activity, they create a visual representation of their water use—includes an exploration of both direct and indirect (“virtual”) water use.

Activity 3 – Water Resources in Conflict

An independent assignment where students explore a proposed pipeline project which has the potential to put water resources in danger. Students must consider both the positive and negative aspects of proceeding with the project, as well as actions or processes that might help to resolve or mitigate the conflict. Option to discuss Aboriginal rights and issues as associated with the project.

 

Section II:  Water Availability

Activity 1:  Freshwater in Canada—A Great Lakes Case Study

Engagement Activity:  Students complete a Q&A matching activity that helps them to understand the significance of the Great Lakes as a source of fresh water in Canada.

Main Activity:  Students learn about the impacts of various human activities on the Great Lakes by matching a described impact (e.g., harmful algal bloom) to some of the possible human activities responsible. Students use deductive reasoning and critical thinking skills.

Activity 2:  Water Availability Around the World

An examination and comparison of factors affecting water availability in various countries around the world. Working in pairs or groups, students are presented with fictional “water profiles” from two characters living in different countries. The profiles highlight what might constitute a typical water reality for a person living in that country. The activity asks students to read the profiles, and fill in a Venn diagram comparing and contrasting the two different water availability scenarios.

[OPTIONAL] Assignment:  Students investigate and answer questions related to water availability in Canada. It can be used as follow-up assessment to Activity 2, and is a RAFT assignment:

Role:  Which perspective are they taking during the assignment? (i.e., point-of-view)

Audience:  To whom are they communicating? (e.g., who are they trying to inform/ persuade?)

Form:  In what form are they communicating? (e.g., letter to the editor, video blog post, etc.)

Topic:  What is the topic they are investigating/ reporting on? (e.g., Water availability in Aboriginal communities in Canada; Urban growth and water infrastructure demands; etc.)

Activity 3:  Climate Change & Water Availability

An electronic media project that has students gather, examine and analyze evidence of how climate change is influencing water availability in Canada. Students are given guiding questions for selecting credible pieces of evidence that reflect the following:

• The impact of human activity on climate change in Canada
• An impact of climate change on glaciers (or the Arctic) in Canada
• A current or projected impact of climate change on water availability in Canada

Students may select such online media as:  articles from reputed newspapers or magazines;  excerpts or case studies from books or blogs written by experts;  videos or film clips made by expert bodies;  photos, images, slides, maps, cartoons,  etc. They then fill out an information table describing: (1) the evidence they chose & why; (2) how they came to decide it was credible; (3) what the chosen piece of evidence demonstrates; and (4) a social, economic and/or political consequence of the impact demonstrated by the evidence.

 

**Resource 3 - Water Perspectives: Conflict & Action**

 

Section I:  Exploring our relationship to water

Activity 1: Water Bingo

An Interactive student activity to get students to know each other better as well as introduce and relate some water topics to their daily lives. Topics include: (1) access to clean drinking water; (2) tap water VS bottled water; (3) Uses of and impacts on water; (4) Water geography and proximity to water.

Activity 2: Water in Your Life

Series of guiding questions to elicit personal reflection and small group discussions that uses students’ current knowledge to start exploring how we relate to and value water in our daily lives and our community.

Activity 3: Assessing Our Water Smarts

Small group activity that aims to answer a series of questions to explore and share knowledge about local water geography, impact on water and the concept of responsibility towards water.

 

Section II:  Water Politics

Activity 1:  Governments and Water

Association activity to try and get familiar with the roles and responsibilities governments currently have in relation to water.

Activity 2:  Asking the Right Questions

Students are presented with a few different scenarios for which they need to come up with questions that would help them discover the information that we do not know to understand how to achieve the goals established by the scenario.

Activity 3:  The World Reaches for Water

Participatory scene or scripted play to better understand and explore global water realities and inequalities.

Activity 4:  Personal Reflection – Perspectives and Conflict

A reflection activity meant to get students to think about perspectives about water different then their own and how sometimes different perspectives and come into conflict.

Activity 5:  Dealing with Conflict

Students are asked to act out short scenarios and explore various ways to resolve conflict.

 

Section III: Water Perspectives

Activity 1:  Water Conflicts

Analyze various texts from differing sources relating to one event that is relevant to water in our communities.

Activity 2:  Water: Commodity or Commons

Exploration of the definitions for Commodity, Commons, Public water management and private water management, and learn to associate those terms with defining characteristics.

Activity 3:  Personal Reflection – Water Democracy

Engage students in a personal reflection about our individual and collective responsibility to water, what democracy means for them.

 

Section IV: Taking Action

Activity 1:  Being a Global Citizen

A few activities are laid out to explore what being a global citizen means and how to do a life-cycle assessment for a product.

Activity 2:  Bottled Water: Branding and Marketing A Product

Analyze the labels of a product, in this case bottled water, and what lies beneath.

Activity 3:  Becoming Changemakers

A series of activities to explore a number of ways to take action on issues they are passionate about.

 

Sommaire des activités pédagogiques

1) Science (9e année) - Enquête sur l'eau locale

2) Geographie (9e année) - Utilisation et disponibilité de l'eau

3) Civisme et citoyenneté (10e année) - Perspectives sur l'eau: conflit et action

 

**Resource 1 - Enquêtes sur l'eau locale**

 

à finaliser

 

**Resource 2 - Utilisation et disponibilité de l'eau**

 

 à finaliser

 

**Resource 3 - Perspectives sur l'eau: conflit et action**

Partie I : Explorer notre relation à l’eau

Activité 1 : Bing « eau »

Une activité interactive qui invite les élèves à mieux se connaître entre eux et qui introduit et fait le lien entre les enjeux relatifs à l’eau et leur quotidien. Les sujets comprennent notamment : (1) l’accès à de l’eau potable; (2) l’eau du robinet ou de l’eau en bouteille; (3) utilisation et impact sur l’eau; (4) géographie de l’eau et sa proximité.

Activité 2 : L’eau au quotidien

Une série de questions-guide pour inciter à la réflexion personnelle et aux discussions en petits groupes. Elles font appel aux connaissances actuelles des étudiants pour commencer à explorer la façon dont nous interagissons et nous valorisons l’eau dans notre quotidien et dans notre communauté.

Activité 3 : Évaluation des connaissances liées à l’eau

Une activité en petits groupes qui vise à répondre à une série de questions pour explorer et partager leurs connaissances de la géographie de l’eau, notre impact sur l’eau et le concept de la responsabilité envers l’eau.

Partie II : L’eau et la politique

Activité 1 : Les gouvernements et l’eau

Une activité d’association pour tenter de se familiariser avec les rôles et responsabilités que les gouvernements actuels ont en ce qui concerne l’eau.

Activité 2 : Se poser les bonnes questions

Les étudiants se penchent sur divers scénarios proposés afin de développer des questions qui les aideraient à découvrir l’information qui leur manque pour comprendre comment atteindre les objectifs du scénario.

Activité 3 : Le monde à la recherche de l’eau

Participation à une scène ou une mise en situation scriptée pour mieux comprendre et explorer les réalités et les inégalités en ce qui concerne l’accessibilité à l’eau à l’échelle mondiale.

Activité 4 : Réflexion personnelle – Perspectives et conflits

Une activité de réflexion pour amener les étudiants à réfléchir aux autres perspectives que la leur face à l’eau et au fait que parfois, différentes perspectives peuvent mener à des conflits.

Activité 5 : Gérer les conflits

Les élèves sont invités à jouer de courts scénarios et à explorer diverses façons de résoudre les conflits.

 

Partie III : Perspectives sur l’eau

Activité 1 : Conflits liés à l’eau

Analyse de divers textes de sources différentes qui relatent un événement qui concerne l’eau dans nos communautés.

Activité 2 : L’eau : marchandise ou patrimoine naturel?

Exploration des définitions : marchandise, patrimoine naturel, gestion publique de l’eau et gestion privée de l’eau. Apprendre à associer ces termes avec ses caractéristiques et définitions.

Activité 3 : Réflexion personnelle – La démocratie de l’eau

Cette activité engage les étudiants dans une réflexion personnelle sur la responsabilité individuelle et collective envers l’eau et sur la signification de la notion de démocratie pour eux.

Partie IV : Passer à l’action

Activité 1 : Citoyens du monde

Quelques activités sont présentées pour explorer ce que signifie être un citoyen du monde et pour apprendre comment faire une évaluation du cycle de vie d’un produit.

Activité 2 : L’eau embouteillée : image et commercialisation d’un produit

Analyse des étiquettes d’un produit tel que l’eau embouteillée, et ce qui se cache derrière ces étiquettes.

Activité 3 : Acteurs de changement

Une série d’activités pour explorer diverses façons d’agir en fonction des enjeux qui les passionnent.