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Teaching Resources for Water

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Home/Living Here/Water and Wastewater/Teaching Resources

illustration showing journey water takes from the source to the tap

Attention Elementary Educators: The Waterloo Wellington Children's Groundwater Festival is going virtual this year and is free to attend! Download the WWCGF 2021 Virtual poster for more information. Register your attendance on the WWCGF website to receive login details and links to teaching resources and recorded sessions.

The Be Good To Your Water program provides resources to support water education in the classroom.

Learn at home 

When you turn on the tap have you ever wondered where your water comes from? And what happens after you flush the toilet? Test your knowledge with this online quiz.

  1. In Waterloo Region, there are two sources for drinking water - the Grand River and groundwater wells.
    • About 20 to 25 per cent of Waterloo Region's drinking water is from the Grand River. Water from the Grand River goes through a multi-step treatment process at the Mannheim Water Treatment Plant. Before entering the distribution system, the treated water from the Grand River is mixed with groundwater from nearby wells.
    • About 75 to 80 per cent of Waterloo Region's drinking water is groundwater. Municipal wells throughout Waterloo Region extract the groundwater. To build a well, a pipe is placed in a drilled hole. A pump at the bottom of the well helps to push the groundwater to the top of the well. Groundwater requires less treatment than surface water, but it is sometimes filtered to remove iron and manganese, minerals found naturally in aquifers.
    • The blend of surface water and groundwater varies within Waterloo Region based on operational factors such as well maintenance, so percentages are approximate.
  2. To keep the water safe while travelling through the distribution system to your tap, a minimum level of residual chlorine or chloramine must be maintained.
  3. As the water travels through the underground pipes that are part of the distribution system, it might first stop at a water tower before arriving at your home. Water towers help to regulate water pressure required to move the water throughout the distribution system.
  4. When the water arrives at your home it is ready for you to drink, cook and wash with, and so much more. On average, each of us uses about 152 litres of water every day.
  5. Wastewater is any water that leaves your home through a drain such as a toilet, sink, bathtub, dishwasher or washing machine. Underground pipes take the water from your home to one of the 13 wastewater treatment plants. At the wastewater treatment plant the solids and liquids are separated and treated before returning to the environment.
  6. The treated water is clean enough to be returned to the Grand River. The solids removed during the wastewater treatment process are further treated into a product called biosolids. Biosolids help to fertilize farmers' fields, naturalize old tailing ponds at mines or are landfilled.

Journey of water from source to tap and back

(Click on the above image to view infographic as PDF file)

Colouring sheets, stories, songs and fun activities

Activity sheets

  • Water fun activity sheet
  • Winter fun activity book
  • Aquifer colouring page
  • Biosolids colouring book
  • To Flush or Not To Flush activity sheet
  • Water bingo

Songs and story time videos

  • Video (8:50m): Wally and Deanna's Groundwater Adventure (University of Waterloo)
  • Video (8:58m): Wally and Deanna's Blackflies to Blueberries Wetland Adventure (University of Waterloo)
  • Video (3:16m): Water cycle song "get moving" (GoNoodle)
Learn about your municipal water and wastewater systems
  • Infographic: Journey of water to your tap and back (Region of Waterloo)
  • Poster: Where "it" goes after you flush (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (6:26m): Journey of groundwater to your tap (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (5:58m): Collection and treatment of water from the Grand River (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (3:28m): Water towers (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (4:07m): Where it goes after you flush (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (6:30m): Water quality quiz - part 1 of 2 (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (13:09m): Water quality quiz - part 2 of 2 (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (2:13m): Water filtration experiment (Home Science Tools)
  • Video (4:30m): How do water towers work (Concerning Reality)
  • Website: How do water towers work (Wonderopolis)
  • Website: Directory listing of water towers in Ontario
  • Website: How water towers work (Practical Engineering)
Learn about groundwater aquifers and wells
  • Infographic: Parts of a groundwater aquifer (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (6:26m): Journey of groundwater to your tap (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (6:40m): Groundwater movement (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (7:44m): Learning about groundwater using a 3D model (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (6:09m): Travelling underground with water (WWCGF)
  • Video (5:37m): Make an editable aquifer treat (WWCGF)
  • Video (7:00m): How do water wells works (Concerning Reality)
  • Blog: I Am Groundwater (Region of Waterloo)
  • Website: Learn about groundwater (The Groundwater Foundation)
  • Make your own groundwater aquifer: video/PDF (The Groundwater Foundation)
  • Build a foldable paper 3D aquifer (University at Buffalo, Department of Geology)
Learn about the water cycle and watersheds
  • Infographic: The water cycle (EPA: Kids Discovery)
  • Video (3:15m): Rain Recipe - how it rains (WWCGF)
  • Video (6:45m): All the Water in the World (WWCGF)
  • Video (2:51m): Solid, Liquid, Gas (WWCGF)
  • Video (1:17m): What is a watershed (Battle River Watershed)
  • Video (6:31m): Water, water everywhere (NASA)
  • Video (9:30m): Shand Dam, its role supplying water from the Grand River (Doors Open)
  • Use this Grand River watershed map to trace the route of the Grand River (GRCA)*
  • Activity: Science experiments (Region of Waterloo)

* the Grand River watershed is managed by the Grand River Conservation Authority

Actions you can take to help conserve and protect water
  • Video (2:35m): Thomas & Friends on Clean Water & Sanitation (United Nations)
  • Poster: Conservation house (Region of Waterloo)
  • Infographic: Home water conservation tips (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (4.01m): Waste Water Watchers (WWCGF)
  • Video (1:21m): Check for water leaks in your home (Region of Waterloo)
  • Video (4:39m): The 3 Ps of Wastewater activity (WWCGF)
  • Video (1:21m): Unflushables (I don't flush)
  • Video (1:13m): Drinking water source protection (Conservation Ontario)
  • Video (2:39m): Urban stormwater and runoff (Yellow Fish Road)*
  • Video (3:31m): Only rain down the drain (City of Kitchener)*
  • Video (0:46m): Stormwater safety (Cities of Cambridge, Kitchener and Waterloo)*

* Stormwater management is the responsibility of the cities and townships.

Additional resources for educators

Municipal water and wastewater systems:

  • Wastewater Grade 4 and Grade 5 lesson activities

Groundwater wells:

  • Awesome aquifer training videos (Groundwater Foundation)
  • Groundwater modelling concepts hydrogeology challenge (Groundwater Foundation)
  • I Am Groundwater blog (Region of Waterloo)
  • Water sources: groundwater (Government of Canada)
  • Understanding groundwater (Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs)
  • Education resources (Groundwater Foundation)

Water cycle, watersheds and stormwater:

  • Grand River watershed (GRCA)
  • The water cycle: article / video (Khan Academy)
  • Watersheds 101 (Conservation Ontario)

Lesson plans and websites:

  • Teaching tools and resources (The Water Project)
  • E-zone: resources for teachers and parents to teach children about the environment (Province of Ontario)
  • Lesson plans and videos (TED-Ed)
  • Lesson plans (Khan Academy)
  • Water you drinking: why drinking water is a healthy choice (City of Kitchener)
Involve your school

Students can:

  • complete a science fair project on water
  • use a reusable water bottle
  • think of ways to not waste water
  • share information with family and friends

Ask the school staff to:

  • use winter salt wisely
  • regularly check toilets for leaks
  • install a water bottle refilling station
  • certify as an EcoSchool
Book a free in-class presentation (currently unavailable due to COVID-19)
  • for grades 1 to 8
  • includes teacher's resource kit
  • 30- to 60-minute custom-tailored presentations
  • topics can include:
    • journey of water to our taps
    • where water goes after you flush
    • water conservation tips
    • groundwater protection

Complete this request form to book an in-class presentation.

Plan a field trip (currently unavailable due to COVID-19)

Waterloo Wellington Children's Groundwater Festival

  • for grades 2 to 5
  • hands-on activities teach students about water
  • registration details on the Waterloo Wellington Children's Groundwater Festival website

Region of Waterloo Mannheim Water Treatment Plant tour

  • for secondary and post secondary students and adults only
  • technical presentation and tour
  • tours by registration only based on staff availability
  • to book a tour email Water Services or call 519-575-4400 (Deaf and Hard of Hearing (TTY): 519-575-4608)
Careers in water
Managing water resources and providing clean drinking water to our homes involves a team of dedicated professionals. The water industry offers many challenging and rewarding careers. The American Water Works Association provides more information on working with water. 
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