Teaching Resources for Water

Learn about the sources of your drinking water, what it takes to clean and deliver water to your home and how the water that leaves your home is treated before returning to the environment. 

Colouring sheets and activities

• Video (5:28m): Build your own ice cream aquifer (WWCGF)
• Water bingo
• Water fun activity sheet
• Winter fun activity book
• Aquifer colouring page
• Biosolids colouring book
• To Flush or Not To Flush activity sheet

Songs and stories

• Video (2:19m): It's raining (Sean McCammon for WWCGF)
• Video (2:08m): I'm a little rain drop (WWCGF)
• 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)

Water trivia

• Video (5:21m): Guess the number (WWCGF)
• Online quiz: Test your water knowledge (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)

Science experiments

• Videos: Water experiments (WWCGF)
• Video (2:13m): Water filtration experiment (Home Science Tools)
• Science experiments (Region of Waterloo)
• Make your own groundwater aquifer: video/PDF (The Groundwater Foundation)
• Build a foldable paper 3D aquifer (University at Buffalo, Department of Geology)

Municipal water and wastewater systems:

• Wastewater Grade 4 and Grade 5 lesson activities (Region of Waterloo)
• How do water towers work lesson activities (Wonderopolis)

Groundwater wells:

• Awesome aquifer training videos (Groundwater Foundation)
• Groundwater modelling concepts hydrogeology challenge (Groundwater Foundation)
• 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)
• Video (0:45m): Explore watersheds (Project WET Foundation)

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)

Free water presentations available for schools in Waterloo Region. Water is primarily covered as part of the grade 2 and grade 8 curriculum. You can also request a general presentation on water systems for other grades or for your school's environmental club.

Complete this request form to book your free water presentation.

Grade 2 (science and technology: air and water in the environment)

• Length: 45 minutes (up to 1 hour)
• Learn about:
  • Where we can find water
  • Water cycle and states of water
  • Actions you can take to use less water
  • Journey of water to your tap
  • Where water goes after you flush the toilet

Grade 8 (science and technology: water systems)

• Length: 1 hour for presentation only (up to 2 hours with hands-on activities)
• Learn about:
  • Groundwater aquifers
  • Municipal drinking water systems (collection, treatment, distribution)

Waterloo Wellington Children's Groundwater Festival

• for grades 2 to 5
• hands-on activities teach students about water

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

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. 

Watch these videos produced by the Waterloo Wellington Children's Groundwater Festival: 

• Manager, Stormwater Operations and Construction
• Assistant Professor, Integrated Hydrogeologic Systems
• Water Structures Maintenance Technologist
• Enterprise Geodata Specialist (starts at 2m mark)
• Source Water Protection Risk Management Official
• Geologist / Earth Scientist