Water in Extreme Environments: Activity – Engineering A2

Water in Extreme Environments - Engineering A2 Front

Activity Timing

Introduction: 5 min
Investigate: 40 min
Reflect: 10 min

55 min. Total

Prep Corner

  • Post EDP Poster
  • Make 8 filter bases, p. 37
  • Create Investigation chart Chart p. 32
  • Set up materials table: filter materials & scissors
  • Create charcoal filter and yellow test water, p. 32

Key Terms

Water Filter: A technology that improves water quality by removing particles or contaminants as the water passes through.

Water in Extreme Environments FAQ's

Water in Extreme Environments Vocab List

EDP Steps Used In This Activity

Investigate

Purpose

Youth explore how different water filter materials reduce contaminants.

Quick Tips

  • Results are subtle: Try photos or side-by-side comparisons on a white background.
  • Help youth discover on their own that slowing down the filter improves results.
  • Cheat Tip: Sand or cotton balls packed tightly into the nozzle slow the filter rate.
  • Help youth interpret test results/decide on fair test procedures like shaking samples.

Videos Related to this Activity

Science Snippet: Build your content knowledge to help answer youth's questions.

Replay the Special Report video from 4:05 to 4:15 to remind youth about water filters in the reuse process.

Science Reflection

Today we investigated different materials to see how well they removed or reduced different water contaminants.

Key Take Away

We can improve water quality with filters.

Did you know?

Flint, Michigan gives filters to residents to improve water quality. Lead in pipes dissolves into drinking water and is very harmful to humans. Lead can be removed by filters.