What can be said about water? Well, It's all around us. It's in our every day lives, it's in our bodies and the earth is covered in water.
A couple of grade 2 classes at RancheView School have been working on an initiative since the start of the new year. The youngsters have been creating posters based on what they have learned in their latest subjects. Teachers, Marianna Moodie and Lucas Miller have joined forces - and their classes - to teach the children a combination of social and science. The inquiry teaching allows students to solve questions that are relevant in their world.
"The unit we are doing right now is all about water," said Moodie. "The outcomes range from where does water come from, where does our water come from, how does the water cycle work, to how can we save water."
At the beginning of the lesson the students reflected on the Indigenous communities within Canada that do not have access to clean water. Miller said this was an eye opening exercise for the children as it exemplified that we need to respect our water because it can affect other Canadians.
Cochrane's environmental educator, Dana Mears also made a pit stop to the Grade 2's to enlighten them about the town's water. This was a great opportunity for the students to hear from an expert in the field and to understand that they too could have a career focused around water one day, if they choose to.
"It was really cool to not only get our perspective from it but someone who actually works with water and knows about it," explained Miller. "She talked about where Cochrane gets its water from, how it goes through the water treatment process here and then how people can affect the water all the way along the water source."
The little minds have been hard at work transferring their new-found knowledge to blank tabloid paper. The students plugged away in groups of two and, although there were some requirements for each poster including photos, an eye catching title, two tips on how to save water and two facts about water, the final pieces are certainly worth an A+.
When I asked the students to tell me something they learned about water, the common consensus was simple, yet efficient "turn off the tap while you brush your teeth." It all starts with the small things we do when trying to make a big difference and I believe these kiddos are well on their way to making an impact.
Mr. Miller and Ms. Moodie try to incorporate current events in their teachings with hopes of making it more applicable to their students. They said the success displayed in this activity will translate into future projects.
The creations made by the Grade 2's will now be displayed throughout Cochrane at various locations. Moodie says she has been given the OK by Safeway and is in talks with other establishments in town to have the student's informative works of art showcased.
