This water conservation and water quality curriculum is grounded in a simple yet powerful concept that water is a finite natural resource whose quantity and quality must be responsibly preserved, protected, used, and reused.
The curriculum includes six sequential learning modules and is intended for delivery in out-of-school group settings to be facilitated by an adult.
Objectives
Youth will:
- Explore the natural water cycle
- Explore human interventions that affect water quality and quantity
- Examine the effects of the urban/rural interface on water quality and quantity
- Map a watershed
- Implement service learning projects that address local water conservation issues
4-H Water Conservation Curriculum
Level 1 – Soil and Water Science Digital Download
The 4-H Soil and Water Science curriculum is for youth who enjoy learning about science and two important natural resources: soil and water. Level 1 introduces basic terms and concepts. Activities focus on understanding important soil and water processes.
Level 2 – Soil and Water Science Digital Download
Level 2 activities help you put the basic concepts into action to understand more advanced soil and water concepts and interactions with the environment.
Level 3 – Soil and Water Science Digital Download
Level 3 activities are divided into chapters based on how you might use the information you have learned — as a homeowner, resident of a watershed, food and fiber producer (farmer), mayor, teacher, or legislator. Level 3 delves deeper into soil and water science concepts and can prepare you to be well informed and to study these topics at a college or university.
Soil and Water Science Facilitator’s Guide
This Soil and Water Science Facilitator’s Guide answers the questions in the youth guides and suggests ways to facilitate the activities. It also gives additional information about working with youth, for those who wish to learn more. This guide supports all three Soil and Water Science levels.
Developed by Penn State Extension, Rain to Drain – Slow the Flow is a hands-on stormwater education curriculum. This experiment style series of activities leads youth and adults to a better understanding of the movement of stormwater in natural and developed communities. It’s also a great introduction to green infrastructure and stormwater best management practices.
This water conservation and water quality curriculum is grounded in a simple yet powerful concept that water is a finite natural resource whose quantity and quality must be responsibly preserved, protected, used, and reused.
Water Wizards Facilitator Guide
Water Wizards teaches 4th-6th grade students about water and its importance to the planet. Students participate in hands-on learning experiences that encourage inquiry, teach basic information about water, and develop awareness about this valuable resource. They explore the water cycle, watersheds and pollution; study water usage in their home; and conduct experiments exploring salinity, density, hardness and taste (Is bottled water really better?). Youth also take action on a water issue in their community. The program balances the need for critical information about water with discovery through the process of doing science. It also empowers kids to know they can make a difference in their communities.
This is the facilitator’s guide which allows leaders to conduct the program with prompts and instructions for activities. When you purchase the facilitator’s guide, you will receive a digital copy of handouts and materials to assist with program facilitation.
Washington 4-H Records, Forms, and Guides
For youth members
Coming soon!
For adult helpers and club leaders
Coming soon!
Helpful Resources
Activity Ideas
4-H Science Blast in the Class! Where is All the Water?
The Where is All the Water? lesson is designed for leaders to help participants understand where water comes from and its unique qualities as well as how to conserve water efficiently. Participants will work in groups to simulate the distribution of water on a global scale and then log their own personal water use. Find the rest of the 4-H Science Blast in the Class! Teacher’s Guide on the Michigan State University Extension website.
Science on Ice: Moving Water with String – Nature Lab (January 2021), The Wild Center (PDF)
Washington Specific Reference Material
Saving Water in Washington fact sheet (PDF)
Water Conservation from the State of Washington Department of Ecology
Other Reference Material
From 4-H Programs
Discover 4-H: 4-H Wonders of Water Club (PDF)
A comprehensive guide to starting a water conservation focused 4-H club from Utah State University Extension 4-H.
4-H Friends: Water – Georgia 4-H (PDF)
4-H Rosa Raindrop Water Cycle Board Game – Oregon 4-H
After playing this board game, learners will be able to explain the water cycle, list some of the places on Earth that water is stored, and understand that the Earth’s water supply is finite.
Exploring Water Habitats: Wetlands, Streams, Oceans – Oregon 4-H
This curriculum introduces youth to the science and function of wetlands, streams, and oceans, and how human activities affect climate and environmental function and health.
What Can We Learn at the Pond? 4-H Wildlife Stewards Master Science Leader Guide – Oregon 4-H
Informal outdoor learning environments, such as school ponds and outdoor learning centers, are ideal settings for learners to practice the skills used in scientific inquiry. The lessons in this guide are designed for use with K-6 learners. Some lessons include information as to how they might be modified for younger or older learners.
From Higher Education Institutions
From Related Organizations, Journals, and Professionals
Understanding Soil Health and Watershed Function: A Teacher’s Manual (Google Form)
This is a 146-page activity guide, focusing on questions, for teachers, students, citizens. Educators must submit an access request form for this guide.
US Environmental Protection Agency – Water Topics
Precipitation Personality Quiz from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
Precipitation seems straightforward — we often think only of rain and snow. But, there are actually many other types of precipitation, and they each have their own traits.
Try our precipitation personality quiz to learn more about rain, snow, hail, sleet, and graupel, and to find out which you most closely identify with. Maybe you are versatile and dependable like rain, or sensitive and loyal like graupel, maybe a natural born leader like hail?
Working with Beavers to Restore Watersheds – USDA Forest Service
Nature Lab: Animals and Ice – The Wild Center (YouTube video)
This week we will explore another form of frozen water – ice! We’ll take a look at some ways that humans and animals use this form of solid water in the Adirondack winter. This video also provides an introduction to the activity Science on Ice: Moving Water with String – Nature Lab (January 2021), The Wild Center (PDF)
Nature Lab: Animals and Snow – The Wild Center (video)
Join Derek to explore how small rodents, snowshoe hares, and North American river otters use snow to their advantage as we continue our examination of water in the Adirondack winter.
- US Geological Survey Reference Material and Activities
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Water Science School Classroom Teacher Resources for Water Education
The USGS Water Science School offers many resources to help teach students all about water. This page contains classroom teaching guides, water cycle diagrams, facts and quizzes, water education posters, a resource for viewing water from space, a story for class tole play on forming a town in a desert and water needs, surveys, challenge questions, and more.
Interactive Water Cycle Diagram for Kids (Beginner)
Interactive Water Cycle Diagram for Kids (intermediate)
Interactive Water Cycle Diagram for Kids (Advanced)
This glossary is a compilation of hydrologic terms previously defined in published USGS reports, hence, all definitions have been approved for publication and are in the public domain.
Drip Calculator: How much water does a leaking faucet waste?
Science in your Watershed Databases
Water Resources of the United States
- Pennsylvania 4-H Resources
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Written for youth in grades 6-12, this tool introduces public and private water systems and includes an activity on how to read a water quality test report.
Water Conservation for Communities
Help your community learn how to save water.
Watershed Decisions Activity Kit
A hands-on, inquiry based activity kit that helps older youth and adults learn about water quality issues in small watersheds and the decision making processes that go into improving those water quality issues.
Rain to Drain: Slow the Flow is a hands-on stormwater education curriculum available from Penn State Extension and Pennsylvania 4-H.
This resource includes lesson plans on Ecosystems; Renewable and Nonrenewable Resources; Endangered, Threatened and Extinct species; and Watersheds and Wetlands.
Aquatic Environments and Water
These projects cover topics including conservation, preservation, wildlife, ecological systems, and even the chemical make-up of water.
- Kits, Projects, and Activities from National 4-H