River Pollution – Freddy the Fish

 

Last week, girls explored how pollution contaminates ground water. This week, they learned what effect this pollution has on organisms and how to reverse this as Environmental Engineers! The activity began with the girls brainstorming types of pollution on post-its and sharing their ideas on the board. Ideas ranged from usual pollution such as trash to more specific types such as feces, paint toxins and oil. The affect of these specific pollutants on aquatic animals was then discussed before hearing the story of “Freddy the Fish.”  

 

 

 

 

 

Groups were given a container of clean water with Freddy,  a sponge fish, and various containers with different materials representing pollutants. As the club leaders told the story of Freddy’s journey up the river in which he encountered various pollutants, the girls would add the according material into the water. Once all eight pollutants were added, the girls were informed Freddy had died! While the pollutants were added, many of the girls laughed due to the fun of playing with Freddy and the water, but at the end, once informed that Freddy had died, screamed with discontent. Some girls wailed “Why Freddy why!” while others made post-it tombstones.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the initial shock, the girls discussed solutions on how to clean up rivers. Some came up with extreme solutions such as shutting down all the factories and others said to use filters. To show how filters work, the leaders made a simple one through which the polluted water Freddy had died in was passed. The girls noticed that the large pollutants were removed yet the water remained dirty. Leaders emphasized the importance of keeping animals safe and how Environmental Engineers work to create new filters and materials in order to clean water. After the lesson the girls walked out proclaiming they were going to “grow up and help real Freddys!”

 

Fossil Detectives

 

This week’s To-Go activity was inspired by the Paleontologist career, which relies on knowledge of excavation, sediments, fossilization, and the geologic time scale. Students excavated models, observed different types of fossils, and analyzed the history of a sediment cutout.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In small groups, students worked together to use toothpicks, craft sticks, and forks to uncover fossil “layers” made of clay. Students first examined the layers of clay in their cups and observed the different colors and textures. Groups strategized the best way to unearth the delicate fossils and utilized different tools depending on the type of sediment layer. As they dug deeper into their cups, girls found fossils from older and more ancient times. Groups with plant fossils analyzed their models and formed hypotheses about the organisms’ environment: ocean, forest, desert, or swamp.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After separating all of the fossils in their cups, students organized them based on fossil type: trace, mold, cast, or petrified. Each group presented their excavated fossils, their hypotheses about the fossil environments, and the types of sediments found in their cups.

 

 

Edwards Aquifer Lesson

 

As Environmental Scientists the girls discovered the purpose of aquifers and the effect pollution has on water through the modeling of an aquifer in a cup!

 

In order to understand aquifers, the girls were able to build one in a cup! To start, sand was poured in order to show how a permeable surface works and represent a saturation zone. The confining layer was modeled using clay since it is an impermeable surface. Rocks were then added to the cup and placed higher over the clay in order to represent a hill and valley. The girls were fascinated throughout the whole process as they saw how the water moved through the “land.” Once the drops of dye or pollution were added and water was passed over it, the girls watched intently to see how the  pollution affected the aquifer. After seeing the pollution spread throughout and seep into the saturation zone, the girls wondered how water could be cleaned and were able to brainstorm ideas that will be put into play the following week! 

 

 

Moving Through Soil

 

This week, After School To-Go students learned about aquifers, runoff, and other essential concepts in the Environmental Scientist career! Girls created a filter to observe the flow of polluted groundwater through Earth’s soil.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

First, students discussed soil’s importance to the environment. Soil plays a role as a habitat for lots of critters, a source of nutrients for crops, and a material used to produce foundations for houses and other buildings. Next, students began construction of their own soil filters. Soil and sand were layered in paper cups to represent the naturally-occurring layers of sediment found in the ground. STEM Crew poured dirty and polluted water into each group’s soil- and sand-filled cups as students observed the difference between the filtered water and the original dirty water. While the filtered water looked clearer than the original, it still looked pretty mucky!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Girls then built a model of a well to observe the effects of water moving through the soil as groundwater. With different types of soil and a paper towel roll, students were able to simulate soil’s ability to filter polluted water. When water “polluted” with purple food coloring was poured around the well in the soil, water that collected in the well was red. Girls deducted that the blue pollutants had been filtered, but the red pollutants were able to collect in the well. At the end of the activity, students observed the different soils’ effectiveness as a filter. Sandy soils filter less, while clay soils and soils with lots of organic matter can catch more pollutants!