Elementary Programs

For grades 4-6, the Foundation's California Water Story school program offers lessons that integrate many subject areas (geography, history, science, math and art) and are designed to help students develop specific skills (critical thinking, organizing data, predicting, mapping and graphing).

Complementing this program is the Fountains of Columbia. Designed for grades 4-6, this video/lesson plan package teaches students about the importance of water during California's Gold Rush. The interdisciplinary lesson plan booklet, correlated with the new state frameworks for History/Social Science, Language Arts and Sciences, features hands-on activities involving world timelines, erosion experiments and primary source readings, including Mark Twain's "Jumping Frog of Calaveras County."

Upper elementary students can learn how water is recycled and reused in Give Water a Second Chance - Recycle It. Prepared in cooperation with the WateReuse Association California Section, the five student activities include a decoding game about the parts of the water re-cycle, mazes through a wastewater treatment plant, on-line explorations of wastewater microbe life cycles, activities to identify uses for treated wastewater and an experiment about salts dissolved in water and the challenges for water recycling. View the Give Water a Second Chance ... Recycle It! booklet now available.

Teachers download the Teachers Guide Recycled Water Booklet which contains usage directions.