The following lesson may fit well in an environmental education unit on conservation. During this lesson, students will examine the amount of water their family uses on a typical Saturday, record the information in a Microsoft Office Excel template, and analyze and compare their water usage to that of others in the class.
Students will determine the amount of water their family uses.
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Students will compare the amount of water used in their families to that used in other families.
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Students will identify ways they can decrease family water usage.
Prerequisite skills
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Basic experience using Microsoft Office Excel
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Basic skills using Microsoft Internet Explorer
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Basic skills using Microsoft PowerPoint
How to begin
1.
Bring a gallon of water to your classroom (a gallon-sized milk carton will work). Show your students the gallon of water to help them visualize the volume in one gallon.
2.
Brainstorm all of the things that families do that use water.
3.
Ask the students to estimate and write down how much water they think their family uses on a cold, rainy Saturday when everyone is at home.
4.
Tell students they will do an activity that teaches them how to determine the total number of gallons their family uses.
In this activity, you will follow a series of steps to determine how much water your family uses, record your findings in an Excel spreadsheet, and then write a report analyzing your findings.
Step 1: Determine your family's water usage
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Software: Microsoft Office Excel, Microsoft Internet Explorer, Microsoft Office Word
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What to do
Determine your family's water usage and report on your findings
Review and answer the questions about water usage. Be sure to record your answers on your Excel worksheet and also on the Web site. You will use the worksheet to compare and analyze your family water usage when you show it to your classmates.
5.
Record the total number of gallons of water.
6.
Go to the Water Usage Chart tab at the bottom of your Excel worksheet. Print your chart.
7.
Open a new Word document, and then answer the following questions about your water usage:
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What activity uses the most water for your family?
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What is the average number of gallons each member of your family used?
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What three things can you do to reduce the amount of water used at your house?
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How does your water usage compare to others in your class?
Step 2: Present your recommendations
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Software: Microsoft Office PowerPoint
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What to do
Create a PowerPoint presentation to share your recommendations based on your research
1.
Open PowerPoint.
2.
Create slides that communicate three ways your family can use less water at home.
