Varnett Public School Southwest won third place and a $125 check for a water conservation project conducted by last year’s fifth-graders.
The “Water Detective” contest, sponsored by the Harris-Galveston Subsidence District, took place in the 2015-16 school year. For this project, the subsidence district donated water conservation kits to the students. The kits included high-efficiency shower heads, kitchen and bathroom faucet aerators, shower timers, toilet flush water savers, water flow diverters and digital thermometers, said Ms. Shiella Fort-David, a fifth -grade science teacher.
Watch Ms. Fort-David talk about the water conservation program
The fifth-grade families had to apply or install the items and keep track of how much water they saved over a two-week period. They also took a quiz on what they learned while parents completed surveys describing what items they liked the most.
“We had an 89 percent return,” Ms. Fort-David said, far exceeding the 70 percent participation rate required for the project.
This year’s fifth-graders have embarked on the same project, she said. “They gave us another year and we have about an 84 percent return rate.”
This year's fifth-graders explain how they are conserving water (Video)
The detective program is an interactive curriculum aimed at fourth- and fifth-grade students to help them learn the importance of water conservation.
“The need for educating our children about the importance of water conservation — and, just as important, showing them specific ways to conserve — is a critical component to ensuring our future water supply,” the subsidence district said.