(Kansas City, Mo.) – How do you make water quality education fun and engaging? Invite KC Water to school.
Kate Delahunt and Lara Isch are KC Water’s Water Quality Educators. Together, they prepare, plan, and present The Journey of Stormwater: From KC to the Sea. It’s a national award-winning curriculum that introduces students to stormwater, runoff, and what happens to water after it washes down the drain.
“Most kids in the 4th through 6th grades still think water comes from the water factory. So, tying our natural waterways into the water they drink puts them in the process and I love to see that,” said Isch.
Through this curriculum, students learn how precipitation moves through the watershed. They demonstrate how water becomes polluted, and they understand how best management practices (BMPs) improve the quality of our water. And, at the end, they create a public service announcement that persuades people to follow BMPs in their treatment of this valuable resource.
Every year KC Water takes this program into as many public and private Kansas City schools that will let them in the door.
Mr. Jason Flood at St. Elizabeth’s school is one teacher who keeps inviting them back.
“I love the energy. I love the hands-on activities,” said Flood. “The examples Ms. Delahunt gives are excellent. The kids engage when she’s here teaching a lesson.”
It isn’t just classroom work. After going over the basics, the students move outside for real examples of how water moves and takes with it whatever is in the way.
“Every single time I go in and work with these kids I always hear that ‘wow’ factor. When the kids see water move across impervious surfaces carrying pollution right along with it they never cease to be amazed,” said Delahunt.
The Journey of Stormwater: From KC to the Sea is divided into five lessons that are aligned with the Common Core and Next Generation Science Standards. Delahunt leads the first session. The classroom teacher takes it from there.
This program is free and is available to schools within KC Water rate-payer boundaries.
For more information about “KC to the Sea,” please visit www.kcwaterservices.org/kc-to-the-sea.
For more information, please contact Brooke Givens, Media Relations Coordinator, at brooke.givens@kcmo.org or 816.513.0284.
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KC Water maintains and operates water treatment and distribution systems, stormwater management systems, and wastewater collection and treatment systems for residential and business customers in Kansas City and for wholesale customers in the Kansas City area. KC Water is primarily funded by fees charged to customers based on their use or impacts on the three utility systems.
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