*Adapted from Earth Force Water Monitoring Kits

Name: ______

Date: ______

Overview: Students will utilize local water sources to run various water quality tests. Students will test two-four samples of water that the teacher has prepared. Students should not know where these samples came from. TEACHER: Be sure to remember where you collect the water from! Some tests require 48 hours- five days of preparation ahead of time. At the conclusion of the activity, the students will be able to identify factors that impact water quality.

Materials:  Notebook  Water samples (teacher’s discretion)  Earth Force Water Monitoring Kit.

Starter Questions: Which of the given water samples are the cleanest? Why is clean water important? By looking at the representative water samples, which one would you be willing to drink?

Procedure: 1. Create a table in your notebook where you can record the water quality tests of each sample (turbidity (JTU), biological oxygen demand, coliform bacteria, dissolved oxygen % saturation, pH, Temperature, phosphate (PPM), nitrate (PPM)). A brief example table is below.

Sample Table Water Quality Test Water Sample1 Water Sample 2 Results Rankings Results Rankings Turbidity (NTU)

Conductivity (mg/L)

Dissolved Oxygen (mg/L) and % saturation

2. After making your chart, ensure that the test kit is organized and ready to go. 3. Begin following the steps in the Earth Force Water Monitoring booklet. Note: Be sure to follow all directions carefully. 4. Complete your table with all the appropriate data collected. 5. For each set of tests, use Powerpoint Slide 10 to determine the raking of all water samples. 7. Once you are completely finished, clean your station thoroughly and reorganize and assemble the test kit and answer the questions below.

8. After testing the each sample of water, would you still be willing to drink the same water you chose prior to performing the water quality tests? Did you change your mind after seeing the results? Explain.

9. Make an educated guess as to where each of these samples was drawn from. Once you have completed your activity, the teacher will tell you what results you should have concluded.