PreK-Kindergarten
Getting Little Feet Wet
(2018 Science K.1, K.3, K.4, K.11)
Students will use their senses to explore different aspects of water, from water properties and water as a resource to water sounds through interactive, hands-on activities. Activities include senses exploration, along with investigations into water uses, flow, and phases.
Lower
Elementary (1-3)
Water Connections
(2018 Science 1.1,1.8, 2.1, 2.3, 2.5, 3.1, 3.7, 3.8)
Students will investigate how they interact with their natural resources and how water moves through the environment with a focus on water conservation and the water cycle. Activities for each grade include:
First Grade: My Water Footprint (water conservation)
Second and Third Grades:
• The Incredible Journey (water phases & the water cycle)
• Aquatic Habitats (aquatic insects & human impacts)
• My Water Footprint (water conservation)
Upper Elementary (4-5)
Jumping In!
(2018 Science 4.1, 4.3, 4.8, 5.1, 5.7)
Have a guest scientist visit your classroom to test rain water theories with our EnviroScape model and investigate the interconnectedness of our water systems. Activities for each grade include:
Fourth Grade (Fifth Grade: Choose any of the 3-4 grade water activities as a review lesson before the Science SOL):
• Watershed EnviroScape & Sum of the Parts (watershed science & impacts of pollution)
• Which Water’s Which? (introduction to water quality)
• Macroinvertebrate Mayhem (life in aquatic ecosystems & human-environmental impacts)
• Aquatic Habitats (aquatic insects & human impacts)
• Web of Life (food chains & food webs)
• Stream Sleuths (biotic water quality investigation & dichotomous key ID in the classroom)
• Parachute Pollution (pollution in a watershed)
• My Water Footprint (water conservation & resources)
Middle School (6-8)
Testing the Waters!
(2018 Science 6.1, 6.6, 6.8, 6.9, LS.1, LS.5, LS.8, ES.6, ES.8)
Investigate water’s unique properties and the role water plays in our everyday lives and throughout our watershed. Activities include:
Grades 6-8; Earth Science & Life Science:
• Watershed EnviroScape & Sum of the Parts (watershed science & impacts of pollution)
• Which Water’s Which? (introduction to water quality)
• A Drop in the Bucket (water availability on Earth)
• The Incredible Journey & Blue Planet (the water cycle)
• Stream Sleuths (biotic & abiotic water quality investigation & dichotomous key ID in the classroom)
• Macroinvertebrate Mayhem (life in aquatic ecosystems & human-environmental impacts)
• Urban Water Cycle (urban water systems & impacts of pollution)
• FOG in a jar (human impacts on water infrastructure)
High School (9-12)
Water Investigations
(2018 BIO.1, BIO.2, BIO.8, ENV.5, ENV.10)
Students will conduct a water quality investigation using water samples collected from Lynchburg streams. Students will conduct chemical tests (turbidity, dissolved oxygen, and pH) of the water sample and analyze realtime data from Lynchburg stream monitoring systems. Additional activities for grades 9-12 include:
Biology & Environmental Science:
• Stream Sleuths- High School Extension (biotic & abiotic water quality investigation in the classroom)
• Urban Water Cycle (urban water systems & impacts of pollution)
• FOG in a jar (human impacts on water quality & sewer infrastructure)
Career Exploration
All Ages
A career in water offers the opportunity to deliver, clean, and renew our world’s most essential resource. Water and resource recovery careers pay competitive, family sustaining wages at all levels of experience.
LWR can talk with your class about the skills needed to pursue a career in water and share some of the jobs that are available.
School Investigations and Action Projects
Want to start a student-led, hands-on water or environmental investigation at your school?
Contact us! We are happy to help by providing investigation curriculum, outdoor education, and in-class support for partnering schools to encourage students to identify and solve environmental issues at their school.
Have a schoolyard stream that you’d like to investigate? Reach out to us for science experiences in the field! Stream investigations include biotic and abiotic water quality tests led by our education staff qualified as Save Our Streams monitors.
Water Treatment Plant Tour
The Lynchburg Water Treatment Plant is located on College Hill in Lynchburg, Virginia. Students in fourth grade and above are welcome to tour the plant. Students will learn about water infrastructure, the history of water in Lynchburg, water quality, and water chemistry. This facility can accommodate up to 20 students and the tour is approximately 90 minutes.
Water Resource Recovery Facility Tour
The Lynchburg Regional Water Resource Recovery Facility is located off of Concord Turnpike in the City of Lynchburg. Students in middle school and above can take a tour of the plant to learn about the wastewater treatment process and infrastructure. Students will also be able to view our state-of-the-art lab where water quality testing occurs. This facility can accommodate up to 30 students. The tour is approximately 90 minutes.
Engaging water and wastewater treatment facility tours
Free Water Education Materials for Your Classroom
Incorporate water, wastewater, and watershed learning materials into your SOL curriculum with FREE student booklets. Materials for Lower Elementary and Upper Elementary include:
• “Protecting Our Water Supplies”
• “How Wastewater Treatment Works”
• “Living in Your Watershed” (Elementary & Middle School)
Contact us for your FREE water education resources! We would be happy to provide classroom programming in addition to the booklets of your choice.
FREE educational materials
Request the Water Wagon: Lynchburg’s Mobile Water Wonder!
The Water Wagon is a mobile educational water program available for schools and field days, community events, and sporting events. Learn about our City’s environment and water resources through interactive SOL-correlated programs including the Water Cycle, Urban Water Cycle, Stormwater Runoff, Pollution, and a Scavenger Hunt. The Water Wagon also provides a potable drinking water station upon request.
Drops Down the James: A Traveling Watershed Science Program
The James River serves as a water source for millions of Virginians.
Drops Down the James is a free traveling water drop and watershed science program designed for 4th Grade students in Virginia K-12 schools within the James River and Chesapeake Bay Watersheds. Students will review watershed concepts, apply reading and writing skills, and experience collaboration and communication in science.
Students at participating schools will receive an inclass education outreach program from Drops Down the James Water Utility Partners, a water treatment facility tour, and complete a traveling watershed stewardship project by writing letters and designing water drops in the classroom. At the end of the year, water drops and letters will be returned to the first school in the journey, and students will have a broadened perspective of what it means to protect the James and our water resources!
Virtual Activities
We offer virtual tours and programming for schools and community groups!
We love to share our passion for water with you, no matter the circumstances. Contact us if you would like to arrange a virtual tour or other education program.
Request a FREE Program!
Our Programs
We offer both in-class and field trip opportunities based on the Virginia Standards of Learning. Our highquality programming is designed to build on and enhance your school’s existing curriculum. In-class presentations are approximately 45 to 90 minutes, depending on the selected program. Each program will be coordinated with the teacher to accommodate the needs of the class and includes assessments built into the curriculum. All in-class presentations and field trips, including tours and the mobile Water Wagon, are FREE of charge!
Request a Program
Advanced reservations are required for all in-class and field trip programs. To request a class presentation, complete the form at the link below or by scanning the QR code to the right:
Are you interested in higher education programs? Contact us for facility tour inquiries, field experiences, and educational programs customized for your classroom goals and objectives. https://www.lynchburgva.gov/562/Request-an-Education-Program-Tour
Environmental Education Professional Development for Teachers
Lynchburg Water Resources educators are certified through Project Learning Tree to provide high quality environmental education professional development for educators of all backgrounds. Options range from three-hour to full-day sessions. Professional development opportunities are hands-on and interactive. Contact us to schedule your professional development opportunity!
Contact Us
Nathan Shissler
Nathan.Shissler@lynchburgva.gov
434-455-4251
