Is It Safe To Drink?

Is It Safe To Drink? – Teach One Reach OneScripture: Genesis 5-9

Learning Objectives:

  • Students will review the story of Noah and the Ark
  • Students will learn not all water is safe to drink
  • Students will learn how to find water in the wilderness
  • Students will learn ways to purify water to make it safe to drink

Guiding Question: How can I find water and make it safe to drink?

Materials: clear water, glasses/pitchers (Note: For more information in the US call 1-800-426-4791 Safe Drinking Water Hotline)

Procedure: Review the story of Noah and the Ark. Discuss how Noah and his family would have needed to quickly find safe drinking water after the Flood. Depending on your location discuss how your students can find clean drinking water. If you live in a country with drinkable tap water, discuss what people in other parts of the world have to do to get clean drinking water. Ask students how they would find drinking water if they were lost in the wilderness for several days.

Discuss the clues in nature for finding water. (If you have the time and live in an area where there is a source of water nearby, take your class outside and see if they can follow the clues mentioned and “find” the water source.)

Show students three containers of “drinking” water. (Two should have clear water and one water that is full of debris) Ask students which glasses of water they would feel safe drinking. Tell them one or both of the clear glasses of water could make them sick even though the water looks clean.

Discuss the importance of knowing the source of any water you want to drink and where it has been stored. Use one or more of the methods on the sheet Purifying Water to have students practice making water safe to drink. (Note: Do not allow students to drink the finished product unless the water was actually purified before your class “purified it. Also use all safety precautions when dealing with heat and chemicals and students. If you have the resources, you can start with unpurified water then get a lab to test the results of your purified water to see if your activities did indeed purify the water.)

Additional Question: What can we do to improve the safety of drinking water around the world?

Supplemental Activity: Compare various water purification methods to see which are the most reliable, the most cost effective and the easiest for the average person to build and use.

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