Arrowhead Elementary School fifth graders turn environmental engineers

Arrowhead Elementary School fifth graders turn environmental engineers

Fifth graders tested their filtration systems by pouring dirt mixed with water through the top, yielding cleaner water after passing through the filter. Photo courtesy of TVCSD

Fifth graders at Arrowhead Elementary School turned environmental engineers during a recent science lab with Ms. Lukralle. Students learned about how people can protect earth’s systems and were tasked with building their own water filters.

Students were given several materials to design a filter including a sponge, cotton balls, gravel, rocks, sand and a coffee filter. They examined the materials and noted the properties of each before drawing a diagram of what their filter would look like. Next, they constructed their filters inside of a plastic water bottle.

The fifth graders put their filters to the test by mixing soil and water together, then pouring them over their filtration systems. For many students, cleaner water dripped into a cup underneath, showing the effectiveness of their filters.