“When you’re collecting water samples, watch out for dogs, herons, and mud.”—these are words of advice from Thomas Weger at Elida High School. Weger’s math remediation class used the Feed the World water quality lessons to test water in four different locations: a river, two creeks, and a pond. They were surprised to find that the pond had a zero phosphorus level and stayed clear, but the others showed 1000.
“The testing has gotten them thinking about water quality,” said Weger. His students want to test the school’s drinking water and area rain water, as well as following up with monthly testing at the original sites to see how the quality varies over time.
One sample had some aquatic plant life, and the students are curious about what else might be in the water. Weger suggested using a microscope as a related activity so students can see what is swimming around.
Weger thanked Ohio Corn & Wheat for providing the equipment and information for these lessons through the summer workshop. Watch the Feed the World website for future workshops and trainings!