How much water do we waste?

This activity, created for use by teachers and/or Environment Agency STEM Ambassadors with the help of a teacher, has been designed to make pupils realise how much water they are wasting. Pupils will carry out an investigation where they recreate cleaning their teeth and measure the water wasted during this daily task.

The task introduces the importance of teeth brushing to pupils' health and that water is a valuable commodity that should not be wasted. During the investigation pupils are required to make predictions about the volume of water they use when brushing their teeth in different conditions and then gets them to measure the volume by selecting the appropriate equipment.

It is primarily aimed at 5 to 7 year old pupils, but it could be extended to older pupils by getting them to design the investigation and extending the calculations. 

The resource includes guidance for teachers and Environment Agency STEM Ambassadors along with a presentation. 

This activity is part of a series of resources created by the Environment Agency to teach primary pupils about the importance of water in society and highlight their work. Further resources in this series, including materials for a water working wall, can be found here.