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Description

This activity demonstrates the amount of water that we use in everyday activities, the importance of using less water and the impact that high water usage has on the environment.

Resources

Water usage cards and labels
Blu-tack/ sticky tape
Bottles or buckets to illustrate 180 litres of water to encourage discussion.

Instructions

Split the section into two teams.

*Give each young person in one team a water usage card, for example, brushing teeth with tap running, and each young person in the other team an amount of water usage label, for example, 30 litres. They should not look at the card.

*They should stick the labels onto their backs or make headbands that the labels can be stuck to.

*Tell the team with the water usage cards that they must pair up with someone in the label team. They will walk around the room, and asking members of the label to describe what their water usage card has on it without actually saying what it is.

*Once they have correctly guessed what their water usage card has on it, they must pair up with the label they think fits the amount of water used to carry out the activity on the water use card.

*Read out the correct answers to see if they paired up correctly.

*Ask if any are surprising or shocking. Explain that in the UK we use a lot of water every day – up to 180 litres per person.

Go on to explain that it is really important to use less water. This is because the more water we use, the more energy is needed to clean it and make it safe for use. Using lots of energy can have an effect on the environment which is believed to lead to climate change. Climate change impacts people all over the globe. For example, it can lead to more floods or droughts which will have an
effect on those who already have little water to use.

*In their pairs they should come up with imaginative ways that they can save or use less water.

You could follow this activity with The Water Diary.

Water Usage Answers
Brushing teeth – tap turned off (1 litre)
Brushing teeth – tap left running (5 litres)
Washing hands and face (5 litres)
Shower (30 litres)
Bath (80 litres)
Flushing toilet (7 litres)
Cup of tea/hot or cold drink (0.3 litres)
Washing clothes in washing machine (70 litres)
Washing clothes by hand (25 litres)
Dishwasher (30 litres)
Washing dishes in the sink (6 litres)
Indoor wateringcan (2 litres)

Adaptations
*Add a ‘down the plughole’ into the game where, before giving any answers in trying to find out what water activity they are, they must turn around and sit down. The spin and sit down being the down the plughole aspect of the exercise.

*For younger sections, show them the activities on the water usage cards and ask them to guess how much water they think is used. Reducing the amount of cards used can also help make the activity easier.

*Older sections could imagine that they have just 10 litres of water available to them per person and in their groups they choose which activities they would prioritise out of their group total. They should explain their choices and think of alternatives to the activities that may use less or no water at all.

*Younger sections could be asked to collect empty water bottles in the weeks before doing this activity, and then use the bottles to show quantities of water in order to make the activity more visual.

Tags

• Environment awareness
• Global Challenge water
• Water usage

Badge Links

• Global Issues - Awareness
• World - Environment