Design Brief – Water Filtration (Year 2)

Introduction: Design Brief:

Oh no! The water from our water fountain at school
tastes yuck! The students in the school feel that it is
unsafe to drink brown, unfiltered water. What can
you do to make the water clear and safe to drink
again?
Project specifications:
Your role is to create a water filter that can be
used in the school. You will explore different
materials that filters water and find out which
is the most effective. You will need to
investigate the best combination of filters that
water our water clear as day!

Materials needed for your design:

Time:
• Plastic soda or juice bottle
• Vase or tall drinking glass
You will be given 5 weeks to design and
• Water with gardening dirt
construct your water filter.
• Clean water from tap
• Gravel OR small stones Week 1: Research about water filter. What are
• Cotton balls OR small cloth OR coffee filter the components of a water filter?
• Activated charcoal
• Clean sand Week 2: Explore the different materials. Design
• Drinking water test kit different combinations of materials that will go
into your water filter.
Your design must include:
• The first layer as either cotton balls, cloth OR coffee Week 3 and 4: Design your water filters. Test
filter (2 – 4 cm thick). out your designs with drinking water test kit.
• The second layer as activate charcoal. (2cm thick). Record results.
• The third layer as either gravel or small stones. (5 cm
thick). Week 5: Present your findings to the class.
• The fourth layer as clean sand. (7-9 cm thick). Make sure you ask the teacher to take pictures
of your water filters to refer back later.
You must layer your water filter exactly to this. You may
change the first and third layer.

Evaluation

Links to the Questions:

Science/Technologies/Maths • Did the water filter clean the ‘dirty’ water?
Curriculum • Is the filtered ‘dirty’ water now the same as the clean
water from tap?
Science: Technologies: • Does the water go through the material or does
ACSHE034 ACTDEK001 absorb it?
ACSHE035 ACTDEK004 • Does the same amount of water you put through the
ACSIS041 WATPS11 filter come out?
WATPPS12
Maths: WATPPS13
ACMMG037 WATPPS4
WATPPS15 Resources/support materials
ACMSP049
Kids Science: Make a mini water filter:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqWV7ozfFNQ
How does a water filter work? What’s inside:
Presentation https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ08263S-TU
You will present your design in Week 5. Pick the Water purification facts for kids:
most successful water filter you have created and https://kids.kiddle.co/Water_purification
share your results with the class. UV Water filter and Purification Systems How They Work -
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0jRb5jM2n8
 Design Brief – Water Filtration (Year 2)

References
Berzon, J. (May 2014). How does a water filter work? What’s inside? Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eZ08263S-TU

Fresh Water Systems. (February 2015). UV Water Filter and Purification Systems How They
Work. Retrieved from: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G0jRb5jM2n8

Kiddle Encyclopedia. (July 2019). Water purification facts for kids. Retrieved from:
https://kids.kiddle.co/Water_purification

Kix Cereal. (July 2014). Kids Science: Make a mini water filter. Retrieved from:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RqWV7ozfFNQ