Over 3,200 Schools and Other Educational Institutions have Used Safe Drinking Water Foundation Kits with their Students!
Check out this map to see where Safe Drinking Water Foundation kits have been used.
Please watch this video for a brief overview of our educational programs!
Four different hands-on water testing kits
Safe Drinking Water Foundation (SDWF) kits have been used in over 3,200 different schools across Canada since 2001.
All of the kits enable students to test their own, local drinking water - the water they drink every day!
Students perform authentic, hands-on tests to learn about water quality and are encouraged to share what they learned with others and to take action to alleviate drinking water quality issues.
SDWF staff offer assistance to teachers and students every step of the way. We are always available if teachers have any questions regarding how to use the kit in their classroom, to brainstorm ideas for action projects, and to help students share what they learned with others. We are available to give presentations to your students and answer their questions via Skype, Google Hangouts or a webinar. All kits are available in English and French.
You can order kits here or request sponsored kits here (in which case there is no guarantee of receiving a kit).
OPERATION WATER DROP
Elementary Operation Water Drop (OWD) kits enable students in grades 4-8 to test their local drinking water and control water samples for eight different components (alkalinity, ammonia, colour, total chlorine, copper, pH, sulphate, and total hardness) and compare their results to the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality. High School OWD kits enable students in grades 9-12 to test five different water samples (we recommend local, urban, rural, raw and control) for 12 different components (alkalinity, ammonia, arsenic, colour, iron, manganese, nitrate, total chlorine, copper, pH, sulphate, and total hardness) and compare their results to the Guidelines for Canadian Drinking Water Quality.
Each Elementary OWD kit costs $85 and each High School OWD kit costs $170. Shipping is included and there is no tax. Each kit is good for a one-time use with a class of approximately 30 students. You can order OWD kits or you can contact the Safe Drinking Water Foundation at 1-306-934-0389 or info@safewater.org to find out whether a sponsored OWD kit is available for your school!
Operation Water Pollution
Operation Water Pollution (OWP) enables students in grades five to twelve to learn about water pollution (including what causes it, how it is cleaned up, how it can be prevented, and what they can personally do about the problem). The OWP program directly connects with science and social studies curricula.
Please note that for lessons five and six you will need a digital TDS and a digital pH meter. These digital meters are included in OWP kits which are available to be ordered (each kit costs $170 and is guaranteed to be reusable for at least two years) or you can contact the Safe Drinking Water Foundation at 1-306-934-0389 or info@safewater.org to find out whether a sponsored OWP kit is available for your school!
Operation Water Biology
Operation Water Biology (OWB) is a series of eight lesson plans designed for use with students in grades 9-12. OWB directly connects with science, chemistry and biology curricula and covers several different aspects of drinking water treatment. Students learn about biological water treatment, a more effective and environmentally friendly method of treating drinking water. They also conduct hands-on experiments on chlorine, chloramine, ammonia, and iron.
You can order OWB kits or you can contact the Safe Drinking Water Foundation at 1-306-934-0389 or info@safewater.org to find out whether a sponsored OWB kit is available for your school!
Operation Community Water Footprint
Operation Community Water Footprint (OCWF) enables students in grades 6-12 to calculate how much raw water is required for their community to produce and deliver one litre of treated drinking water to their homes. Students will also investigate the quality of their own community's drinking water.
Operation Water Health
Operation Water Health (OWH) is for students in grades 4-12 and provides them with an opportunity to investigate health issues such as waterborne illnesses and contaminated water, and OWH encourages students to do their part to make a difference.
Operation Water Spirit
Operation Water Spirit (OWS) supports and encourages a greater understanding of Aboriginal culture and beliefs related to water issues. There are units available for kindergarten to grade two, grade three to grade five, grade six to grade nine, and grade ten to grade twelve.
Operation Water Flow
Operation Water Flow (OWF) encourages teachers of math, chemistry, biology and social studies to support the science teacher in order to give students a more thorough understanding of issues surrounding drinking water. The program is for students in grades 6-12.
Many of these programs are available in French and Cree as well!
Please Evaluate Our Educational Programs!
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More Educational Resources
Source Water Protection
Problem-Based Learning
Problem-based learning (PBL) is a student-centered instructional strategy in which students collaboratively solve problems and reflect on their experiences. PBL can be used in conjunction with any (or all!) of the SDWF's environmental education programs.
Do you have resources to share with other teachers?
If you are a teacher who uses our programs and has developed additional worksheets, information sheets, etc. to go with our programs when you teach them that you would like us to post on our website so that other teachers can benefit from what you have created, we would greatly appreciate if you would e-mail them to us.