Educating widely about lead in water with K-12 standards-aligned classroom resources

Abstract

Lead in water is a problem that continues to affect millions of Americans. Schools and child care programs across the country are checking for lead in water, which presents a timely opportunity to also educate children and families about why it matters, how it gets there, and what we can do about it. Environmental scientists and STEM education experts at RTI International worked with teachers to develop free curriculum materials that engage students and the school community in the lead exposure prevention work happening in schools through EPA grant-funded water testing programs and upcoming utility requirements through the Lead and Copper Rule Revisions. The materials provide opportunities for students to engage in scientific and engineering practices using current, accessible, real-world data sets. These curricular activities for elementary, middle, and high school support standards across disciplines, in social studies, English Language Arts, math, and science, including the active classroom science standards.