What is in the water that flows through our community, and how can we help protect it? Those questions guided Wolverine Academy students through an interdisciplinary, first-quarter project that brought together scientific research, mathematics, history and English language arts to investigate water quality in the Pine River watershed.
Titled “There’s WHAT in My Water?!,” the project challenged 23 students to investigate individual contaminants, collect and analyze water samples, and communicate their findings and potential solutions to a public audience. The work culminated in a science fair-style exhibition Thursday, Oct. 15, in the Wolverine Academy gymnasium, where approximately 60 district administrators, school staff, families and community members attended student presentations.
“The kids worked so hard. It was an intense project for them and they nailed it. It took a ton of dedication and they did a wonderful job,” said Abrah R. Masterson, Wolverine Academy’s Project-Based Coordinator and Lead Teacher.
A question with local significance
The project’s driving question was, “How can we make the Pine River watershed safer?” Students selected contaminants to investigate and developed individual research questions and hypotheses. Across the class, they examined 13 different contaminants, connecting their individual topics to broader questions about water quality, environmental health and community well-being.
“They were able to cast their net far and wide for the chemicals they were examining,” Masterson said, describing the range of topics students chose to explore.
The project also grew from a desire to better understand environmental factors that may affect community health. Masterson explained that the number of Bayfield High School students affected by cancer prompted the class to consider whether water quality was one area worth investigating among the many potential contributing factors.
“We have a large number of students with cancer, and there are a lot of contributing factors. One of the things we wanted to look at, in contribution, was what is in our water and is there anything that can be contributing to chronic illness in our community,” Masterson said.
The investigation gave students an opportunity to research the properties and potential effects of specific contaminants, examine their presence in water samples and consider what the evidence could tell them. The focus was on asking questions and evaluating data, not assuming a connection between any particular contaminant and local health outcomes.
Research, laboratory work and mathematics
The project required students to take responsibility for their own investigations while bringing together skills from multiple subject areas. Each student developed a research paper and trifold display covering the chosen contaminant, its physical and chemical properties, the local context, testing methods, results, data analysis and possible solutions.
“They did this on their own,” Masterson said, emphasizing the independent work students undertook as they developed their projects.
Students compiled research from multiple sources, constructed hypotheses and identified procedures to test their selected contaminants. They then collected water samples from treated and non-treated locations in the Pine River watershed and conducted laboratory testing at Wolverine Academy over the course of a week. Across the class, the investigations covered 13 different contaminants for 23 students, with each student gathering data specific to their chosen topic.
“Students collected a significant amount of data,” Masterson said, “using reproducible methods that award the project reproducibility- a protected aspect of the scientific process.”
The work continued in mathematics, where students used sample statistics to analyze their results, compare their findings with relevant water-quality information and form conclusions. They had to explain whether their data supported their original hypotheses and consider what their findings could—and could not—say about the samples they tested.
Students also examined how contaminants behave in the environment and the human body, as well as the potential cultural, economic and public-health implications of environmental hazards. Their final projects included proposed solutions or remediation approaches intended to address the issues they researched.
The process took students beyond simply finding information. They had to evaluate sources, develop a testing plan, interpret evidence and communicate a conclusion supported by their research and data.
An eager audience for their work
For the culminating event, Wolverine Academy transformed its gymnasium into a science fair. Students presented their projects in approximately 10-minute sessions, using their trifold displays to explain their research, testing methods, results and conclusions.
Audience members were invited to take on the role of science fair judges. Scorecards distributed at the door allowed visitors to select favorites across several fun and engaging categories, while Wolverine Academy teachers evaluated student work using standards-based rubrics. Winners for each audience-selected category were to be tallied and shared after the exhibition.
The event brought together approximately 60 people, including district administrators, high school administrators, teachers, parents and other community members. For students, it was an opportunity to present their work in a public forum, explain technical information to an audience and share what they had learned about a question relevant to their community.
“The feedback from the public was incredibly positive,” Masterson said, noting the response from attendees was encouraging.
The exhibition also offered families and community members a closer look at how project-based learning connects classroom skills to questions outside school. Students were responsible for developing their investigations, interpreting evidence and presenting their conclusions in a setting that called for both subject knowledge and clear communication.
Through “There’s WHAT in My Water?!,” Wolverine Academy students explored a complex local question by combining research, science and mathematics. Their first-quarter exhibition demonstrated the dedication required to carry an investigation from an initial hypothesis through testing and analysis to a public presentation—and gave the community an opportunity to hear directly from students about the questions they explored and what their work revealed.