West Virginia Water Festivals

Over 250 students attended the Kanawha County Water Festival in 2019!
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Overview

Project WET water festivals promote awareness of and increased knowledge about our water resource. Water festivals are held for students at or near their school or local outdoor learning space, such as a park.

Project WET water festivals are held statewide with local partners to educate students about water in fun, interactive environments and offer alternative learning opportunities including structured learning stations and exhibits where students engage in hands-on water activities and investigations.

While grounded in water science principles, the festivals also promote multidisciplinary approaches to learning by integrating social studies, geography, math, language arts, art and journaling.

Festivals are planned at the community level and learning stations and exhibits are led by employees, educators, community water experts, parents, or community members after completing Project WET training. Often, festivals coincide with water celebration days, such as World Water Day or Earth Day.


Water Festival Resources

Water Festival Curriculum Overview

To make the WV Water Festivals more robust, WV Project WET partnered with the New River Gorge National Park & Preserve, and the US Army Corps of Engineers - Huntington District to develop the WV Water Festival Curriculum.

The curriculum includes eight water focused lesson plans, each complete with an instructional video led by water education professionals, pre/post assessment online quizzes, supplemental YouTube videos, standard correlations, resource pages, in person and virtual extensions, a recommended book in the reading corner, and more!

The curriculum is targeted towards fifth grade students and is housed on a Canva webpage.

 
Environment Matters - Water Festival


Water Festival Planning

Are you interested in partnering on a water festival in your community? Contact the Coordinator to get the most updated sample letters and registration forms or view the resources below to get started!

Water Festival Planning Resources

  • Teacher Checklist

    A sample checklist to provide to the teachers whose classes you will be hosting at your West Virginia Water Festival.

Contact Us

Tomi Bergstrom
Project WET Program & Western Basin Coordinator

West Virginia Department of Environmental Protection
Watershed Improvement Branch
601 57th Street SE
Charleston, WV 25304
Phone: (304) 926-0499 x43862
Email: Tomi.M.Bergstrom@wv.gov

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