Click on the topics below to expand and find additional water education resources for the classroom or at home.
Water Education Lesson Plans
Discover Water
The Role of Water in Our Lives
Defenders of the Future
Defenders of the Future Tackle Today’s Water Troubles
A free story with lessons, activities, and resources to solve real-world problems for grades 4+
H.O.M.E. School
Alliance for the Great Lakes
Waters to the Sea Mississippi River Adventure
An interactive story map from Hamline University Center for Global Environmental Education
Big Sioux Water Festival
A free story with lessons, activities, and resources to solve real-world problems for grades 4+
The Watershed Game
The Watershed Game is a large-format board game designed for small group work and whole-class participation. It helps students understand watersheds, the relationship between land use, water quality and communities. Student teams apply tools to decrease water pollution while balancing financial resources. The game emphasizes collaboration and cooperative decision-making, persuasive argument, teamwork, and leadership skills along with science and math. The classroom version is appropriate for 5-12th grade.
Groundwater and Drinking Water
Activities Library
The Groundwater Foundation
Minnesota Ground Water Association
Anoka County Water Resource Outreach Collaborative
A series of animated educational videos
Drinking Water for Kids
US EPA
Water Environment Federation
Scroll to “Educational Resource Links”
Fishing and Aquatic Invasive Species
Aquatic Invasive Species Teacher Toolkit
Anoka County Parks and Anoka Conservation District
Fishing in the Neighborhood (FiN)
MN Department of Natural Resources
Projects/Taking Action
Adopt-a-Drain
Metro Watershed Partners: a coalition of over 40 public, private and nonprofit organizations in the Minneapolis/St Paul, Minnesota metropolitan area that, through collaborative educational outreach, teaches residents how to care for area water.
H20 for Life
MN Department of Natural Resources
General Environmental
Environmental Education Portal
Minnesota Association for Environmental Education
Hennepin County
Environmental Education
Minnesota Agriculture in the Classroom
Minnesota Department of Agriculture
Natural Resources Field Trip Digital Discovery Packet
University of Minnesota Extension
Minnesota Project WET/MinnAqua
Project WET materials and adapted lessons by the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources (MinnAqua Program) through an agreement with the National Project WET Foundation.
MinnAqua Leaders Guide
A comprehensive look at aquatic life, habitat and fishing. Resources are for educators, resource professionals, recreational leaders, and parents.
Macroinvertebrates
Discover the world of fresh water living critters! Macroinvertebrates are an indicator of water quality. Discover cool facts, find these tiny creatures in your local water bodies, then identify them…it just may show you how healthy your neighborhood water really is!
Macro Mayhem: Download PDF
Full Color Macro Chart: Download PDF
Minnesota Project WET
Minnesota Educators and Parents: Interested in more water lessons and ideas? Visit the MN Project WET website and get trained in Project WET! Take the online course and get a complete 2.0 WET Curriculum Guide mailed right to your door! Lots of hands-on activities that meet state, NGSS and Common Core standards.
MN Project WET Connect
Resource for schools, educators and at-home learners. Check out the National Project WET site for details and fun materials for your schools and homes-new Distance Learning Package (WETconnect) online learning.
Discover Water (Game Website)
Have fun playing games and learning about our Blue Planet! Meet Bridger the Water Dog and find out what watery adventures he is “Sniffing Up!”
Our next in-person festival will be Wednesday, September 25, 2024.
Registration is now closed. Check back in February 2025 to register for the next festival… You won’t want to miss out on this awesome field trip for 4th grade students!