The human body can survive for two to three days without water – and for most area residents, access is as simple as turning on a tap.
In other parts of the world, however, getting water can be a long and arduous chore.
This is something 85 Grade 4/5 South Broadview students learned in a hands-on experience last Wednesday.
Starting at the 10:05 a.m. recess break, the students carted empty buckets down to a pond behind Okanagan College, collected water and hauled it back up Fifth Avenue SE to the school.
Once there, they emptied their containers of dirty-looking water into a 1,000-litre aquarium before charging down the hill to fill them up again.
The energy, enthusiasm and support for each other was palpable as the nine- to 11-year-olds took turns carrying buckets that weighed anywhere from five to 10 pounds.
It was a close simulation to an experience high school students had when they helped gather water in the village of Asemkow in Ghana at spring break, says Wendy Woodhurst, director of instruction for School District #83.
“What was so impressive was the impact it had on the kids,” she says, noting the “mamas” in Ghana collect water six times per day, travelling some seven kilometres daily and carrying 60 to 80 pounds on their heads – in 39 to 40-degree heat.
Earl Dodds, one of three enthusiastic Grade 4/5 teachers who organized the experience, was amazed the young students moved 600 litres of water in 90 minutes, raising more than $2,500 in the process.
“That was pretty unbelievable and there was not one single negative comment,” he says of the exuberant willingness of the students to do as many as five and six trips. “They were enjoying it, but they also understood the story behind it.”
Dodds, who organized the Water Walk with colleagues Janu Smith and Kim Schuert, says two of the We to Me leadership students who had travelled to Ghana, visited the school about three weeks previously.
“They (the Grade 4/5 students) took the message from that, they could relate to the slide show and the pictures,” Dodds says, noting enthusiasm was also sparked by hearing motivational speaker Spencer West tell them about Free the Children. “They were impressed and amazed.”
Dodds says the three teachers had discussed what they could do to make a difference and were moved by the enthusiastic reaction.
“It was pretty special to see all those kids working together,” and when Wendy told them this water looks exactly what those people in Ghana were drinking, there was another click and the kids were like ‘Wow.’”
Dodds was also moved to hear some of the students voicing their beliefs that they can make a difference, particularly in a world where kids are often reported in the media for negative behaviours.
“A number of kids were walking up the hill and dropped their buckets. They just came back down and said, ‘we spilled it and we’re gonna go again,’” Dodds says. “It was impressive to see they didn’t give up, they just came back.”
Dodds says he, Smith and Schuert were thrilled with the support given them by principal Carl Cooper and by the school district, support that has allowed them to take their students on 12 other outings so far this year.
“We’ve been on several different field trips because we want kids to learn in a different way,” he says, noting the kids have been to Little Mountain Park a number of times, where they learned about plants, made their own medicine, learned about GPS and geocaching and put the knowledge to use with cameras on a day trip to the Craigellachie gorge. “We will probably do 35 field trips with the 85 kids… It’s a lot of extra work but there is nothing better than real hands-on outside.”
Cooper expressed his pride in the teachers as well as the students.
“You can talk to kids about it or read it out, but to actually experience it, to put your hands on the water bucket and walk up the hill... I did a couple of trips and I said this wasn’t easy,” Cooper says, noting he heard many comments from the kids that showed they understood. “One boy who has some challenges said ‘Oh, I can’t believe people in the world have to do this every day. I get it, we are so lucky and we don’t realize how lucky we are.’”
Cooper says other students realized the value in being able to go to school as well as having easy access to water.
“That just encourages me as a principal when kids understand the value of education, of what they’re doing – they participate and they want to learn.”