“This is the only water on Pingry’s campus today,” Ms. Fung-Kee-Fung told her Grade 6 science students. They stood lined up at water coolers next to the tennis courts, each student filling their own plastic milk jug with water. They would have to make the water last the entire day—a mid-May day that was already hot and humid at 9:30 in the morning.

Of course, the Pingry water fountains and bathrooms were in perfect working order that day; the science students undertook their experiment in water rationing as part of their study of water. The water they collected was the only water they could use for drinking and washing until 3:30 p.m.

They reported on the experience during a Middle School Assembly on May 23, 2008. The students informed their peers that 10 out of 24 students in the class could not make it through the day on their designated water supply without resorting to Pingry’s regular water. They also revealed that the exercise made them realize how fortunate they are to have clean water so readily available, unlike those in developing countries such as Ghana, where some villagers must walk 6.2 miles to obtain water.

For the two weeks prior to the experiment, students also recorded their daily water usage to better appreciate the amount of water they use.



© 2008 The Pingry School