Representatives from Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District brought their water conservation message to Cleburne ISD’s Adams Elementary on Friday, November 21, as part of their ongoing public awareness program in Johnson, Somervell, Hill, and Ellis counties. Fifth grade students in Ms. Joni Hundley’s science classes learned the basics of conserving water indoors in a unique way – by participating in an interactive environmental play.

The play which has no rehearsals, no special costumes, and no long hours of memorizing dialogue is completed in a regular 50 minute class period.  Props are literally supplied by the students themselves.  The students, divided into small groups of 4 or 5 members, figure out how to arrange their bodies together and interact with each other to become the props used during the course of the play.  Groups end up becoming items as diverse as a helicopter, a fountain, or an inflatable seahorse float like the kind found in a baby pool.

Students had a fun and boisterous time but when all the “props” were combined they still learned how to conserve water in their homes by doing simple things such as turning off the tap while brushing their teeth. “Out of all the water conservation tips we talk about, turning off the water while they brush their teeth is probably the one main behavior change children their age can do, on their own, to save water,” said Karen Siddall, public relations and education administrator for the Prairielands Groundwater Conservation District. “Students were given a new toothbrush to take home as a reminder to put some of what they learned into practice.”