Nutritional experts recommend drinking eight glasses of water a day but seventh graders studying water scarcity at Somers Middle School know that is not feasible for millions of people around the world.

“After watching the video about water scarcity, I realized it’s not just a problem for third world countries,” said Niamh O’Connor. “This is something that is everywhere, and people may not even get one glass of water in a day.”

Hazel Sledzik agreed. “It was scary to learn that the lack of water is such a big problem around the world,” she said.

Seventh grade students in Matt Lugo’s Technology classes have been exploring the impact of water scarcity around the world as part of their first Middle Years Programme design unit. The “Invention and Innovation to Help Others” project had students research people and places impacted by water scarcity, explore possible solutions, and brainstorm their own solutions.

The students worked together to create water-capturing devices that could hold as much water as possible for 25 seconds using two sheets of paper and sixteen inches of tape.

The project followed the MYP design process that challenges students to be practical and creative thinkers in solving problems. Their projects got them thinking about the bigger picture.

The task made Sledzik think about ways to help. “For the countries that lack clean drinking water, we need to find ways to help them build containers to hold excess rainwater,” she said.

Thomas Breglio said that the water scarcity made him think twice when emptying out a water bottle after sports practice. “We are lucky we have access to water all the time,” he said.  “I think we should all be grateful for what we have.”  He said he was glad to do this project because it made him cognizant of global water issues.