Grayslake students’ water project isn’t all wet
By Beth Kramer ekramer@stmedianetwork.com April 21, 2011 10:24PM
Prairie Crossing eighth-graders Chelsea Curran (right) of Grayslake and Lauren Rudolf of Gurnee, organizers of Thursday’s Walk for Water event, watch schoolmates’ reaction to their presentation. | Rob Dicker~Sun-Times Media
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Updated: June 21, 2011 12:21AM
Children in Tanzania have to walk about three miles to bring their families a gallon of water every day.
By comparison, Prairie Crossing Charter School students have it pretty easy, eighth- grade students Chelsea Curran and Lauren Rudloff told their classmates Thursday.
Curran and Rudloff, both 14, organized a schoolwide Walk for Water event that took place Thursday. The event was designed to raise awareness of water-related problems facing developing countries like the east African nation.
“Every 15 seconds, a child dies from a water-related illness,” Rudloff said.
Curran of Grayslake and Rudloff of Gurnee set up six stations around the school that educated their schoolmates about water topics like sanitation and hygiene.
“The walk represents the distance that people in Tanzania have to walk for water,” Rudloff said at the rally before students started walking. “Believe me, people in this gym have it easy compared to people in Africa.”
They said they wanted to hold the event during Earth Week.
“We were trying to get people to realize the importance of water,” Curran said. “I think we were (successful) because a lot of kids were asking questions.”
Walk for Water was their culminating class project, according to environmental teacher Naomi Hershiser.
The class project includes writing a 20- to 25-page research paper, performing at least 25 hours of community service and presenting their project to the public, Hershiser said.
“All students have done a project, but nothing like this one before,” Hershiser said.
She said the girls “easily” did at least 50 hours of public service. She also said it was unusual for these projects to include the entire school.
“They’ve done a great job,” Hershiser said.
This kind of project teaches students to “think locally, act globally,” said Nigel Whittington, executive director of the school.
“We’re trying to explain to the kids there’s a big picture,” Whittington said.
He said it was up to the students to solve problems like the water shortage that “my generation has (not willfully) bequeathed them.”
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