Ripple Effects Projects

2025 Summer Writing Institute participants were invited to create their own Ripple Effects Place Projects by identifying an aspect of water (in)justice that was significant to their communities to become the focus of an inquiry. These projects all include the three key elements of a Ripple Effects project: photography, writing, and publication or circulation. We offer glimpses into these projects here as inspirational launching points for educators to imagine ways of engaging with inquiries about water in their own schools and communities.

Aquaculture's Ability to Create Authentic Learning Experiences by Ethan Lee

Essential Question How can the introduction of aquaculture into the classroom environment create unique and authentic learning opportunities? About the Project It was only after finding out that students in my school were skipping class to go fishing at the local river that I realized that there was an opportunity to create meaningful learning opportunities going unnoticed. This project, inspired by those students and the efforts of the Nelson River Sturgeon Board, expands up

2 min read

From Brooks To Books by Will Switzer

Purpose Statement To create and foster discussion of water issues within Senior Years and Early Years students through the accessible lens of a children’s story. Project Summary This project focuses on creating the framework of an English Language Arts unit that addresses water issues either locally, provincially, or globally. Students will start the unit off by learning about the basic concepts of water issues, with a focus on Shoal Lake 40 as an example of a water issue tha

2 min read

Students As Wake Makers by Bradyn Lederer

Essential Question How can understanding the history, present issues, and questioning what the future holds for the rivers and the water systems in Manitoba encourage students to become change makers? Project Summary This project invites students to build a relationship with the land and water around them in their community and beyond. Further, students will discover the historical and the relational significance water in Manitoba has for all groups of people. Students will d

2 min read

Rain To Roots by Jessica Schneider

Essential question How can collecting and reusing rainwater through homemade barrels help us conserve water and grow a thriving garden while inspiring others to care for the environment? About this project My Ripple Effects Place Project centers on empowering students from preschool through grade 12 to take ecological action through rain barrel construction and garden rejuvenation. Beginning with first-grade students and supported by high school mentors, the project transform

2 min read

Micro-Worlds to Inspire Macro-Change: Teaching about Water Conservation and Relationality through Terrariums by Mandy Whelan and Arielle Garand

Purpose Statement This project began with a simple idea: What might students learn about water—and themselves—by tending to a tiny, living world? Through the act of building terrariums, we invite children to observe, care for, and wonder about the water systems that quietly sustain life. These small, self-contained ecosystems become more than science experiments; they become metaphors for Earth, for care, for relationship. The work emerges in response to a gap we’ve noticed i

3 min read

Water Justice by Jaime Zulyniak

Project Purpose To help my Grade 4 students develop a meaningful understanding of water justice, this project will guide them through a variety of learning experiences such as hands-on, writing and photography. This project will last a full school year and integrate throughout many different subject areas. Project Summary We will begin with basic lessons about water—what it is, where it comes from, and how it moves through our environment. Students will explore their personal

2 min read

Water Feels by Jaylene Hoffman

In an effort to develop critical empathy within an Early Years context, The Water Feels Project aims to increase students’ sense of connection to water and invite critical thinking around its underlying emotions, valuing water as a sacred, living spirit. This project aims to create awareness of the complex relationship that water has with humans and the surrounding natural world. Learners will explore how these relationships effect water and work to better understand the root

2 min read

Water for Everyone? by Melanie Beresford

Purpose and Problem The purpose of this Ripple Effects Project is to engage children in a rich dialogue and learning environment to help them gain a greater understanding of the impact of water in their everyday lives (drinking, eating, cooking, cleaning, etc.) and the ways water has shaped their identities (memories, leisure, sports, holidays, spiritually, etc.). The problem and focus of this project are to create a deep understanding of the history of Winnipeg’s water syste

2 min read

Developing Environmental Stewards: Grounding Students in Place Through Weekly Walks by Jessica Best

Grounding Students in Place Through Weekly Walks Purpose Statement To build connection to local waterways in young children as a way to develop stewardship and care for their local environment About this Project In this project, early-years students will participate in weekly nature walks in their local community over the course of the school year. Engaging in a project that spans the school year allows students to build a relationship with the environment around them, observ

2 min read

Water Stories by Heather Dueck, Allison Santos and Leanne Zinn

Essential Question Our project will investigate the following questions: What water stories do I hear? What water stories need to be told? How can we be part of changing the endings to some of these stories? Purpose Statement To build student understanding and empathy about water and people around them and an appreciation for protecting our water sources. Our project asks our early years students to connect to, collect and tell water stories beginning with our own personal st

2 min read

Is Water Just Water? by Cori-Lee Valois

Essential Question How can we rebuild our relationship with water to honour its life-giving role, respect its cultural significance and ensure its protection for future generations? Problem The water problem at the heart of this project is the growing disconnect between people and water. In particular in urban settings, water is often viewed only as a utility and a resource. People see water as something to be used, consumed and as a result it is often taken for granted. Wate

3 min read

Little Drops, Big Impact: A School Water Garden Initiative by Simone Drummond

Purpose How can kids help tackle real environmental problems while learning from the land and each other? This project invites students to become active stewards of water and nature: building resilience, curiosity, and community in the process. About This Project What We are Doing Little Drops, Big Impact is more than a school project, it’s a hands-on learning journey. Students in Grades 2 to 5 at Wanipigow School are designing and planting a 300m² rain garden right on their

2 min read

Rethinking Water Conservation by Marjan Amrollahipourshirazi

This Ripple Effects Place Project invites Grades 4–6 students across Winnipeg to explore the deeper stories and responsibilities behind their everyday water use. While Winnipeg residents enjoy clean tap water piped from Shoal Lake 40 First Nation, many are unaware that this water comes through a colonial aqueduct system that has long denied Shoal Lake residents’ equal access to safe water. This project helps students see that water is not just a utility, but a relationship, o

2 min read

Community Water Dance by Olga Serdeschni

How can dance be used to inspire water advocacy and connect us more deeply to the water in the places we live? This project responds to the ongoing problem of water injustice, particularly the historical and ongoing denial of clean water access to Shoal Lake 40 First Nation, which supplies water to the city of Winnipeg. Students explore the emotional, ecological, and social dimensions of water through dance, storytelling, and collaboration, asking: What does water mean to us,

2 min read

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