Students investigate the essential question, “Why do you think our town gets flooded so often?” by making soil mud balls and testing how local soils interact with water. Teams analyze evidence to explain how water changes Earth materials, how surface changes can create feedbacks across Earth systems, and how flooding affects natural resources. With input from the ward office and a geological survey company, students develop evidence-based recommendations for reducing local flood impacts. They present their findings to other students, parents, and teachers in an exhibition and reflect on feedback, collaboration, and next steps.

Students will plan and conduct a mud-ball investigation using local soil to measure how water affects infiltration, erosion, stability, and runoff. They will analyze evidence to explain how changes to Earth’s surface can create feedbacks among soil, water, and flooding while considering soil and water as natural resources. Teams will use input from the ward office and a geological survey company to evaluate solutions to the question, “Why do you think our town gets flooded so often?” Students will collaborate, revise their claims through feedback and reflection, and communicate evidence-based findings to other students, parents, and teachers in an exhibition.

Student teams will create labeled mud-ball samples from school soil and test how water affects erosion, infiltration, and stability. They will produce a site map, data displays, and a systems model showing how surface changes can contribute to flooding and affect local natural resources. Using evidence, teams will develop a claim answering, “Why do you think our town gets flooded so often?” and recommend practical responses for the ward office and a geological survey company. Their final product will be an exhibition display and short presentation for other students, parents, and teachers, followed by a reflection using audience and partner feedback.

Open with photos and a brief flood-impact story from the ward office, then have a geological survey company representative identify local clues that influence flooding. Student teams inspect mapped schoolyard sites, collect small soil samples, form mud balls, and test how water infiltrates or erodes each sample while recording observations. Teams use the evidence to discuss, “Why do you think our town gets flooded so often?” and propose questions for their four-week investigation. Students reflect on their first ideas and preview an exhibition where they will share findings with other students, parents, teachers, and both community partners.

Host a community “Flood and Soil Investigation” exhibition for other students, parents, teachers, ward office representatives, and a geological survey company. Teams display their mud-ball test setups, mapped soil-sampling locations, water-impact data, and evidence-based models showing how local soil and water interactions may contribute to flooding. Students present their responses to “Why do you think our town gets flooded so often?” and propose practical investigation or mitigation steps. Visitors provide feedback, and students conclude by reflecting on how the evidence and community perspectives changed their claims.