They just don't always know it yet.

Engineer @ Home was created to help families discover the engineering that already exists in everyday life. Through play. curiosity, and shared problem-solving, we help children develop confidence, creativity, and a lifelong sense of belonging in STEM.

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Woman and boy building a geometric structure with wooden sticks and connectors at a table.

Stylized green hills with a small sprouting plant on the left and layered brown and beige hills on the right.

The Engineering Cycle

ASK

What is the problem?
What do we want to learn?

Imagine

Brainstorm ideas and plan possibilties

Create

Build a prototype using materials and ideas.

Test

Try it out! Collect data and observe.

Improve

What worked? What can we make better?

Engineering is a Cycle

We ask, imagine. create, test, and improve-then we start again.

How We’ll Engineer

In this unit, your family will try ideas, notice what happens, test designs, make changes, and try again. There is no single perfect solution—the goal is to learn from each attempt.

Notice Water Around You

Start with everyday life. Where is water moving, collecting, disappearing, or being used?

Build With What You Have

Cups, bottles, foil, towels, cardboard, straws, containers, soil, and other household materials can become engineering tools.

Test Your Ideas

Pour. Watch. Measure. Compare. Look for leaks, clogs, spills, or unexpected results.

Make a Change

Engineering doesn't stop after the first test. Use what happened to decide what to try next.

Think About People

Water systems are built for people and communities. Who will use the design? What do they need? Does the solution work for everyone?

What You'll Explore

Water Flow & Systems

Water Quality & Filtration

Distribution & Efficiency

Stormwater & Flooding

People & Water

About This Collection

Water is part of everyday life in our homes, gardens, neighborhoods, rivers, and communities. Engineers design systems to move water, make it safer to use, manage rain and flooding, and protect people and the environment.

Across five family activities, explore how water flows, gets filtered, reaches different places, and affects communities. Notice, imagine, build or draw, test, and improve using everyday or recycled materials. No special equipment or engineering experience is needed.

Families bring valuable water knowledge from cooking, cleaning, gardening, caring for animals, and cultural traditions. Start with what you know and what you have your experiences belong in engineering!

Ages
6-10

5
Activities

Low Prep
30–60 min

Everyday
Materials

Connect to
real Life

Key concepts

Systems & Flow

Water moves through connected parts. Gravity, slope, pressure, and barriers affect its path.

Filtration

Different materials can trap different kinds and sizes of particles.

Efficiency & Iteration

Engineers reduce waste, test ideas, and use what they learn to improve designs.

Runoff

Water that cannot soak into the ground moves across surfaces.

Design for People

Water systems should meet the needs of the people and communities who use them.

What you'll need

Basic Materials

Cups, bowls, and bottles
Cardboard, paper, and aluminum foil
Tape, straws, and markers

For Testing

Water and a shallow tray
Towels, sponges, and cloth
Cotton and funnels

Optional Extras

Gravel or small rocks
Clean sand or soil
Blocks and recycled containers

Use what you have.
You do not need the exact materials listed. Substituting materials and making choices together can be part of the engineering process.

The lessons

Can you get water from here to there?

‍
At a Glance 🔍

‍
Challenge: Design a pathway that moves water from a starting point to a destination.

Ages: 6–10

Time: 30–45 minutes
Engineering Field: Water Resources & Civil Engineering
Engineering Practice: Create, Test, Improve
Content Focus: Water flow, gravity, slope, systems
Caregiver Role: Wonder alongside your child. Let them decide what to build and change.
‍

Materials 🧰

‍
Start With This:

‍
• Two containers
• Water
• A towel or tray for spills
• 2–4 materials that could help create a pathway

Try:

‍
• Aluminum foil
• Straws
• Cups
• Cardboard
• Plastic bottles
• Paper tubes
• Spoons
• Funnels
• Sponges

‍
You Can Substitute:

‍
No straws? Try rolled paper.
No funnel? Cut the top from a clean plastic bottle.
No tray? Work in a bathtub, sink, outside, or over a towel.

‍
Why These Materials?

‍
Different materials give water different pathways. Some bend. Some leak. Some absorb water. Some hold their shape.
There isn't one best material; the interesting part is discovering what each one does.

For Caregivers ❤️
‍

You do not need to explain gravity, water pressure, or fluid mechanics. Your job is simpler: Let your child notice what the water does. If water goes somewhere unexpected, that isn't a mistake. That's information.

Your child doesn't need to write down every answer. You can talk about these questions together, invite your child to draw their ideas, or simply let them explain what they discovered during the activity.

There are no perfect answers. What matters is your child's thinking, curiosity, and willingness to explore.
‍

Start Here 🌟

Water moves through rivers, pipes, gutters, and other systems around us. Engineers design ways to guide water where it is needed.

Ask:

Where have you seen water moving?
Then change the angle.
What changed?
Engineers who work with water spend a lot of time thinking about questions just like this:
Where will the water go, and how can we help it get where we want it?
‍

📖 Choose Your Starting Point
‍

You only need one.

Story Connection 📖

‍
Imagine there is water on one side of your kitchen table and a thirsty plant on the other.
You aren't allowed to pick up the water container and carry it.
How could you get the water to the plant?
‍

Real-World Connection 🌎
‍

Look around your home or neighborhood.
Can you find something designed to move water?
You might notice a faucet, pipe, gutter, drain, hose, ditch, downspout, watering can, or
something completely different.
How do you think its shape helps?

Ask Your Child 💬

Where do you think the water will go?

What might help us guide the water?

How could we change the direction of water?

💡Avoid jumping in with the solution. A question gives your child room to engineer.
‍

Meet Engineers ⚙️

‍
Nathaniel Todea: Hydraulic Engineer
‍

Nathaniel Todea is a Diné engineer who works with the U.S. Bureau of Reclamation. His work
includes watersheds, rivers and streams, fire hydrology, dams, and major water infrastructure.
He connects technical engineering with cultural knowledge that understands water as
something to be cared for, not simply moved from place to place.
‍

Ask your child: What might an engineer need to know about a river before changing anything
about it?
‍

Diana Piña Yitbarek: Water Engineer
‍

Diana Piña Yitbarek is a chemical and water engineer whose work has included groundwater
cleanup, water quality, and pollutant monitoring. She also emphasizes bringing technical
knowledge into conversation with traditional ways of understanding water and ecosystems.
‍

Ask your child: What kinds of knowledge besides math and science could help someone care
for water?
‍

^{Try It Out}

Ready to engineer? Design a pathway to move water from one place to another. Test your ideas and discover how you can guide the water where you want it to go! 💧

Go to Activity

Can you design a water filter?

‍
At a Glance 🔍

‍
Challenge: Design a filter that removes visible materials from pretend dirty water.
Ages: 6–10
Time: 45–60 minutes
Engineering Field: Environmental Engineering
Engineering Practice: Test, Compare, Improve
Content Focus: Filtration, materials, water quality
Caregiver Role: Help with setup and safety. Let your child choose the filter design.
‍

Materials 🧰

‍
Start With This:

‍
• A plastic bottle
• Cup with holes
• Funnel or other filter holder
• Two clear containers
• Water mixed with safe visible materials such as clean soil, small leaves, or tiny paper pieces.

‍

Several possible filtering materials:

‍
• Cotton
• Fabric
• Paper towel
• Coffee filter
• Clean sand
• Small gravel
• Sponge

‍
You Can Substitute:

‍
The exact materials do not matter.
The question is: What can this material catch?

‍
Why These Materials?

‍
Particles can have different sizes, and filtering materials have different spaces between their fibers or pieces. Changing the material (or the order of the materials) can change what passes
through.

‍

Important Safety Note

This is a model of filtration. Never drink the experiment water, even if it looks clearer after filtering.
Real drinking-water treatment involves processes this activity cannot reproduce.

‍

For Caregivers ❤️
‍

Try not to tell your child which material should go first. If their first filter doesn't work well, that's useful.
Ask: What did that test tell us?

‍

Start Here 🌟

Look at the pretend dirty water.
What can you see?

Ask:

If we couldn't pick those pieces out one by one, what could we build toseparate some of them from the water?

‍That's an environmental engineering problem‍

‍

📖 Choose Your Starting Point
‍

You only need one.

Story Connection 📖

‍
Imagine a storm washed dirt and leaves into a container of water. You need to clear the water.
What materials would you try?
‍

Real-World Connection 🌎
‍

Where have you seen filters?
Possibilities include coffee makers, air filters, fish tanks, sinks, pools, vacuums, masks, or water systems.
Ask: Do all filters filter the same thing?

‍

Ask Your Child 💬

What do you notice about the water? What might be mixed into it?

How do you think we could remove some of the things in the water?

What materials might help us design a system to filter water?

How could we tell whether our design made a difference?

💡 Remember: Encourage your child to share their own ideas. There is no single correct solution, and every question is an opportunity to think like an engineer.

‍

Meet Engineers ⚙️

‍
Dr. Lilia Abron: Environmental Engineer
‍

Lilia Abron studied sanitary and chemical engineering. She worked for water and sanitation
agencies, taught environmental engineering, and founded PEER Consultants, an environmental
engineering company.

‍
Ask your child: Why might an engineer who works with water need to think about both technology and people?
‍

Dr. Kartik Chandran: Environmental Engineer
‍

Kartik Chandran is an environmental engineer at Columbia University whose work looks at ways
to treat wastewater while recovering useful resources from it. His research uses communities of
microorganisms and engineering to rethink wastewater as something that can contain
recoverable water, nutrients, chemicals, and energy
‍

Ask your child: What if engineers thought of "waste" as something that might still be useful?

‍

^{Try It Out}

Ready to engineer? Design your own water filter, test how well it removes visible materials, and discover how you can improve your design!

Go to Activity

Can you deliver water without wasting it?

At a Glance 🔍

Challenge: Design a system that delivers water from one starting point to three different destinations.

Ages: 6–10

Time: 30–60 minutes

Engineering Field: Civil & Water Resources Engineering

Engineering Practice: Imagine, Create, Test, Improve

Content Focus: Water distribution, flow, and efficiency

Caregiver Role: Encourage your child to make decisions about how water travels, where it goes, and how to reduce waste.

Materials 🧰

Start With This

One starting container
Three small cups or bowls to serve as destinations
Water
A tray or towels to catch spills
2–4 household materials that could help create water pathways

Try:

Aluminum foil
Straws or tubing
Small cups or plastic bottles
Cardboard
Funnels
Sponges

Optional Extras

Measuring cup
Markers and paper
Toy plants or drawings representing gardens, homes, or other destinations

Use what you have!

You don't need every material on this list. Encourage your child to explore available materials and decide which ones might work best.

For Caregivers ❤️

Water distribution is about more than simply moving water from one place to another.

Engineers also consider how much water reaches each destination, how much is lost along the way, and whether different places need different amounts.

The goal is not necessarily to deliver equal amounts of water.

Instead, encourage your child to notice what happens and think about why.

Let your child decide how to divide and route the water. If their first design doesn't work as expected, resist the urge to fix it immediately.

Ask questions, listen to their reasoning, and encourage them to test their ideas.

A little water is enough! Use small quantities, protect surfaces from spills, and reuse water between tests when possible.

Start Here 🌟

How does water reach so many places?

Imagine turning on a faucet in your home.

Where does that water come from? How does it reach your sink?

Now think about a garden that needs watering, a farm with many crops, or a neighborhood with many homes.

Often, one water source needs to serve several different places.

How can water reach all those places without being wasted?

‍

Engineers design water distribution systems to help move water where it is needed.

They think about pathways, distance, water flow, and how to make systems work efficiently.

In this lesson, your family will explore those same engineering questions using everyday materials.

Choose Your Starting Point 📖

Story Connection 🌱

Three Gardens, One Water Source

Imagine three garden plants that all need water.

One plant is close to the water source. Another is farther away. The third needs more water than the others.

But you only have one starting container!

How could you design a system that delivers water to all three plants?

Would every plant receive the same amount?

What might happen if one pathway is longer than another?

Talk about your ideas together before trying your design.

Real-World Connection 🌎

Think about places where your family has seen water being moved or distributed.

You might have noticed:

Garden hoses and sprinklers
Farm irrigation systems
Water towers
Pipes carrying water into homes
Canals
Rain barrels
Buckets or containers used for watering plants

Explore together:

What do these systems have in common?

How are they different?

Why might engineers choose different systems for different places?

Ask Your Child 💬

Where have you seen water travel from one place to several others?
How could one water source reach three different destinations?
Do you think every destination needs the same amount of water? Why or why not?
What might make it difficult for water to reach a place farther away?
How could we move water while wasting as little as possible?

Remember: Encourage your child to share their own ideas and experiences. There may be many possible solutions to the same engineering problem.

Meet Engineers ⚙️

Charitie Ropati: Water Engineer

Charitie Ropati is trained in civil engineering with a focus on water resources. Her engineering experience has included water and wastewater infrastructure for rural Alaska Native communities.

Ask your child: Why might a water system that works in a large city not work the same way in a small coastal community?

Orval Hernandez-Marcial: Environmental Engineer

Orval Hernandez-Marcial earned bachelor's and master's degrees in civil engineering focused on water resources and environmental engineering. His work with Los Angeles Sanitation and Environment has included stormwater compliance and reviewing designs for systems that manage water on-site.

Ask your child: What might an engineer need to learn about a neighborhood before designing its water system?

‍

^{Try It Out}

Ready to engineer? Design a system that delivers water to three different destinations! Test your ideas, discover where water might be lost, and find ways to improve your design.

Go to Activity

Where Will the Rain Go? 🌧️

At a Glance 🔍

Challenge: Design a small landscape that manages heavy rain and helps protect places from flooding.

Ages: 6–10

Time: 45–60 minutes

Engineering Field: Water Resources & Environmental Engineering

Engineering Practice: Observe, Create, Test, Improve

Content Focus: Runoff, absorption, stormwater, and flooding

Caregiver Role: Help contain the water and encourage your child to decide how to redesign the landscape.

Materials 🧰

Start With This

A shallow tray, baking sheet, or suitable outdoor workspace
Small blocks, cups, or boxes to represent buildings
Aluminum foil, cardboard, or plastic to represent hard surfaces
Sponges, cloth, soil, or other absorbent materials
Water
A cup, spray bottle, or bottle with small holes to create pretend rain

Optional Extras

Small toy trees or plants
Pebbles or gravel
Small containers to collect runoff
Markers and paper to draw your neighborhood
A measuring cup to compare water amounts

Use what you have!

Your family can create a simple landscape using everyday materials. You don't need to build an entire neighborhood to explore how rainwater moves.

Why These Materials?

Different surfaces interact with water in different ways.

Some materials absorb water. Others allow water to flow across their surfaces. Some can redirect water toward another place.

Engineers use these differences when designing landscapes and stormwater management systems.

For Caregivers ❤️

This activity isn't about preventing every puddle.

Real landscapes get wet!

The important engineering questions are:

Where is the water going? Why is it going there? And is that where we want it to go?

Encourage your child to observe the behavior of water before suggesting a solution.

Instead of telling them how to prevent flooding, ask what they notice and what they would like to change.

Help contain the water using a tray or outdoor workspace, but allow your child to make decisions about the landscape.

When comparing designs, encourage your child to use approximately the same amount of pretend rain each time. If absorbent materials become soaked, discuss how that might affect the next test.

Safety reminder: Use small amounts of water away from electrical devices. Observe real rain from a safe place, and never conduct outdoor observations during thunderstorms.

Start Here 🌟

What Happens When It Rains?

Imagine a heavy rainstorm.

Water falls on rooftops, sidewalks, roads, gardens, lawns, and parking lots.

Some water soaks into the ground.

Some flows across the surface.

Some collects in low places, forming puddles or causing flooding.

But why does water collect in some places and not others?

Engineers study how water moves through landscapes.

They design solutions that can slow runoff, absorb rainwater, and guide water toward places where it can be managed more safely.

In this lesson, your family will explore how small changes to a landscape can change where rainwater goes.

Choose Your Starting Point 📖

Story Connection 🏘️

A Neighborhood in the Rain

Imagine a small neighborhood where one house floods whenever it rains heavily.

Water runs down the street and collects near the house.

The families living there want to find a better solution.

What could you change about the neighborhood to help manage the rainwater?

Would you change the ground? Add a garden? Create a new pathway for water?

There are many possibilities to explore.

Real-World Connection 🌎

Think about what happens in your neighborhood after it rains.

Have you noticed:

Puddles forming on sidewalks or playgrounds?
Water flowing along roads or driveways?
Gutters carrying water away from rooftops?
Storm drains collecting water?
Gardens or grassy areas absorbing rain?
Low places where water gathers?

Explore together:

Why might water collect in one place but not another?

What happens when rain falls on pavement compared with soil or grass?

How might the design of a neighborhood affect where rainwater travels?

Ask Your Child 💬

Where do you think rainwater goes after it reaches the ground?
Why do some places develop big puddles while others don't?
What kinds of surfaces might absorb water?
What might happen if a neighborhood has very few trees, gardens, or grassy areas?
How could we design a neighborhood that helps manage heavy rain?

Remember: Encourage your child to share observations, experiences, and ideas. Everyday experiences with rain, puddles, and gardens can be valuable starting points for engineering thinking.

Meet Engineers ⚙️

Sarah Traore — Civil Engineer & Water Researcher

Sarah Traore is a civil engineer and water-policy researcher whose work has included reducing stormwater runoff, using green infrastructure, hydrologic modeling, water quality, and climate adaptation.

Ask your child: Could plants or green spaces be part of an engineering solution?

Cadijah Walcott — Civil & Environmental Engineer

Cadijah Walcott studied civil and environmental engineering and used hydrologic modeling to examine past flooding in a Maryland watershed before working in coastal hazards and mitigation.

Ask your child: Why would engineers study floods that already happened?

^{Try It Out}

Ready to engineer? Build a miniature neighborhood, make it rain, and discover how different surfaces affect water flow. Redesign your landscape to help manage flooding and give rainwater a better place to go!

Go to Activity

Can You Design a Water System for a Whole Community? 🌎

At a Glance 🔍

Challenge: Design a community water system that responds to different people's needs.

Ages: 6–10

Time: 45–60+ minutes

Engineering Field: Environmental, Civil & Systems Engineering

Engineering Practice: Ask, Imagine, Create, Test, Improve

Content Focus: Systems, infrastructure, access, and design constraints

Caregiver Role: Help your child consider different community members and changing conditions. Let your child decide how to respond.

Materials 🧰

Start With This

Paper or cardboard
Markers, crayons, or pencils
Recycled containers or small boxes
String, tape, straws, aluminum foil, or other household building materials

Optional Extras

Water and a tray for testing
Small toys or blocks representing buildings
Drawings of homes, schools, gardens, or clinics
Sticky notes to represent different community members and their needs

You Can Build or Draw!

Some children may want to create a physical model.

Others may prefer drawing a map or explaining their ideas.

Some may combine building, drawing, and storytelling.

All of these approaches can be part of engineering design!

Choose what works best for your family.

For Caregivers ❤️

This final challenge brings together ideas from the previous water activities.

Your child will think about how a water system might serve an entire community rather than just one destination.

The most important question isn't only:

"Does it work?"

It's also:

"Who does it work for?"

Encourage your child to think about people with different needs, routines, abilities, and circumstances.

A successful water system should consider the people who depend on it.

You can introduce new community members or unexpected situations, but let your child decide how to adapt the design.

There is no need to build a complicated model. A simple drawing with one water source and a few destinations is enough to begin.

Remember: Listening, explaining, drawing, pointing, building, and redesigning are all valuable ways to participate.

Start Here 🌟

Water Connects a Community

Imagine your family is helping design a new community.

People need water for many reasons:

Drinking and cooking
Washing and cleaning
Growing food and caring for plants
Looking after animals
Running schools and businesses
Supporting hospitals and emergency services

But where will all that water come from?

How will it reach different places?

And what happens to the water after people use it?

A water system has many connected parts:

Water comes from a source → moves through a system → reaches people and places → is used → and may need to be collected, treated, or returned to the environment.

Engineers must think about how these parts work together.

They also need to understand the community they're designing for.

What happens if one part of the system stops working?

What if some families live farther away from the water source?

How can engineers design a system that works for different people?

In this lesson, your family will explore how engineering decisions can affect an entire community.

Choose Your Starting Point 📖

Story Connection 🏘️

A New Neighborhood Needs Water

Imagine a new neighborhood is being built.

Families are moving in. There will be homes, a school, gardens, and places where people work.

A water source is nearby, but there is no water distribution system yet.

The community asks your family for help!

Where should the water go first?

How might it reach everyone who needs it?

What questions would you ask the community before beginning your design?

Real-World Connection 🌎

Where Does Our Water Come From?

Think about the water your family uses every day.

Where does it come from?

Some families receive water through pipes. Others may use wells, shared water sources, or stored water.

You might already know where your water comes from—or you might not.

Either answer gives you something to investigate together!

Explore together:

How does water reach your home or community?
What places in your community need water?
Who helps maintain water systems?
What might happen if the water supply is interrupted?
Who could tell engineers what a community really needs?

Ask Your Child 💬

If you were designing a new community, where would people need water?
Do you think everyone uses water in the same way?
What might make it harder for someone to access water?
What could happen if one part of a water system stops working?
Who should engineers listen to before designing a system for a community?

Remember: Encourage your child to bring their own experiences, ideas, and questions into the conversation. Communities are full of knowledge that can help engineers design better solutions.

Meet Engineers ⚙️

Brook Thompson: Environmental Engineer

Brook Thompson is an environmental engineer whose work brings together water engineering, Indigenous knowledge, water rights, public policy, and Klamath River restoration.

Her work highlights how engineering decisions connect with communities, environments, and people's relationships with water.

Ask your child: If a community has lived beside a river for generations, what might engineers learn by listening to them?

Aria Harris: Water Infrastructure Design Engineer

Aria Harris is a water-infrastructure design engineer who studied chemical engineering at Howard University.

She describes water engineering as both a technical challenge and an issue of equity, sustainability, and community well-being.

Ask your child: Can a design technically work but still be unfair to some people? Why?

^{Try It Out}

Ready to engineer? Design a water system for an entire community! Think about who needs water, how it will reach them, and how your system could adapt when something unexpected happens.

Go to Activity

Engineering Challenges

Easy

Activity 1 — Follow the Water

30–45 min

Easy

Medium

Activity 2 — Can You Clean the Water?

45–60 min

Medium

Your Challenge 💧

Can you design a system that removes visible dirt and other materials from water?

Engineers design filtration systems to help remove unwanted materials from water. Now it's your turn to explore how different materials work and discover what makes a filter more effective.

Open Challenge 🚀

Look at your pretend dirty-water sample and the materials available.

Your challenge: Design a system that removes as much visible material from the water as possible.

How you build it is up to you!

Try your ideas, observe what happens, and see how you can improve your design.

What to Do 🛠️

Think like an engineer as you explore:

Imagine 💭 Look at the dirty water. What do you want your filter to remove? Which materials might help?
Create 🔨 Build a filtration system using one or more materials. Think about how the water will travel through your design.
Predict 🔍 What do you think will happen when you pour water through your filter? What might get trapped?
Test 💧 Slowly pour the pretend dirty water through your system. Collect the water that comes out and observe what changed.
Improve 🔄 Change one part of your design. Try a different material, add another layer, or change the order of your materials. Test again and compare your results.

Remember: The goal is to explore how filtration works, not to make drinking water. Even water that looks clear may contain invisible contaminants. Never drink the water used in this activity.

Make It Your Own 🌟

Getting Started

Not sure where to begin?

Try filtering your water through just one material.

Look closely at what passes through and what stays behind. This gives you a starting point for comparing future designs.

Ready for More? 💡

Take your engineering design further!

Try combining two or three filtering materials.
Change the order of your layers. Does it make a difference?
Measure how long the water takes to pass through each design.
Compare the appearance of the water before and after filtering.
Challenge yourself to design a filter that works both quickly and effectively.

A new challenge: Can you make your water look clearer without making the filtration process much slower?

Ask Your Child 💬

As you experiment together, consider asking:

What got through your filter? What got trapped?
Which material seems to be doing what?
Why do you think some particles passed through?
Does clearer water mean it is safe to drink? Why or why not?
What could you change to make your design work differently?
What evidence tells you that your second design performed differently?

Encourage your child to explain their thinking, even when the results are unexpected.

Before You Finish ✅

Look back at your first design and your improved design.

What changed because of your redesign?

Think about what you observed:

Did more visible material get trapped?
Did the water flow faster or slower?
Which materials or combinations seemed most useful?
What would you try next?

Record your discoveries in your Engineering Notebook using drawings, words, or photographs.

Every test teaches you something new. Engineers don't always get the results they expect, but they use what they learn to make their designs better.

Medium

Activity 3 — Get the Water There

30–60 min

Medium

Your Challenge 💧

Can you design a system that delivers water from one starting point to three different destinations while wasting as little water as possible?

Water doesn't always need to travel to just one place. Engineers design distribution systems that help water reach homes, gardens, farms, and communities.

Now it's your turn to design your own water distribution system!

Open Challenge 🚀

Place one container of water and three empty destination cups or bowls in your workspace.

Your challenge: Design a system that delivers water to all three destinations while spilling as little as possible.

How you move and divide the water is up to you!

Use the materials available, explore different pathways, and discover what happens when water has more than one place to go.

What to Do 🛠️

Think like an engineer as you explore:

Imagine 💭 Look at your starting point and three destinations. How could water reach all three? Sketch or talk about your ideas.
Create 🔨 Use household materials to build your water distribution system. Decide where pathways should go and how water might divide between them.
Predict 🔍 Before testing, which destination do you think will receive the most water? Where might water be lost?
Test 💧 Start with a measured amount of water. Let it travel through your system and observe how much reaches each destination.
Improve 🔄 Identify one part of your design that could work better. Change a pathway, adjust an angle, or improve a connection. Then test again and compare your results.

Remember: You don't need a perfect design! Each test helps you understand how water moves and how your system could improve.

Make It Your Own 🌟

Getting Started

Not sure where to begin?

Start with just two destinations.

Experiment with moving water to both places before adding the third destination.

Once your system works, explore how you might extend or change it to reach another location.

Ready for More? 💡

Take your engineering design further!

Equal Distribution: Can you deliver approximately the same amount of water to all three destinations?
Different Needs: Imagine Plant A needs a lot of water, Plant B needs only a little, and Plant C is farther away. Can you redesign your system to meet their different needs?
Reduce Waste: Can you improve your design so less water spills or gets trapped along the way?
Compare Designs: Test two different arrangements using the same starting amount of water. Which one delivers water more effectively?

A new challenge: What matters most in your design—speed, delivering the right amount to each destination, or reducing wasted water? Can you improve one without making the others worse?

Ask Your Child 💬

As you experiment together, consider asking:

Where is water being lost?
Why did one destination receive more water than another?
What could you change without rebuilding everything?
How could you tell whether your new design wastes less water?
What is most important in your system: speed, equal amounts, or reducing waste?
Would everyone design this system the same way? Why or why not?
What evidence shows that your redesign made a difference?

Encourage your child to explain their ideas, make decisions, and investigate unexpected results.

For safety: Use small amounts of water, keep the activity away from electrical devices, and place a tray or towels underneath your design. Reuse collected water when possible.

Before You Finish ✅

Look back at your first design and your improved design.

How did your changes affect the way water reached each destination?

Think about what you discovered:

Did all three destinations receive water?
Where did you notice water being lost?
Did your redesign change how much water reached each destination?
What would you improve if you could test your system one more time?

Record your discoveries in your Engineering Notebook using drawings, words, or photographs.

Every improvement begins with something you notice. Engineers use observations, questions, and evidence to design better solutions!

Medium

Activity 4 — Slow the Storm

45–60 min

Medium

Your Challenge 🌧️

Can you design a small neighborhood that manages heavy rain and helps protect buildings from flooding?

Engineers design landscapes and stormwater systems that help control where rainwater moves and collects.

Now it's your turn to explore what happens when rain falls on different surfaces and how changing a landscape can change the path of water!

Open Challenge 🚀

Build a tiny neighborhood using everyday materials.

Add a few buildings, roads, and different ground surfaces.

Then make it rain!

Your challenge: Observe where the rainwater travels and collects. Redesign your neighborhood so the water behaves differently.

How you change the landscape is up to you!

What to Do 🛠️

Think like an engineer as you explore:

Observe 🔍 Look at your landscape. Where might rainwater travel? Which places do you think might flood?
Create 🔨 Build a small neighborhood in your tray. Use different materials to represent buildings, roads, soil, and green spaces.
Predict 💭 Before making it rain, predict where water will flow and where it might collect.
Test 🌧️ Make it rain using a small, measured amount of water. Watch what happens. Where does the water travel? What absorbs it? Where does it collect?
Improve 🔄 Choose one place where you want the water to behave differently. Change your landscape by adding, removing, or rearranging materials. Test again using the same amount of rain and compare what happens.

Remember: Your goal isn't to stop every drop of water. It's to explore how landscape design affects where water goes.

Make It Your Own 🌟

Getting Started

Not sure where to begin?

Start with just one building and one road.

Make it rain and observe where the water travels.

Try changing one surface or adding a small sponge or piece of cloth to see what happens.

You don't need an entire town to explore stormwater engineering!

Ready for More? 💡

Take your engineering design further!

Expand Your Neighborhood: Add a park, garden, another building, or a low area.
Compare Surfaces: Test foil, cardboard, soil, and sponges. Which materials create more runoff? Which absorb more water?
Protect a Building: Can you redesign the surrounding landscape so less water collects near a house?
Design with Nature: Explore whether gardens, plants, or absorbent materials can help manage rainwater.
Test Heavy Rain: What happens when more rain falls? Does your original design still work?

A new challenge: Can you design a neighborhood that manages rainwater without simply blocking it or sending it toward another building?

Ask Your Child 💬

As you experiment together, consider asking:

Where did the water move fastest?
Which materials absorbed water?
What redirected the water?
Where did water collect, and why?
What could we add rather than simply blocking the water?
How could plants or green spaces become part of our design?
What changed after your redesign?
What evidence shows that your new landscape managed the water differently?

Encourage your child to explain their observations and use what they discover to guide their design decisions.

Before You Finish ✅

Look back at your first landscape and your redesigned neighborhood.

Did you stop the water, or did you give it a better place to go?

Think about what you discovered:

Where did water collect before and after your redesign?
Which changes seemed to make the biggest difference?
Did any part of your redesign create a new problem somewhere else?
What would you improve if you could test your neighborhood again?

Record your discoveries in your Engineering Notebook using drawings, words, or photographs.

Every landscape tells a story about where water goes. Engineers observe those patterns and use what they learn to design better solutions for communities.

Challenging

Activity 5 — Water for Everyone

45–60+ min

Challenging

Your Challenge 💧

Can you design a water system that helps an entire community access the water it needs?

Communities depend on water for homes, schools, gardens, businesses, and many other activities.

Engineers must think about how different parts of a water system work together—and how their designs affect the people who use them.

Now it's your turn to become a community water engineer!

Open Challenge 🚀

Imagine you're designing a water system for a new community.

Your challenge: Draw or build a system that includes:

One water source
At least three places that need water
A way for water to travel from its source to those places

You decide what your community looks like, who lives there, and how your water system works.

Then ask yourself: Who else might need water in this community?

You can draw, build, describe, or combine different ways of sharing your design.

What to Do 🛠️

Follow your engineering design process:

Ask ❓ Who lives in your community? Where do people need water? What different needs should your system consider?
Imagine 💭 Think about possible ways to move water. Where might the source and destinations be located?
Create 🔨 Draw or build your community water system. Show how water could move between its different parts.
Test 🔍 Follow the water's path through your design. Does it reach the places and people who need it? What might be difficult for some community members?
Improve 🔄 Change your design based on what you discover. Explain why you made those changes.

Remember: You don't need to use real water. You can trace the water's journey with your finger, use arrows on a drawing, or explain how your system would work.

Make It Your Own 🌟

Getting Started

Keep it simple!

Start with:

One water source
Three destinations
One way to move water

For example, your community might include three homes, or a home, a school, and a garden.

Use arrows to show where water travels.

You can always add more later!

Ready for More? 💡

Expand your community by considering people and places with different needs.

What if your community includes:

A family living far from the water source?
An older adult who cannot carry heavy containers?
A person who uses a wheelchair?
A school with many students?
A community garden that needs regular watering?
Someone who cares for animals?
A health clinic that needs reliable access to water?

Does your original system still meet the community's needs?

You don't have to solve every problem at once. Choose one new need and explore how your design might respond.

The Surprise Test! 🎲

Real engineers sometimes face unexpected challenges.

Once your child has developed a design, caregivers can introduce one surprise.

Choose one:

The Growing Community: More families are moving in!
The Dry Season: There hasn't been much rain.
The Blocked Route: One water pathway is blocked.
The Big Storm: Heavy rain is coming.
The Busy School: The school needs more water.
The Faraway Home: A family lives farther away than you expected.
The Broken Part: One part of the water system stops working.

Now ask:

"What would you like to change about your design?"

Let your child decide what to do.

They might change a pathway, add a new water source, move part of the system, or rethink who receives water first.

Test the new design by tracing or explaining how the water would move.

The goal isn't to predict every surprise. It's to explore how engineers adapt when conditions change.

Ask Your Child 💬

As you design together, consider asking:

Who did you design this system for?
Who might have a harder time using it?
What part of your system affects the most people?
What happens if one part stops working?
What did you learn from the other water challenges that could help you here?
Who should engineers talk to before designing a real community water system?
How did your thinking change after the Surprise Test?

Encourage your child to explain their decisions and consider what different community members might say about the design.

Before You Finish ✅

Look back at your original design and your improved water system.

How did your design change when you considered more people's needs?

Think about:

Who can use your water system?
What new needs or problems did you discover?
What did you change during the Surprise Test?
What would you ask community members before building a real system?
What would you improve next?

Record your ideas in your Engineering Notebook through drawings, words, photographs, or a conversation with your caregiver.

Engineering is about more than making things work. It's also about understanding people, listening to their needs, and creating solutions that help communities thrive.

You Did It! 🎉

Look Back at Your Engineering

You've completed Unit 2: Water & Environment! Your family explored five ways engineers work with water. Together, you imagined, created, tested, and improved your ideas.

💧Moved Water

🫗Filtered Water

🚰Distributed Water

🌧️Managed Rain

🏘️Designed a Community Water System

Keep Wondering Together 💬

If a conversation comes up naturally, you might enjoy remembering your engineering adventures. Nothing needs to be written down or submitted.

Want to Keep Wondering? 💭

What do you think a water engineer does now?
Which challenge made you change your idea the most?
Which design are you proudest of?
What did someone in our family already know that helped us?
Where do you notice water engineering now that you didn't notice before?
What water problem would you want to solve next?

💚 Thank you for engineering together!

You've completed Unit 2. There is nothing else you need to do.

Tell Us About Your Experience

We'd love to hear about your family's experience with Water & Environment. Sharing feedback is optional, and it helps us improve future activities and resources.

Share Your Feedback

Family Story

"We built a bridge out of cereal boves and tape. It kept falling down until we changed the triangles." Now we build better ones!
— The Nguyen Family

Smiling family of four assembling a craft project together at a wooden table outdoors.

Where will you engineer next?

Explore another collection and keep the engineering fun going.

Helping families discover the engineering that already happens in everyday life.

Engineer at Home is supported by the National Science Foundation under Award No.2520318.

Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed on this website are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.