Dive into the Wonderful World of Water
By Josie Painter
While most of Pierce High was in school on Wednesday, September 18, a select few sophomores were busy learning about the complexity of water and launching water rockets at the 35th annual Wonderful World of Water festival held at Gilman Park in Pierce and once again, took home first place in both tracks and for the farthest launched rocket.
Pierce took two teams: Pierce team one consisted of Nora Herian, Raleigh Pfeiffer, Jada Brummels, Jessica Suckstorf, Josie Painter, and Adrienne Riggert. Pierce team two included Brandon Thomsen, Isabelle Streff, Maya Johnson, Haley Scholting, Aiden Pospisil, and Makayla Shefl.
Both Pierce teams took first place in their tracks by accumulating the most points from the tests given after each session. The sessions consisted of a lecture and then a hands-on activity. After lunch, each team launched the water rocket they had made. Pierce team one’s rocket would not launch because of a hole in the body of the rocket, but Pierce team two won the farthest-launched rocket.
“It was fun building the water rocket with my team and overall it was a great experience,” Brandon Thomsen, a sophomore on Pierce team two says.
Wonderful World of Water is the only water quality event developed for Nebraska high school students. It is a hands-on learning experience stressing the protection of natural resources ranging from water quality to wildlife, and the goal is to increase the appreciation and awareness of the importance of water as a valuable resource.
Pierce team one participated in track one: Kerplunk with Nitrates, Slow it Down! Soak it in!, Don’t Treat Your Soil Like Dirt, Reptiles, and Aquatic Insects. Here, students learned about how nitrates affect water quality, stormwater, soil quality, adaptations of native animals in Nebraska, and aquatic insects.
Pierce team two took part in track two: Wetlands, Chemistry of Groundwater, Water and the Body, Flood Simulation, and Trees. In these sessions, the students learned about wetland ecosystems, testing water samples from NRD wells, how water works in the body, understanding flooding, and the importance of trees.
Pierce High’s science teacher, Deb Koehlmoos, states, “I think it is a great experience for kids to go and get outside. We’re learning about the environment, we’re learning about natural resources, which is perfect for biology, and both teams not only won, but they also represented Pierce well.”
The Pierce High sophomores made a big splash at the Wonderful World of Water and handled themselves well.
