Global Education

Teacher resources to encourage a global
perspective across the curriculum

Delivering water

Year level: 9-10

Students calculate their own water use and the water use, distances and surface areas involved in accessing water and volumes of various water storage containers for people in developing countries.

In a health clinic in Vietnam, water is pumped into a storage tank and distributed by pipes using the water pressure.

In a health clinic in Vietnam, water is pumped into a storage tank and distributed by pipes using the water pressure. Photo by AusAID


Social justice and human rights, Sustainable futures

Australian Curriculum links

Learning areas

Mathematics

Year 9

Calculate the areas of composite shapes (ACMMG216)

Calculate the surface area and volume of cylinders and solve related problems (ACMMG217)

Solve problems involving the surface area and volume of right prisms (ACMMG218)

Year 10

Solve problems involving surface area and volume for a range of prisms, cylinders and composite solids (ACMMG242)

General capabilities

  • Literacy
  • Numeracy
  • Information and communication technology capability
  • Critical and creative thinking

Cross-curriculum priorities

  • Sustainability  

Activity 1: Daily water use

Students calculate their personal water use to gain insights into the relationship between access and water use.

Preparation

  • Household water bills
  • Measuring tape (trundle wheel or laser beam)
  • Buckets to carry 10 litres


Calculate your water use with your household's last water bill.

  1. What is your household's total water use?
  2. How many days does the bill cover?
  3. How many people live in your house?
  4. Calculate the average use per day in your household.
  5. Calculate the average use per day per person in your household.

Match the facts with their statements.

FactStatement
1.9 billionTotal of world's population living in rural areas without safe drinking water in 2011
636 millionNumber of litres of water used for drinking, washing and flushing by the average Australian each day
180 millionNumber of people who have gained access to a latrine, flush toilet or other improved sanitation facility between 1990 and 2011
660,000Number of people who rely on surface water (rivers and lakes) to meet their daily water needs
250Number of people per day who need to gain access to sanitation by end of 2015 to achieve the MDG target of halving the number of people without sanitation

Sources: Development Goals: Millennium Development Goals Report 2013 and Australian Government Department of the Environment

Calculate how long it will take you to carry 5 litres of water 5 kilometres and 500 metres.
Mark out 50 metres and put 5 litres of water in a container.
Carry the container 50 metres and record the time it takes you to walk the 50 metres.

Find the average time of four lengths, either on your own or as a group of four.
Calculate how many times would you have to walk the 50 metres to walk 500 metres. Multiply your time by this.
Calculate how many times would you have to walk the 50 metres to walk 5 kilometres. Multiply your time by this.
Calculate how much time would be saved by having a shorter walk.

NameTime taken to carry water 50 mTime taken to carry water 500 m (multiply by ?)Time taken to carry water 5 km (multiply by ?)Difference between time taken to carry water 500 m and 5 km
     
     
     
     
Average    

Discuss:

  • Are there any other factors to consider when comparing the time for 500 metres and 5 kilometres?

Activity 2: Length and breadth

Students calculate surface areas of excavated pathways for various designs.

Map showing distance to villages from water sourceCalculate the total surface area of the pathway to each village from the water source if the pathway is 1 metre wide and 6 centimetres deep.

VillageLength of path (L)Width of path (W)Depth of path (D)Total surface area of path
1 100 cm6 cm 
2 100 cm6 cm 
3 100 cm6 cm 
4 100 cm6 cm 

Calculate the total surface area of the ditch for the pipe to be laid to each village if the ditch is 15 centimetres wide and 30 centimetres deep. 

VillageLength of path (L)Width of path (W)Depth of path (D)Total surface area of path
1 15 cm30 cm 
2 15 cm30 cm 
3 15 cm30 cm 
4 15 cm30 cm 

Calculate the area of the footpath around the tank (ie the area around the inner shapes in the diagrams below). First, calculate the total area. Next, find the area of the base of the tank. Then subtract the area of the base from the total area.

OptionArea formulasTotal areaArea of tank baseArea of footpath
Diagram of a square within a square. Inner square is 2 metres by 2 metres. Outer square is 4 metres by 4 metres.    
Diagram of a circle inside a square. Circle is 2 metres in diameter. Square is 2 metres by 2 metres.    
Diagram of a rectangle inside an ellipse. The rectangle is 4.1 metres by 3.9 metres. The ellipse is 5 metres in height and 7 metres in width.    
Diagram of a square and a rectangle inside an ellipse. The square is 1 metre by 1 metre. The rectangle is 2.5 metres by 1 metre. The ellipse is 5 metres in height and 7 metres in width.    
Diagram of a trapezium inside a rectangle. The trapezium has a height of 3 metres. There are two parallel sides: one is 5 metres and the other 2.1 metres. The rectangle is 5 metres by 7 metres.    
Diagram of a trapezium and a triangle inside a parallelogram. The trapezium is 2.3 metres in height. It has two parallel sides. One side is 1.1 metres and the other is 5 metres. The triangle is 0.7 metres in height and 1 metre in width. The parallelogram is 5 metres in height and 7 metres in width.    
Own suggestion    
Own suggestion    

Make an observation about the difference between the smallest and largest options. 

Activity 3: Volume of the water tank

Students calculate the volume of various shaped water tanks to determine the shape that provides the greatest storage capacity and smallest surface area.

Use the dimensions in the table below to calculate the volume and surface area of the various shaped tanks.

Use the blank row beneath each shape to calculate the dimensions of a similar shaped tank that will fit on a 3-metre square base and hold 20,000 litres.

Shape of tankFormulaDimensionsVolumeSurface area
  RadiusHeightWidthLengthCubic metresLitres 
Cylinder
graphic of a cylinder		 240 cm380 cm     
       20,000 L 
Cone
graphic of a cone		 460 cm500 cm     
         
Sphere
graphic of a sphere		 145 cm      
         
Cube
graphic of a cube		 300 cm      
         
Square pyramid
graphic of a square pyramid		  200 cm240 cm    
         
Rectangular prism
graphic of a rectangular prism		  270 cm160 cm250 cm   
         
Triangular prism
graphic of a triangular prism		  350 cm220 cm403 cm   
         
Rectangular prism with half cylinder on each end
graphic of rectangular prism with half cylinder on each end		  270 cm160 cm250 cm   
         
Cube with a square pyramid lid
graphic of cube with sq pyramid lid		  270 cm200 cm    
         
Cylinder with a cone lid
graphic of cylinder with a cone lid		 360 cm280 cm 420 cm   
         
Own composite shape        

Make an observation about which shape gives the best volume for surface area.

What shape would you recommend and why?

Make an observation about how improving access to water would reduce poverty.

Source: Thanks to Caritas, Silvana Pavia, Fadi Elbarbar and St Monica's College, Epping. See school case study Walking for water.

 

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In a health clinic in Vietnam, water is pumped into a storage tank and distributed by pipes using the water pressure.
Photo by AusAID
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In a health clinic in Vietnam, water is pumped into a storage tank and distributed by pipes using the water pressure. Photo by AusAID