A Shift at the Fenwith Water Plant: A Grade 6 Narrative Project

The setting. Fenwith is a fictional town, and the Fenwith water treatment plant is a fictional plant that runs every hour of every day. Three shifts cover the clock. Your story takes place during one of them.

Your job. Write a narrative of 600 to 800 words about one shift, told from the point of view of one worker. Then write a one-page sidebar of facts about that job. The class collects all the narratives into one book.

Choose one role.

• Treatment plant operator
• Water quality lab analyst
• Maintenance mechanic
• Civil or environmental engineer
• Utility communications specialist

Your constraints.

• The narrative runs 600 to 800 words.
• The point of view stays the same from the first sentence to the last.
• At least three specific job details come from the role cards, and every one of them is accurate.
• The worker notices one problem during the shift and does something about it.
• Every number in the narrative and the sidebar comes from the fact card below. You add none.
• The sidebar names at least two different education paths into the role and lists your sources.

Role cards (fictional plant, real job duties).

• Treatment plant operator. Watches turbidity and chlorine readings through the shift. Adjusts how much of each chemical the plant feeds. Backwashes a filter when it clogs. Takes samples and writes every reading in a log. Holds a state license, and the license class depends on the size of the plant and years of experience.
• Water quality lab analyst. Runs bacteria and chemical tests on samples brought in from the plant and from taps around town. Labels and tracks every sample so nobody can mix two up. Reports results to the operators and to the state.
• Maintenance mechanic. Keeps pumps, motors, and valves running. Follows a schedule of checks meant to catch a failure before it happens. Follows strict rules before entering a tank or any other closed space.
• Civil or environmental engineer. Designs upgrades to the plant, such as a new basin or a larger pump. Sizes equipment, draws plans, and prepares permit paperwork for the state.
• Utility communications specialist. Writes the annual water quality report, boil-water notices, and outage messages. Answers questions from residents and from reporters.

Fact card (use these numbers exactly as written, or leave them out).

• Water and wastewater treatment plant and system operators earned a median of $60,020 per year in May 2025. The lowest tenth earned less than $39,110 and the highest tenth earned over $91,060. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
• About 10,000 openings for water and wastewater operators are projected each year from 2025 to 2035, all of them from replacing workers who retire or move to other jobs. This figure describes operators specifically, not every job at a utility. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics.
• Becoming an operator typically requires a high school diploma, on-the-job training, and a state license earned by exam. Licenses run in classes tied to plant size and experience. Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics and state certification programs.
• Roughly one-third of the water workforce becomes retirement-eligible within the next decade.
  Source: EPA America's Water Sector Workforce Initiative.

A note on paths into this work. Some people at a plant started right after high school, trained on the job, and passed a state license exam. Some finished a certificate program at a community college. Some hold a two-year or four-year degree, and the engineers usually hold a four-year degree or more. Lab analysts often hold a science degree. All of these are ordinary routes into the same building, and your sidebar should say which one fits your worker.

1. Session 1, choose a role and gather details. Read all five role cards. Choose one role and write one sentence saying why. Fill a note-catcher with four to six job details from the card, then star the three you will use. Write one question the card does not answer. Turn in the note-catcher.
2. Session 2, plan the shift. Write the shift's timeline in six to eight events, in order. Decide the problem your worker notices and where in the timeline it appears. Choose your point of view and write the first sentence two ways, once in first person and once in third. Turn in the timeline and both first sentences.
3. Session 3, draft the narrative. Write the full draft of 600 to 800 words and count them. Mark in the margin where each of your three job details appears. Turn in the draft with the word count.
4. Session 4, revise and write the sidebar. Trade drafts. Your partner marks any place the point of view slips and any detail they doubt. Fix both. Write the one-page sidebar with the education paths, the numbers you used, and your sources. Turn in the revised draft and sidebar.
5. Session 5, final copy and collection. Produce a clean final copy, add a title of your own, and read one paragraph aloud to the class. Turn in the narrative, the sidebar, and the source list for the class collection.