Grade 11 Lesson plan
Where Kingsmere's Missing Water Went: A Source-Evaluation Lesson
Students weigh a water audit table, a council newsletter, an anonymous forum post, and an engineer's memo to explain a fictional city's unbilled water.
Common Core ELA · Grades 11–12
W.11-12.7 Short and sustained research projects
Conduct short as well as more sustained research projects to answer a question (including a self-generated question) or solve a problem; narrow or broaden the inquiry when appropriate; synthesize multiple sources on the subject, demonstrating understanding of the subject under investigation.
Why water teaches this standard well
Students sustain research projects that synthesize many sources to solve a problem, such as recommending how their community should fund the replacement of aging water infrastructure. Infrastructure planning is an authentic problem that cannot be answered without genuine synthesis.
Materials tagged with this code are written to the full standard , and each carries a written note explaining the alignment. See how we review materials.
12 materials aligned to W.11-12.7
Lesson plans
Grade 11 Lesson plan
Operator or Engineer? A Water Careers Research and Writing Lesson
A grade 11 lesson where students synthesize two real water-career profiles, an operator and a civil engineer, into a short comparative paragraph.
Grade 12 Lesson plan
Synthesizing Sources on Truitt County's Infrastructure Funding Gap
A grade 12 research lesson where students synthesize three sources on the national infrastructure funding gap into one policy memo paragraph for a fictional county.
Worksheets
Grade 11 Worksheet
The Sturminster Overflow Interview: Writing Follow-Up Questions
A grade 11 worksheet on a transcript in which a student reporter questions a fictional public works director after a sewer overflow, then drafts follow-up questions.
Grade 11 Worksheet
The Sandhill Aquifer Contamination Case: A Source-Synthesis Worksheet
A grade 11 worksheet where students synthesize a geologist's report, a resident's letter, and an agency notice to answer one research question about a fictional aquifer.
Projects
Grade 11 Project
Three Routes into the Halstow Water District: A Career Dossier
A four-session grade 11 ELA research project in which students compare three education paths into water work and recommend one for a named student profile.
Grade 12 Project
The Sedgeley Board's Decision Packet on Fallow Ridge
A six-session grade 12 project in which teams research a fictional water board's three options for a failing well field and deliver a full written decision packet.
Grade 12 Project
Trellis Point Aquifer Storage: A Research Brief Project
A five-session grade 12 ELA project in which teams synthesize a seven-document source packet into a policy brief on aquifer storage or a new reservoir.
Grade 11 Project
Student Hydration and School Fountains: A Random-Sample Survey
Teams audit every school fountain, survey a random sample of students, estimate tap-water use with a simulated margin of error, and pitch a budgeted plan.
Grade 12 Project
Reopening Kestrine High: A Building Water Safety Plan After Summer
A grade 12 health project where teams write a flushing, monitoring, and notice plan to cut Legionella and lead risk as a fictional school reopens after summer.
Grade 12 Project
Linthwaite Water District: Design a Paid Operator Apprenticeship
A five-session grade 12 careers project in which students design a paid operator apprenticeship for a fictional water district under a budget cap and licensing timeline.
Graphic organizers
Grade 11 Graphic organizer
Three Records of the Drayhollow Cloudburst: A Synthesis Matrix
A grade 11 synthesis matrix that sets a rain-gauge log, a public works memo, and three resident accounts against five sub-questions about one flooded street.