Pope & Stevens County Waterfest

The Pope and Stevens SWCD have been organizing the Water Fest event for over 15 years. The event is held at the Pope County Fairgrounds usually the 2nd Friday in September. Over 350 sixth grade students and their instructors from Pope and Stevens Counties learn about the water cycle, treatment, and monitoring of water. Volunteers direct student groups to ten learning stations for a fun filled day.

The highlight for WaterFest is a presentation by the Science Museum. The Science Museum is sponsored by Pope County Mothers and Others. WaterFest would not be possible without generous donations from local businesses, volunteers, and Pope County Ag Society for the use of the Fair Grounds.
Water Festival Committee Coordinators
Pope SWCD (320) 634-5327
Judy Johnston, Co-coordinator — Stevens SWCD (320) 589-4886 x 3

2021 Virtual Pope and Stevens County Waterfest

Due to the current Pandemic situation we were unable to hold this event in September of 2020. We do not want this year's 6th graders to miss out on this opportunity provided to students in Pope and Stevens Counties for the past 15 years. This is our 16th event and unfortunately we were not able to hold the festival in person. This year's event is virtual and our staff have assembled a listing of videos linked below that can be used by the teachers. We know that this year has been incredibly challenging with many of the students at home distance learning on and off throughout the year. This virtual event will allow flexibility for the teachers to utilize the links in their curriculum that works the best for them. It is our hope to once again hold this event in person this fall for the next year's 6th graders.

We want to thank our sponsors for continuing to support this event and because of this we are continuing to provide a t-shirt to this years participants.

Water Cycle / Incredible Journey

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=al-do-HGuIk (7min)- The Water Cycle

Water Cycle Incredible Journey - YouTube (8.5 min) – This video is longer but does describe the journey of a raindrop well. We recommend watching a little of the video for the students to get the concept.

Water Cycle facts for kids - Information about water cycle - Precipitation - Simply E-learn Kids - YouTube- (3min)

Water Cycle_Water Cycle in a Bag - YouTube (2.5 min)- Water Cycle In A Bag Experiment

Ground Water

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t3ua4bmYxG8 (11 min)- Southeastern Minnesota

Water Pollution

Water pollution | Water Contamination | Video for kids - YouTube (6.5 min)

Invasive Species

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=93wgqTVzym4 (11 min) – Department of Natural Resources

Bubble-ology

Fun With Bubbles! | Physics for Kids - YouTube (4min)

Science of Bubbles and Soap -Kid's Science Experiment - Surfactant Chemistry for Kids - YouTube – (4 min) – Kid teaching

Macroinvertebrates