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Flood-Resilient City Studio

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Grades 6-875-90 minSource: Creative Dad Company

Young urban planners model a flood-prone neighborhood and test drainage designs, weighing tradeoffs between protecting homes, roads, and green space on a tight budget.

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Prep: 20 minActivity: 45 min1 session~$3/groupOne table or a clear section of floorBeginner-friendly

Setup

Print or hand-copy the essential prompt for Flood-Resilient City Studio, then set out only paper, pencils, and the common or recycled items needed for one test. Use a tabletop representation whenever the original version mentions a room, specialized device, or digital tool; the learning comes from the decisions and evidence, not elaborate scenery.

Activity

  1. Build a small terrain model of a neighborhood and predict where water will pool when it rains from a spray bottle.
  2. Add drainage features like channels, straws, or absorbent zones to protect the model's homes and roads.
  3. Simulate a heavy rainstorm with the spray bottle, find a section still floods, and redesign the drainage layout to protect it without ignoring another neighborhood need.
  4. Present the final flood-resilience plan to a mock city council, justifying the tradeoffs that were made.

Done when: The group has completed Flood-Resilient City Studio when it can present the final flood-resilience plan to a mock city council, justifying the tradeoffs that were made and point to the observation, measurement, comparison, or trial that supports its conclusion.

Materials

aluminum foil pan or tray, sand or soil, small cups for water, cardboard, straws, spray bottle

Shown for the Quick Start version — switch tabs above to see what changes.

Disclosure: Materials links below go to Amazon. As an Amazon Associate, Creative Dad Company earns from qualifying purchases at no extra cost to you.

Steps

  1. Build a small terrain model of a neighborhood and predict where water will pool when it rains from a spray bottle.
  2. Add drainage features like channels, straws, or absorbent zones to protect the model's homes and roads.
  3. Simulate a heavy rainstorm with the spray bottle, find a section still floods, and redesign the drainage layout to protect it without ignoring another neighborhood need.
  4. Present the final flood-resilience plan to a mock city council, justifying the tradeoffs that were made.

Standards it satisfies

  • NGSS · MS-ETS1-2

    Evaluate competing design solutions using a systematic process to determine how well they meet the criteria and constraints of the problem.