SAVE TODAY,TO HAVE TOMORROW - MANTEIGAS( PORTUGAL)

Manteigas the capital of water

“Success” is the right word to describe the “Water week” at Manteigas kindergarten.
It was a time for discovering and learning, a time for thinking and habit changing (very bad habits, in fact).
Under the slogan “save today so that we can still have it tomorrow”, children and adults have committed themselves to make an effort and change their attitude towards the use they make of water.
Of all the experiments done, the most remarkable and the one which has made all of us rethink our consumer habits was the experience entitled “Let’s check how much water do I use in my bath!”
To perform the experiment we have selected adults and children who either have a shower or an immersion bath. They were supposed to collect the water they used in a plastic demijohn (flagon). In the end, we compared the results and verified that Ricardo, a four year old child, was the one who had used more water. He had used 6 flagons of water (= 35 litres = 125 glasses) to take a bath.
“A day without water in our school” was also an important experiment to find strategies to save water. The water children and teachers used to wash their hands was collected and reused to flush down the toilet. On the kindergarten playground there is a big tin to collect rain water which is used to water the plants and wash the floor. Small gestures can really make a difference!!!
Along with these experiments, children have made some leaflets on basic rules to save water. The leaflets will be addressed to all Manteigas inhabitants who will get them when they get the monthly water bill.
In Portugal, Manteigas is known as the water capital, but resources are not eternal, so we have to speak out loud: “save today so that we can still have it tomorrow!”

Thanks to all the mamas and dads who collaborated in these experiments.

Sucesso é a palavra certa para descrever a “ Semana da água” no pré-escolar de Manteigas. Foi um tempo de descoberta, aprendizagem, reflexão e mudança de hábitos, aliás maus hábitos. Sob o lema “ poupar hoje para não faltar amanhã”, miúdos e graúdos assinaram o compromisso de fazerem um esforço para mudar a sua atitude face á utilização / consumo da água. De todas as experiências que se fizeram, a mais marcante e que fez repensar os nossos hábitos enquanto consumidores, foi a experiência “ Vamos lá ver quanta água eu gasto no meu banho!” Foram seleccionados adultos e crianças que tomam banho de duche ou de emersão. Quem gastou mais água? Cada um recolheu a água do seu banho para garrafões de 5 litros. No final comparámos e registámos que por exemplo: O Ricardo de 4 anos foi quem gastou mais água : 6 garrafões = 35 litros de água o que equivale a 125 copos de água. Manteigas é, em Portugal, a capital da água mas os recurso não são eternos por isso vamos espalhar aos 4 ventos : Poupar hoje para que não nos falte amanhã! Um agradecimento especial para todos os papás e mamãs que colaboraram nas nossas experiência.