Water For Fun

Activities

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Wishing You Well

Grades 4, 5, 6 – English Language Arts, Social Studies

Background

In medieval Scotland, people believed that wells, or places where water came out of the ground, held magical powers that could heal illnesses or grant wishes. While wells were thought to have power to heal sick people, certain wells were believed to specialize in certain illnesses. Here are a few:

Illness	Well to Visit
deafness	Craig-a-Chow
skin diseases	Fergan Well
insanity	Saint Fillan
stomach ache	Well at Newhills
toothache	St. Mary's Well
warts	Well of Warts
to insure another year of life	Carbet's Well

It was not enough to visit these wells. Those requesting favours of the well had to follow certain rules in order for their wishes to be granted. For example:

• visitors were well advised to go to the well only on certain days. It was thought that the first week of February, May, August and November was the most effective time to visit.
• Water from the well was to either be drunk by the visitor or bathed in after dark and in complete silence.
• The visitor was obliged to leave part of their clothes or rags at the well in order to rid themselves of the evil causing the affliction.
• Visitors were advised to throw money into the well as a gesture of thanks. To not leave money was considered (by the well) to be an insult, and no wish would be granted as a result.

Materials

• looseleaf paper
• pen or pencil
• lots of imagination!
• atlas referencing the British Isles (optional)

Procedure

Ask the students to imagine and describe their own wish-granting well. They should decide on a name for the well, what the requirements of the well will be (for granting wishes), and what wishes the well will specialize in granting. This well could exist in the present, or be a well from "ancient folklore".

Extension

Research and discuss what particular properties of wells led medieval people to believe that they had magical or curative powers. Are there other bodies of water that are supposed to have magical or curative powers? Discuss. You may wish to include Canadian or Aboriginal folklore and belief in your discussion before branching out to other countries – Banff hot springs are a good place to start...

Using the atlas, identify the provenance of these wells. Students may have to use a good deal of imagination to match the names of these wells to existing place names. Do the boundaries of ancient Scotland seem to coincide with the boundary that exists today? Discuss.

Students may wish to write and perform a skit based on this subject matter. If the students find it difficult to personify a well, you may suggest that they develop a water sprite or gnome act as guardian and spokesfairy for the well.

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Make Some Waves!

Grades P - 6 – Science, Art activity

Purpose

Students will simulate the effect of wind across the surface of water and learn how water moves in the direction of the wind. This activity is accomplished by blowing air through a straw across watered-down paint.

Most waves we see are caused by wind. Air molecules from wind blowing along the sea surface transfer energy to adjacent water molecules. As the water molecules begin to move, they travel in vertical circles, producing tiny wavelets. These tiny waves expose more water surface to the wind and more wind energy is transferred to the water, creating larger and larger waves. When winds slow or cease, waves continue on, though they become more rounded: these are referred to as swells.

A wave's height is the distance between its crest and trough; its length is the distance between crests.

Materials

• white construction paper
• tempera paint (2 or 3 colours)
• water
• small bowls
• small spoons
• drinking straws

Procedure

Prepare for this activity by covering the work surface with protective paper/plastic!

1. Give each student a sheet of white construction paper and a drinking straw.
2. Place tempera paint in shallow bowls. Water down the paint to the consistency of water.
3. With a spoon, apply a puddle of paint to the centre of the paper and blow through the straw across the paint. Apply one colour of paint at a time.

Notice how the air moves the paint in the direction you blow it.

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