Teach: It’s 10% asking kids questions. It’s 90% inspiring kids to ask questions that you can’t even answer.
— Anonymous
Dear Educator,
You and your students are invited to attend the annual New Hampshire Drinking Water Festival, Water Science Fair and Poetry Contest! It is FREE and open to all New Hampshire fourth and fifth graders. The Poetry Contest is also open to third graders.
The Festival, Science Fair and Poetry Contest are three separate learning opportunities. Your students can participate in one or all of them:
- The Festival is a full-day learning event (activities taught by water professionals, an educational concert and an Award Ceremony).
- The Science Fair takes place in the morning with an early afternoon Award Ceremony.
- The Poetry Contest results are announced at the Award Ceremony.
New Hampshire Drinking Water Festival, Water Science Fair and Poetry Contest!
Dear Educator,
You and your students are invited to attend the annual New Hampshire Drinking Water Festival, Water Science Fair and Poetry Contest! It is FREE and open to all New Hampshire fourth and fifth graders. The Poetry Contest is also open to third graders.
The Festival, Science Fair and Poetry Contest are three separate learning opportunities. Your students can participate in one or all of them:
- The Festival is a full-day learning event (activities taught by water professionals, live, educational concert and Award Ceremony).
- The Science Fair takes place in the morning with an early afternoon Award Ceremony.
- The Poetry Contest results are announced at the Award Ceremony.
New Hampshire Drinking Water Festival, Water Science Fair and Poetry Contest!
Important Dates
Festival & Fair Registration: January 31, 2025
Poetry Submission: March 31, 2025
Festival & Fair Date: May 7, 2025
(rain date: May 8)
Photo Release
There will be photographers and videographers at the event for promotional purposes. For this reason we ask that all students have a photo release form on file. Please ensure teachers and chaperones know which students do not have a photo release so they are able to notify photographers.
Teacher Survey
We will send you a short survey
after the Festival.
Please watch for it and let us know how the event worked for you.
We take your feedback to heart every year to improve the educational value of this event. Thank you!
Important Dates
Registration: January 31, 2025
Poetry Submission: March 31, 2025
Festival Date: May 7, 2025 (rain date: May 8)
Photo Release
There will be photographers and videographers at the event for promotional purposes. For this reason we ask that all students have a photo release form on file. Please ensure teachers and chaperones know which students do not have a photo release so they are able to notify photographers.
Teacher Survey
We will send you a short survey after the Festival.
Please watch for it and let us know how the event worked for you.
We take your feedback to heart every year to improve the educational value of this event.
Thank you!
FAQ: Festival
The Festival is a one-day event scheduled during National Drinking Water Week (typically the first full week in May.) It runs from 9:00 a.m. to 2:00 p.m. with a break in the middle of the day for lunch and an awards ceremony.
All fourth and fifth grade students in New Hampshire are invited to attend the Festival with their classes! Teacher registration is required.
Only fourth and fifth graders may participate in the Science Fair. Teacher registration is required. Teachers may register for the Science Fair even if the class is not attending the Water Festival.
All third, fourth and fifth graders, including home schooled students, from New Hampshire may participate in the Water Poetry Contest. Students may submit poems individually or teachers may have the entire class participate. See the Poetry Contest tab for more information.
The event is free to attend but the school is responsible for student transportation to and from the event.
The registration form is available by clicking on the ‘Apply Now’ button above. Email or mail the completed registration form to the contact person listed on the form.
We have an attendance limit of approximately 450 students. You may bring all of the fourth and fifth graders in your school but register as soon as possible as it is first come, first served! To ensure students have an opportunity to individually engage with the presenters, the group size limit is 14 students. If your class is larger than 14 students it will be split into two groups, each with its own schedule. Please bring the appropriate number of chaperones.
Follow your school’s policy on how many chaperones to bring. Keep in mind that group size is limited to 14 students so if your class size is larger, it will be split into two groups, each with its own schedule.
Also, the presenters are there to share their professional knowledge with your students. Please ensure your chaperones know that they are responsible for ensuring students are well-behaved, not the presenters.
Clothing:
- Please ensure students and chaperones are prepared and comfortably dressed for the forecasted weather (layers, rain jackets, appropriate shoes, sunscreen, etc.). This is an outdoor event – rain or shine!
Lunch:
- Festival participants – We ask that students, teachers and chaperones bring a low/no waste lunch with reusable food and drink containers and utensils. Environmental protection is an important part of the Festival and Fair and that includes lunch. Water refill stations are onsite for reusable water bottles. There will be a space available to store lunches and belongings.
- State Science Fair participants – We will provide snacks and a pizza lunch for participating students and their chaperones.
No, due to the size of the event and scheduling constraints, students will not be able to participate in all the activities. Each group will participate in approximately six to eight 20-minute activities and a performance, covering as many themes as possible. If your class is split, the two groups will have independent schedules. Our hope is that teachers will have follow-up discussions with students to reinforce what students learned and to emphasize how dynamic and complex water and water issues are today.
This is only an estimate of times.
There is a five-minute break between events.
8:30 – 8:45 Arrival – Please arrive no later than 8:45 a.m. so you have time to sign in and orient yourselves.
9:00 Welcome Ceremony
9:15 Activities
11:00 Performance
12:00 Lunch
12:20 Award Ceremony
1:00 Activities
2:00 Students load buses to return to school
We will send you an information package a few weeks before the festival. Materials will include:
- Bus drop-off/pick-up information
- Check-in instructions
- Activity schedule (If your class is large and split into two groups, you will receive two different schedules, one for each group.)
- Maps
- Other logistical details to help you plan for the day.
If you have a particular student or situation you need to make special plans for, please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss options.
There will be photographers and videographers at the event for promotional purposes. For this reason, we ask that all students have a photo release form on file at school. Please ensure teachers and chaperones know which students do not have a photo release so they are able to notify photographers.
Teachers are asked to ensure that parents/guardians are aware that the Drinking Water Coalition may take candid photographs and video of students taking part in Festival activities for promotional purposes.
Yes, we welcome all students. Please notify us about any students who require special assistance.
This is an outdoor event and will be held rain or shine! However, we will cancel for severe weather.
If you are unable to attend, let us know as soon as possible so we may make arrangements with schools on the waiting list.
FAQ: State Science Fair
All fourth and fifth grade students in New Hampshire are invited! Teacher registration is required. However, only the top projects from your school or community will be eligible to compete in the State Science Fair. For additional information, please click on the ‘Fair Resources’ button above to download the Science Fair Manual.
The Science Fair runs from approximately 9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. This includes lunch and an awards ceremony.
Students should arrive at 8:30, a half-hour before the official start of the State Water Science Fair, which begins at 9:00. This gives students time to set up and allow themselves time to settle in. Students must check in with the fair organizers when they arrive so we know when everyone is accounted for.
Once we are ready to start, fair organizers will give a quick briefing to all participants about the plan for the day. We will have a list showing the order that students will present their projects to the judges. Students will be asked to stay in a certain area where we will be able to find them easily when it is their turn to present. Depending on the number of projects, there may be up to 4 presentations going on at any one time.
Typically, during presentations, only the students, judges and fair organizers will be in the room. When they are not presenting, students will be in the waiting area with parents or whoever may have come to the fair to support them. Snacks will be available for students in the waiting area. Depending upon the timing and the specific location, there may be activities for students in the waiting area, or students may be allowed to leave the waiting area to check out some parts of the NH Drinking Water Festival. If their school group is attending the festival, they may be able to go and join them for an activity or two, but they need to first check in with science fair organizers so that we know exactly where to find them when we need them!
At the end of the first round of presentations, judges will convene to discuss the projects. Typically, some students will be called back to present a second time to some of the judges who did not see their presentation the first time. Once all of the judging is completed, a pizza lunch will be served to students. Shortly after lunch, all students will gather together for the awards presentation.
We are usually on a very tight timeline between the fair and the awards presentation so it is important that students be aware of where we are in the process, and that they are ready to present whenever they are called.
These events are free to attend but the school or parents are responsible for student transportation.
Parents often provide transportation to the science fair due to the necessity of transporting presentation materials and an earlier arrival time than the festival.
The registration form is available by clicking on the ‘Register Now’ button above.
Please note, for the State Science Fair, only the top projects from your school or community will be eligible to complete in the State Science Fair. (For additional information, please click on the “Fair Resources” button above to download the Science Fair Manual. The manual indicates fourth grade but fifth graders are also invited to participate.)
Students should bring:
Their project materials.
Layers and shoes appropriate for indoors and outdoors. Judging for the Science Fair is done indoors. The Award Ceremony, where awards will be announced, may be outdoors. Students also have the option of participating in the Festival, following the Award Ceremony, and should be prepared with clothing to be comfortable for the weather.
Lunch and snacks will be provided to students participating in the Science Fair and their chaperone(s).
This is only an estimate of times:
8:30 Students arrive to set up
9:00 Judging begins
12:00 Lunch (judging duties may overlap)
12:20 Award Ceremony
(The conclusion of the Award Ceremony is the official end of the State Science Fair. Students are welcome to stay and participate in the remainder of the Water Festival, which ends at 2:00.)
1:00 Activities
2:00 Students load buses to return to school
We will email an information package to you a few weeks before the festival. Materials will include:
- Bus drop-off/pick-up information
- Maps
- Other logistical details to help you plan for the day.
If you have a particular student or situation you need to make special plans for, please do not hesitate to contact us to discuss options.
There will be photographers and videographers at the event. We will make a press release and social media posts announcing the winners of the State Science Fair. Images will also be used for promotional purposes. For this reason, we ask that all students have a photo release form on file at school. Please ensure teachers and chaperones know which students do not have a photo release so they are able to notify photographers.
Teachers are asked to ensure that parents/guardians are aware that the Drinking Water Coalition may take candid photographs and video of students taking part in Festival activities for promotional purposes.
Yes, we welcome all students. Please notify us about any students who require special assistance.
If the Festival is cancelled, the Science Fair may or may not be cancelled. It is location dependent.
The Festival is an outdoor event and will be held rain or shine! However, we will cancel for severe weather.
If you are unable to attend, let us know as soon as possible so we may make arrangements with schools on the waiting list.