Reflection CODES 221

Marques Rutlin 

Dr.Martinez

Research Team

9 September 2025

Some obstacles I might face while implementing a water fair are student participation. Without the participation of students the water fair won’t function and the months of research done will be for nothing. As a team we are familiar with the JJK foundation legacy and the building,we’ve only interacted with the kids during scavenger hunt outside.This one of the greater challenges to overcome since there is an unfamiliar person teaching and the students may not trust us at first. Another obstacle we may encounter is making sure our lesson plans are engaging. Educators at JJK strongly recommended that our lesson plans at the water fair be interactive for students,along with activities that can be done with students of all ages. After getting the chance to work with these students I agree with the educators on engaging lessons, and making science fun. The activity Zach did, one of the educators at JJK lead was an amazing example of interactive learning  and had a clear objective that was met.This scavenger allowed kids to think more independently outside using their cards to recognize the leaves of trees. Personally my station at the water fair will be going over how to manage a garden, specifically educating kids on how they might start their own garden and the exact plants they could potentially grow. During this station students will map out a birds eye view of their garden and learn about the components of soil. This lesson will promote creativity giving the student options of different plants they can have in their garden and this information can transfer over to the use of the Greenhouse at JJK. One obstacle I might face during this is the varying levels of knowledge, this is an obstacle that the JJK Foundation after school program has also struggled with before in the past. It is important to make sure all students are not only learning but challenged in a way that forces them to think. While being challenged is a crucial part of learning, it is also important that the material is the right level of difficulty because kids may get frustrated or won’t engage in the lesson if the material is too high level. To overcome this challenge I can talk with one of the educators directly at JJK to make sure my lesson plan meets all criteria and students can engage with material. In addition I would like to also look at past experiments, and lesson plans Zach has done to help benefit my own material. The JJK Foundation is an after school program targeted at youth of all ages engaging students with knowledge they will need in the future. Our partners at JJK are thrilled for us to showcase what we have learned about water conservation and pass that down to the next generation. As a future educator I am excited to get the opportunity to work with the youth and encourage good water habits for the future of our environment.