Slow the Water, Spread and Sink It
by Ms. Marot’s class
Payne Residency Songs

To the tune of “Itsy Bitsy Teeny Weeny Yellow Polka Dot Bikini” by Vance and Pockriss

When we went to the Elmer Paseo
We saw native plants and wildlife too
We learned about water catchment that day-o
And some good things we all ought to do

Chorus, repeat after each verse:
(spoken: Two, three, four, tell them what the project’s for!)
We need to slow the water, spread and sink it
Store it up so we can drink it
Before the water can all run away
So slow the water, spread and sink it
Store it up so we can drink it
Don’t let the runoff run into the bay

We saw obstacles slowing the water
Like a berm and a weir and a swale
They slowed down and spread out the water
While it zig-zagged along a curvy trail

Repeat chorus

We saw two different styles of concrete
With two very different things they can do
The impermeable repels all the water
But the permeable lets it soak through

Repeat chorus

When the rain comes down hard in the mountains
It runs off to the streets near our school
But if we slow, spread, and sink all that runoff
Then we won’t have to walk through a pool

Repeat chorus

You know our aquifer’s running out of water
While our rainfall runs into the sea
But we can refill our aquifer’s water
If we follow these strategies three