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Table of Contents

The Water of Life ············································································· 3

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1; RI.3.2; W.3.8

How Much Water ············································································· 4

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1; RI.3.2; RI.3.7; W.3.1; Mathematics.3.MD.A.2; 3.MD.B.3

Drop in the Bucket ··········································································· 5

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.2; RI.3.3; W.3.1; Mathematics.3.MD.B.3 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.2-ESS2-3

It’s a Cycle ····················································································· 6

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1; RI.3.4; RI.3.7

My Water Cycle ··············································································· 7

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.1; W.3.2

Water Cycle Bracelet ····································································· 11

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.2.1; RI.2.7; SL.3.1 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.2-ESS2-3; Ecosystems: 2-LS2

Cloud Jar ····················································································· 12

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.2; RI.4.3; W.4.2; W.4.3; SL.4.1 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.3-ESS2-1

Water Cycle Bag ··········································································· 13

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.3.2 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.2-ESS2-3

Its Raining Cotton Balls ·································································· 14

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.4.2; RI.4.3; W.4.1; SL.4.1 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.3-ESS2-1

Don’t Use It All Up ········································································· 15

CCSS.ELA-Literacy.SL.4.1; W.4.2; Mathematics.3.MD.B.4 | NGSS. Earth’s Systems.3-ESS2-2

Answers & Books ·········································································· 16

For more information visit: http://www.agintheclassroom.org/TeacherResources/lesson_booklets.shtml and check out Top 40 Hits

The Water of Life

Without water, there would be no life on Earth. Water is our planet’s most precious resource.

A human being can survive only a few days without water. We use water in many different

ways without even thinking about it. Some of us just turn the faucet on and water comes out.

But not everyone in the world can take water for granted.

About 96.5% of the world’s water is salty seawater and

cannot be used. Most of the freshwater in the world is too

difficult to reach because it’s underground or in icebergs.

Altogether, almost 70% of the fresh water on Earth is

inaccessible to us—but that’s still plenty for our needs.

Imagine waking up tomorrow to find that no water was

coming out of the faucets. What would you do?

Like many people in the world, you would have to get the

water you need from a river, lake, well, or pump.

Name five ways that you use water. Write down your uses

below in order of importance. Use descriptive details in your writing.

1. ___________________________

2. ___________________________

3. ___________________________

4. ___________________________

5. ___________________________

3

Did you know...

Our bodies are

75% water.

Water makes up

50% of your

bones.

Adapted from A Life Like Mine: How Children Live Around the World by DK | ISBN-13: 978-0756618032

Home 8%

Water is Used For:

Agriculture 69% Industry 23%

How Much Water?

4

= 2.6 gallons

1

2

3

4

5

6

Use the key (above right) to calculate the number of gallons for each description below.

Write the answer in the space provided.

Adapted from A Life Like Mine: How Children Live Around the World by DK | ISBN-13: 978-0756618032

1 In some countries, you would have to manage with just one bucketful of water for a whole

day. That means water for drinking, bathing, and cooking. ______________________

2 If you leave the faucet running twice a day when you brush your teeth, you use this much

water. That’s a whole day’s supply for some people. ___________________________

3 Three visits to the bathroom flushes this much water down the drain. ______________

4 Keeping clean requires water. This much fills a bathtub. ________________________

5 Washing machines guzzle all this water for one load of laundry. __________________

6 Factories use a lot of water. It took this amount of water to make the shoes you are

wearing. ______________________________________________________________

Lesson Extender

Write a paragraph explaining ways you can conserve water.

Drop in the Bucket

Objective

Complete the activity below to see how much fresh water is available for human use.

Materials Needed

• 1 Gallon of Water • Eye Dropper

• Measuring Spoons • 6 Clear Containers

Procedure

1. Measure and remove 5 tablespoons of water from the gallon and place in one clear

container. Label this 2% polar ice caps or glaciers.

2. Measure and remove 2 tablespoons of water from the gallon and place in another clear

container. Label this container 0.62% ground water.

3. From the gallon of water, take 1/8 teaspoon and place in a container labeled 0.008%

inland seas/salt lakes.

4. Take out another 1/8 teaspoon of water and place in a container labeled 0.009% fresh

water lakes.

5. In the two remaining containers, place one drop of water in each. Label one 0.001%

atmosphere and one 0.0001% rivers/streams.

6. The water remaining (97.2%) in the original gallon represents the oceans. What is

available as fresh water for human use? The combination of groundwater, fresh water

lakes, rivers, and streams (2 tablespoons + 1/8 teaspoon + 1 drop).

Lesson Extender

Write a paragraph explaining what you think the main idea of the activity is.

Create a bar graph or a scaled picture to represent the data described above.

5 Adapted from Project Wild Aquatic

It’s a Cycle

The movement of water is called the hydrologic, or water, cycle. The study of water is known

as hydrology. One who studies hydrology is known as a hydrologist. In this cycle, water

changes states and it moves from one location to another, until it comes back to Earth.

Scientists call the water cycle a closed system because the water, in any form, never goes

away. Instead, it changes its state, and moves from one place to another. Whether you live

in a city, suburb, farm, mountains, or desert, the hydrologic cycle is present. This is because

every time you exhale, moisture is released as vapor and rises into the atmosphere.

The sun heats up water in rivers, lakes and oceans and turns it into vapor. The water vapor

leaves the river, lake or ocean and goes into the air. This step is known as evaporation.

Water vapor in the air cools and changes back into liquid, forming clouds. This is called

condensation.

Precipitation is when amounts of water condense and the air cannot hold it anymore. The

clouds get heavy and water falls back to the Earth in the form of rain, hail, sleet, or snow.

When water falls back to Earth as precipitation, it may fall back in the oceans, lakes, or rivers

or it may end up on land. When it ends up on land, it will either soak into the Earth and

become part of the “ground water” that plants and animals use to drink, or it may run over the

soil and collect in the oceans, lakes, or rivers where the cycle stars all over again.

Drawing It Out

Use the information described above to create your own illustration of the water cycle. Be

sure to label each step in the process.

6

7

Directions

Color both discs however you want. Be creative.

Cut out both discs along dotted line. Cut out the windows on disc one.

Place a brad through the middle of the two discs with disc one on top.

Line up the image and name for each step of the water cycle. Now write the

description of each step within the window. Text can be found on page 9.

Disc One

This project is adapted from: http://eisforexplore.blogspot.com/2012/04/water-cycle-wheel.html

9

Phase Text

Collection—The water from rain, sleet, and snow falls back into the rivers, lakes and oceans.

This allows the cycle to begin again.

Evaporation—The sun heats up rivers, lakes, and oceans, turning the water into vapor or

steam. The water vapor rises into the air.

Condensation—Water vapor in the air becomes cold and changes into liquid, forming clouds.

Precipitation—So much water collects in the air that the air cannot hold it anymore.

The clouds get heavy and water falls as rain, sleet, or snow.

Disc Two

This activity uses 10 beads that represent the water cycle. The beads are used to show the paths water takes through its various states – solid, liquid and vapor, as it moves throughout Earth’s systems – oceans, atmosphere, ground water, rain, streams, etc. Give each student a piece of yarn, leather, rope, or a pipe cleaner. Show the students that each colored bead represents a different stage

of water in the Earth’s systems. Ask the students to string one of each colored bead on their bracelet.

Tell them to string the beads in any order they like. After the bracelets are complete, ask the students to show you their

personal water cycle. For example, if their beads are in the following order: clouds, puddles, plants, etc., the students explain that the water started in the clouds, then it rained and fell into puddles on the sidewalk, then the water evaporated and collected on the plants overnight. Each student will have a different water story to tell.

The beads and what they represent are as follows: Sun (yellow) – the sun is the source of all energy on earth and powers the water cycle.

Water Vapor (clear) – the part of the water cycle where water is suspended in the air or is steam and humidity.

Clouds (gray) – when water vapor condenses but is still in the air.

Rain (sparkling clear) – moisture from clouds falls to the earth as a liquid.

Snow (white) – moisture falling as a liquid in the frozen state.

Erosion (brown) – rain causes erosion where soil is unprotected by vegetation. Soil particles are suspended in the water runoff.

Oceans (dark blue) – the Earth’s weather factory. Moisture evaporates from the oceans by the sun’s heat and is carried around the Earth by winds.

Lakes (sparkling blue) – the way we like to see a lake. Collects water from streams, and also evaporates water into the atmosphere.

Puddles (sparkling brown) – rainwater collects in low spots, streets, and sidewalks, and it also collects pollutants (dirt, trash, car fluids, etc.) Puddles evaporate or go into storm sewers.

Plants (green) – Plants take in water through roots and evaporate water into the atmosphere through leaves – a process called transpiration.

Water Cycle Bracelet

11

As warm air rises, it cools, and any water vapor in the rising air cools

too. Eventually, it gets cool enough to condense into the tiny droplets

of water that form clouds. But the vapor needs something to

condense onto, such as microscopic dust or smoke particles in the

air, called condensation nuclei. These allow cooled water vapor to

turn into clouds. You can see how this works using warm water, ice,

and smoke particles from a match.

What you will need: • Large wide-necked glass jar • Warm water • Black paper • Adhesive tape • Plastic sandwich bag filled with ice • Matches 1. Tape the black paper to the back of the jar

to create a dark background. This will

make your cloud more visible. Fill about a

third of the jar with warm (not steaming)

water.

2. Light a match, and then blow it out. Wait

for a second or two before dropping the smoking match into the jar. Quickly put the

bag of ice on top of the jar, so it forms a cold lid over the opening.

3. Water vapor rising from the warm water condenses onto the smoke particles and

forms a cloud. Lifting off the ice bag releases the cloud.

Reflect

After conducting the experiment, write a paragraph describing what you saw. Use

descriptive words.

Have a class discussion explaining why the experiment works.

Cloud Jar

12 This project is adapted from Nature Activities: Weather Watcher

Water Cycle Bag

Objective

Students will learn about the water cycle through observation.

Materials Needed

• Sandwich-sized zipper seal bags • Permanent markers

• Aquarium rock • Tablespoon

• ¼ cup measuring cup • Water

• Packing tape • Water cycle illustration

found at www.agintheclassroom.org

Procedure

1. Place the copy of the water cycle illustration inside the bag and close the bag.

2. Using permanent markers, trace over all the black lines, including the numbers.

3. After completely tracing everything, remove the copy from the bag.

4. Add 2 tablespoons of aquarium rock to the bottom of the bag.

5. Add ¼ cup water to the bag.

6. Using wide clear packing tap, affix the bag to a window in direct sunlight and watch the

water cycle work.

Lesson Extender: Water Cycle Song (to the tune of “Oh, My Darlin”)

Evaporation, (Push both palms up, palms parallel to the floor.)

Condensation, (Push with arms straight out to the side.)

Precipitation on my head. (Pretend to “rain” on head.)

Accumulation, (Make arms sweep back and forth in front.)

Water Cycle, (Arms rotate in circle in front.)

And we start all over again. (Turn around in place in a circle.)

13 This project is adapted from 2009 National Agriculture in the Classroom Conference | Emily White, Alabama

Its Raining Cotton Balls

What happens when clouds become saturated with water?

This activity uses cotton balls to demonstrate a cloud becoming

saturated with water condensed from vapor.

Using thread, a safety pin, or a paper clip, hang a cotton ball over a

paper plate. Add water to the cotton ball with an eyedropper until it

“rains.” It will take more drops than you think.

Procedure

1. Predict how many drops you think you will need to drop into the cotton ball cloud before it

rains. Record your prediction using an ink pen.

2. Have one person hold the cotton ball over the paper plate and the other person will then

use the dropper to add water.

3. Count the number of drops needed before it begins dripping water (rains).

4. Record your actual number of drops.

5. Subtract to find what the difference is between your prediction and the actual count.

6. Repeat with a new cotton ball cloud twice more. Record your new results.

Interpreting your results:

1. Did you make better predictions as you repeated the experiment? Share your answers in

a group discussion.

2. How did knowing the difference help you see if you made a better prediction?

3. Write a paragraph explaining how dropping water into the cotton ball is similar to what

happens in a real cloud.

4. Write a paragraph explaining what parts of the water cycle you are demonstrating in this

experiment.

14 This project is adapted from the National Weather Service.

Don’t Use It All Up Objective

Students will state one demand he or she places on a natural resource. Then, students provide

an example and explain the importance of conserving that resource.

Materials Needed

• Clear container with 4 cups of tinted water • Marker or masking tape

• Small pieces of sponges (one per student) • Second container for

sponges

Procedure

1. Measure about 4 cups of tinted water into the container. The container represents Earth and the

water represents all the available freshwater.

2. Students can brainstorm ways in which we use water (drinking, cleaning, cooking, bathing,

irrigation, recreation, etc.).

3. Using a marker or the masking tape, mark the water level on the outside of the container. Each

student should drop a sponge into the container as they state one demand they made on water

today. Leave the sponges in the container. Ask if anyone notices a change in the water level.

4. After the students have dropped all the sponges in the container, remove them without squeezing.

Set the sponges in the other container. Look at the first container and note the change in the water

level. Mark the new water level on the outside of the container.

5. Help students understand that the demands on natural resources of a large population have more

effect than the demands of a small one. Students can answer the following questions:

• What happens to the water level as we remove all the sponges?

• What will happen if we keep using water at this rate?

• What can we do about this situation?

• How can we conserve or give water back to the environment?

6. Squeeze sponges back into the original container, one at a time, while each student names a way

to reduce the amount of water. Notice the slight change in water level. Watch the water level rise

as more students add water to the container.

7. When everyone has put the water from their sponge back into the container, note the water level. It

will be lower than when the lesson began. Ask:

• Why doesn't the water level return to the mark after the sponges are squeezed?

• What are some resources that are renewable?

Lesson Extender

Different countries around the world have different climates and resources available to them. Write a

paragraph explaining how this activity can capture different regions around the world.

15 Adapted from Project Food, Land and People

Answers & Books

Page 4 Answers:

1 = 2.6 gallons 2 = 2.6 gallons 3 = 7.8 gallons

4 = 23.4 gallons 5 = 31.2 gallons 6 = 15.6 gallons

Suggested Books:

Bob the Snowman by Sylvia Loretan | ISBN-13: 978-0670836772

Cloudette by Tom Lichtenheld | ISBN-13: 978-0805087765

A Drop Around the World by Barbara McKinney | ISBN-13: 978-1883220723

A Drop of Water: A Book of Science & Wonder by Walter Wick | ISBN-13: 978-0590221979

A Life Like Mine: How Children Live Around the World by DK | ISBN-13: 978-0756618032

Nature Activities: Weather Watcher by John Woodward | ISBN-13: 978-0756620684

One Well: The Story of Water on Earth by Rochelle Strauss | ISBN-13: 978-1553379546

Snowflake Bentley by Jacqueline Briggs Martin | ISBN-13: 978-0547248295

Water by Nancy Carlson | ISBN: 978-1-926781-10-5

Water And Ice (Confronting Global Warming) by Noah Berlatsky | ISBN-13: 978-0737748611

Water Dance by Thomas Locker | ISBN-13: 978-0152163969

Weather Watch: Snow by Teacher Created Resources Staff | ISBN-13: 978-1420681017

Wonderful Water (Go Green) by Helen Lanz | ISBN-13: 978-1445109183