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LESSON 1: WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT WATEREstimated Time for Lesson 1 hour, 45 minutes

State Standards

Standards Taught• S6C3PO1:Identifythesourcesofwaterwithinanenvironment (i.e.,groundwater,surfacewater,atmosphericwaterandglaciers).

• S6C3PO2:DescribethedistributionofwaterontheEarth’ssurface.

StandardsAddressed• S6C2PO3:Describetherolethatwaterplaysinthefollowingprocesses thataltertheEarth’ssurface:erosion,depositionandweathering.

• S6C2PO1:Identifycausesoferosion.

• S1C1PO2:Formulatequestionsthroughobservations.

Objectives

Content Objectives • StudentswillbeabletolistsourcesofwateronEarthandintheenvironment.

• Studentswillbeabletomodelandexplaintheprocessofthehydrologiccycle.

Language Objective Students will use new non-count noun vocabulary words (accumulation, evaporation, precipitation, runoff, erosion, surface water, groundwater, etc.) and transition words (next, then, after that, etc.) to explain the process of the water cycle and the sources of water in our environment in a descriptive paragraph (intransitive sentences).

VocabularyAccumulation:thebuildupofwaterparticlesastheytraveldownalandareaAquifer:anundergroundlayerofpermeablerock,sediment(usuallysandorgravel)orsoilthatyieldswaterCondensation:thechangeinstateofagastoaliquidDesert:alandareathatreceiveslessthan10inchesofrainannuallyErosion:theprocessthroughwhichthesurfaceoftheEarthiswornawaybywater,glaciers,wind,waves,etc.Evaporation:thechangeinstateofaliquidtoagasGroundwater:waterfoundundergroundinaquifersPrecipitation:anyformofwater,suchasrain,snow,sleetorhail,thatfallstotheEarth’ssurfaceRunoff:rainwaterorsnowmeltthatflowsoverthesurfaceoftheground(insteadofinfiltratingthesoil)Surface water:waterfoundonthesurfaceoflandTranspiration:theprocessofwaterevaporatingfromaplant(orlivingthing)intotheatmosphereWater cycle:thecontinualmovementofwaterthroughoutourenvironment(throughprocessesofevaporation,transpiration,precipitation,runoff,infiltrationandaccumulation) Water vapor:waterintheformofagas

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Background Information Earth,appropriatelynicknamed“TheBluePlanet,”islargelycomposedofwater.Makingup71%ofourEarth’ssurface,waterisourmostprevalentandyetmostpreciousresource.Wecanthinkoftheworld’swaterasexistinglikeabudget.Waterisnotaddedorremovedfromtheenvironment;itsimplychangesstatesandlocations.Thisconstantmovementthroughoutourenvironmentiscalledthehydrologiccycle,orwater cycle.ThesourcesandlocationsofwateronEarthareoftenreferredtoastheglobalwaterbudget.Mostoftheworld’swaterisstoredintheoceans(97.5%intermsoftheglobalwaterbudget).Thisliquidformofwaterisconstantlyevaporatingduetotheheatingpowerofthesun.Thewater vaporthentravelsupwardtowardtheatmosphereandcoolsintheprocess(convection).Waterfoundintheatmosphereaccountsforonly0.01%ofthetotalglobalwaterbudget.Asthewatervaporcools,ittransfersfromitsgaseousstatebacktoitsliquidstateinaprocesscalledcondensation.Ascondensationtakesplaceincloudsandwaterdropletsstarttobondtogether,cloudsgetheavier,andwhenthe airiscoolenough,thewaterfallsbacktoEarthasprecipitationeitherintheformofrainorsnow.

AswaterprecipitatesbacktoEarth,therearetwomainpathsitcouldtaketocompletethecycle.Thefirstpathistofallontotheearthandsoakdownintotheground.This“soakingin”processbythelandis calledinfiltration.Inessence,waterinfiltratesdownthroughthesoilto becomegroundwater.Groundwaterexistsinanaquifer,orundergroundlayerofpermeablerock,sediment(usuallysandorgravel)orsoilthatyieldswater.Aquifersarelikeundergroundreservoirsforwater.Groundwater canmoveslowlythroughtheaquiferandcanevendischargeontothesurfaceasaspring.Waterisconstantlymovingbetweenstatesandlocations.Designationslike“groundwater”and“surfacewater”aresimplyhumantermsthatdescribethelocationofthewater.Inreality,watermovesamongthelayersoftheEarthandenvironmentcontinuously.

Whenwaterprecipitatesfasterthanitcaninfiltrateintotheground,orthewatertable(topoftheaquifer)issohighthatthegroundissaturated,thenthesecondpathisforthewatertoflowonthesurface(calledrunoff).Thisrunoffformsriversandtributaries,whichinturnformlakes,oceansandothersourcesof surface water.Surfacewatercanbecapturedforavarietyofbiosphericandhumanuses.Waterthatisnotcapturedthencompletesthecycle asittravelsbacktotheoceanorotherlargebodiesofwater.Surfacewaterandgroundwatermakeup2.4% oftheglobalwaterbudgetandarethemostcommonsourcesoffreshwaterforhumanuse.

Procedures

Activity 1.1: Building Background for Unit 20 minutesTeacherdrawsattentiontotheinteractivebulletinboardorwordwallintheclassroomaboutwater.

ThisyearwewillbelearningalotaboutArizona.Asweknow,mostofArizonaisdesert, whichmeansthatalotofplacesinArizonagetlessthan10inchesofraineachyear.Butthereareplaces inArizonathatareNOTdesertandwhereitrainsquiteabit.Sotheonlywayweareabletolivehereisbycarefullyusingthelimitedavailablewater.Wewillbestudyingwater,includinglearningaboutthewatercycle,ourwatersourcesonEarthandinArizona, andhowwecanbegoodstewardsofourwaterhereinArizona. Teacherintroducesthelessonoftheday:

Todaywewillbeginbycallingtomindanythingthatwe alreadyknowaboutwaterandlistingthingswewanttolearn aboutwater.Wewillalsolearnaboutthewatercycle.

Teacherhandsoutthewaterdropletworksheetstostudents(youmaydothisindividuallyorincooperativegrouping).Onesuggestionforusing

Materials

• Studentcopies ofthe water dropletworksheet

• Coloredpencils

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cooperativegroupingistousetheKaganstrategyof“SayIt,WriteIt,PassIt,”whichisdetailedbelow.Eachstudentonateamwillneedadifferentpencilcolorandwillsignhis/hernameonthetopofthepaperinthatcolor.Thiswillenabletheteachertoassesswhatindividualstudentshavewritten.

Beforewelearnanything,wewillstartbylistinganythingwealreadythinkwe knowaboutwater.(Instructstudentteamstoperformtheactivityusingthestrategy

“SayIt,WriteIt,PassIt.”Eachstudenttakesaturnandsaysonethingtheyknowaboutwater,thenwritesitonthepaperandpassesittothenextperson.)

Reviewanddebriefstudents’ideasasaclass.Writekeyideasonaposterfor everyonetosee.

Activity 1.2: Globe Toss – Water Sources on Earth 15 minutes

Showstudentstheglobeandaskthemtoidentifyit.Havestudentssitinacircleor gooutsideandstandinacircleforthisactivity.

Todaywearegoingtoplayagamethatwillhelpustolearnaboutwater. Wearegoingtogentlytossthisglobearoundthecircle.Youshouldnottossittosomeonerightnexttoyou,andyoushouldonlytossittosomeone

whohasn’thadtheglobeyet.Whenitistossedtoyou,catchitgentlywithall10fingers.Then,withoutmovingyourfingers,counthowmanyfingersyouhavetouchinglandandhowmanyyouhavetouchingwater(blue).Wearegoingtorecordthescoresforlandandwateronthischart. MakeaT-chartonthechartpaperwithlandandwatersections.Playthegame andrecordtheoccurrencesoflandandwateronthechartwithtallymarks.

Onceeveryonehashadachancetocatchtheglobe,discussyourfindings.Ifyou tosstheglobetoenoughstudents,thepercentageshouldworkouttoabout70%waterand30%land(seeBackgroundInformationformoredetailsabouttheglobalwaterbudget). LeadadiscussionwiththestudentsabouttheavailabilityandsourcesofwateronEarth.Somequestionstoleadtheirthinkinginclude:

HowmuchofourEarthiswater?(71%)

Canweuseallofit? (Only1%oftheworld’swaterisusablefreshwaterthatisnotfrozeninpolaricecaps.)

WherecanwefindwateronEarth? (oceans,glaciers,icecaps,lakes,rivers,streams,etc.)

Ifitismostofourplanet,whydowealwayshearaboutsavingwaterandnotwastingit?

WhatotherquestionsdoyouhaveaboutthesourcesofwateronEarth? Youmaywanttorecordadditionalquestionsthestudentshavetoreturntoatalatertime.

NAME:

WHAT WE KNOW ABOUT WATER...

Directions: Take turns writing things you know about water in the water droplet (why we need water,

water cycle, sources of water and more).

Materials

• Posterpaper/ chartpaper• Inflatableglobe

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Literacy Link

(RS1C6)Readapicturebookto yourstudentsaboutthewatercycle.

Somefavoritesare: •A Drop Around the World, byBarbaraShawMcKinney,

illustratedbyMichaelS.Maydak

•Water Dance,byThomasLocker

•The Magic School Bus: Wet All Over,byScholastic

Activity 1.3: Global Water Budget (Demonstration) 10minutes

Askthestudents:

HowmuchofthewateronEarthisavailable fordrinking?

Fillacontainerwith1,000mlofwater.

97%ofthewateravailableonEarthissaltwater.Only3%isfreshwater.

Pour30mlofwaterintosecondcontainer.Labelfirstcontainer“saltwater.”

Almost80%oftheEarth’sfreshwaterisfrozeninthepolaricecaps.Thatmeansonly20%isnot

frozen.Whatis20%of30?(.20x30=6)Pour6mlofwaterintothirdcontainer.Labelthe24mlleftincontainerNo.2“frozenwaterinpolaricecaps.”

Whereistherestofthewaterfound?(lakes,streams,theatmosphereandunderground)

Showthe6mlremaining.Removeonedropofwaterusinganeyedropper.

Thisonedroprepresentsallthedrinkingwaterthatisnotintheatmosphere,toodeepin

undergroundaquifersorpolluted.Itislessthan1% ofthetotalvolumeofwaterwestartedwith.

Materials

•Measuringcupor graduatedcylinder

• 4clearcontainers

• Eyedropper

• Dish

• Lamp

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Activity 1.4: The Water Cycle Model (The Hydrologic Cycle) 30–45 minutes

Engage Wehavediscussedtheabundanceofwaterontheplanetbutthelimitedavailabilityof

freshwateronEarth.WehaveeventalkedalittlebitaboutwherewecanfindwateronEarth. Reviewthesourcestheycameupwithinthepreviousdiscussion.

Todaywearegoingtotalkaboutthewatercycle.Whatdoyouknowaboutthemovementofwater

in our environment?Takestudentanswersandaskfollow-upquestionstogaugetheirlevelofknowledgeaboutthewatercycle.

Todaywearegoingtolearnaboutthat constantmovementofwateronEarth

andthroughouratmosphere.

Exploration and Explanation – Water Cycle Model Helpstudentssetupmodelsofthewatercycleinstudentteams.Duringeachstep,explainwhatthatmaterialrepresentsinnature.

Eachgroupreceivesaclearplasticbin. Thisbinisgoingtorepresentourenvironment.

It’sclearsothatwecanmakeobservationsthroughoutourworktoday.

Studentteamsplacegravelandsand(sandontop) inhalfoftheirclearbucketsabout¾ofthewayup thesideofthebin.Thereshouldbeaslightslope ofthesandandgravel.

Materials

• Water-cyclevocabularyvisuals• StudentcopiesoftheWaterCycle ObservationSheet• Small-tomedium-sizeclearplasticbins,1per studentgroup• Sandandgravelinbuckets (about1poundeachforeachgroup), eachwithasmallshovel• Pitchersofwaterforeachteam• ¼cupofsaltforeachteam• Largespoonforstirring• Spraybottlefilledwithwaterforeachteam• Clearplasticwrap

Whatdoyouthinkthegraveland sandrepresent?

Givestudentteamsthepitchersofwater.Studentsadd¼cupsalttothewaterandstir.Theyshouldpourthewaterintheothersideoftheclearbinabouthalfwayupthesideofthe“mountain.”

Whatdoesthiswaterrepresent?Whydidweaddsalttoourwater?Whatquestionsdo

youhaveabouttheocean?Whatdoyouobservehappeningasyoupourthewaterinthebin?Whereisthewater?Isitjustinthatsection? Havestudentsdiscusstheirobservationsaboutthewaterseepingintothegravel.

Thewaterfillsinthegapsinthegravel.Underground,waterfillsingapsinbetween

rocksandeveninsideporousrocks.Wecallthatundergroundlakeanaquifer. Pointtothelinewherethewatercomesupto.

Thatlineiscalledthewater table.Whatquestionsdoyouhaveaboutwherewater

existsinourenvironment? Allowstudentstimetoobserve,recordtheirobservationsandaskquestions.Passoutspraybottlesfilledwithwater.Instructstudentstospraythemountainandrecordtheirobservations.Studentscanevenremovethetopsanddrizzlealittlebitofwater downthesideofthemountainaswell.

Whatdoyouthinkthissprayingrepresents?Yes,rain!Inthewatercyclewecallrainandsnow

precipitation.Whatdidyouobserveasyousprayedthemountain?Directstudentstoobserverunoffand“streams/rivers” forming.Ifneeded,promptthemtocontinuetospraythemountainuntiltheyseeit.

Yes,whentheprecipitationcollectstogether,thisiscalledaccumulation,andwhenitrunsdown

themountain,itiscalledrunoff.Whatistherunoffdoingtotheland?Directstudentsifneededtonoticetheerosionthatoccurswhenthewatercarriesthesandparticlestowardthe“ocean.”

Whatyouarewitnessingiserosion,whenlandparticlesgetsweptdownwiththe

precipitationrunoff.Passoutrollsofclearplasticwrap.Instructstudentstostretchtheclearplasticwrapoverthetopoftheclearbinstightly(theymaywanttosecureitwithtape).

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Whatdoyouthinkthisclearwraprepresents inourenvironment?Wherecanwefindwater

inouratmosphere? Discussevaporationwithstudents.

Whatdoweneedtomakethewholecyclework?Yes,heat!Sowhatshouldwedotogive

heattoourmodels?Havestudentsbrainstormwaysthattheycoulduseheattoactivatethewatercycleinthebin.Theeasiestwayistosimplytakethebinsoutsideintothesun.

Studentstaketheirmodelsoutsideandleavetheminthesunforatleast10minutes.

*Optional:Havestudentsplaceasmallcupontopoftheirland(slightlyburiedsothatitwon’ttipover).Whenstudentscoverthemodelinplasticwrap,havethemplacearockoverthemiddleofthecuptoslopetheplasticwrapandthuscollectthecondensationintothiscup.Theywillcollectprecipitationinthiscupandcantasteitlatertoshowthatitispure(desalinated).

Havestudentsreturntotheirmodelsandobservewhatishappening.

Whatdoyouobservehappeninginthewatercycle?Whathappenedtothewaterinthe

bottomofthebin?Doyouthinkanywaterhasleftthesystem?Howhasthewaterchanged?Whatquestionsdoyouhaveaboutthemovementofwater?Discusstheglobalwaterbudget.

Thereisafixedamountofwateronorintheearth.Waterisneveraddedtoorremoved

fromthesystem,butsimplytransferredfromonestatetoanother.Forexample,thewateryoudrinkwilleventuallybeexpelledorperspiredandwillgobackintotheatmosphere.Wateriscontinuallycyclingthroughthesystem.

Someextensionquestionsforfollow-upinclude: Whatdoyoupredictwouldhappenifweputaplantinthebin?Woulditbesafetodrinkthis

water?Howshouldwemakethiswatersafetodrink?Whatcouldwedoifwelivedonthislandandwewantedwaterevenwhenitwasn’training?Drawanswersandmorequestionsoutofthediscussionwiththestudents.Itmaybehelpfultohavestudentsrecordfurtherquestionstheyhavetoexploreduringtheunit.

Literacy Link

(WS3C1PO2d)Havestudentswriteacharacterizationnarrativefromthepointof viewofawaterdropasit

travelsthroughthe environment.Challenge yourstudents’characters toallhaveaslightly differentjourney!

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15 minutes

S6C3PO1:Identifythesourcesofwaterwithinanenvironment(i.e.,groundwater,surfacewater,atmosphericwaterandglaciers).

Assessment Havestudentsdrawapictureoftheirwatercyclemodelsandlabelitusingthevocabularywords.Proficiencyisdefinedaslabelingsevenoutofninesourcesofwaterandstagesofthewatercycle correctly(groundwater,surfacewater,evaporation,condensation,precipitation,accumulation,runoff,transpiration,infiltration).

S6C3PO2:DescribethedistributionofwaterontheEarth’ssurface.

AssessmentHavestudentswriteasentenceontheirdrawingsunderneaththelabel“surfacewater”aboutthedistributionofwateronEarth’ssurface.Anexampleofanacceptableansweris,“Surfacewatercanbeintheformofoceans,rivers,lakes,swamps,icecapsandglaciers.MostofEarth’ssurfacewaterisintheocean(about97%).Alotoftheremainingwaterislockedinicecapsandglaciers.Usablefreshwaterisonlyabout1%ofourEarth’swatersupply.”

Language Objective Evaluation Havestudentsexplainthewatercycleprocess,first orallytoapartner,theninwriting,usingthevocabularyaswellastransitionwords.

Lesson Closure Asaconclusiontothelesson,havethestudentsdiscussthefollowinginpairs:• ExplainhowwaterisdistributedontheEarth’ssurface.

• Explainwherewaterislocatedinourenvironment.

• Explainhowwatermovesthroughouttheenvironment usingnewvocabularywords.

Science Notebooking

Theseanswersanddrawingscanalsobeplacedinstudents’ sciencenotebooksforfuturereference.

Evaluation