Classroom Programs about Water

Lesson Plans

• Grade 1: Round and Round the Water Cycle

  Students are introduced to the water cycle through the adventures of Ms. Frizzle's class in the Magic School Bus story, Wet All Over. Then they witness water changing into its three states of matter—ice, water, and vapor—through an exciting “rain machine.” They make take-home bracelets from colored beads that reinforce each stage of the water cycle.

  Download: Lesson Plan and Worksheet

• Grade 2: Water Use in Pioneer Days

  Students learn about water conservation from a fictional character who takes them back over 100 years to life on the Monterey coast when folks consumed water much more conservatively. Students gain greater understanding of the period through artifacts, photographs, and documents from the time. Through guided discussion, a graphing activity, and a Venn diagram, students draw conclusions about past and present water consumption for typical daily activities.

  Download: Lesson Plan, Graphing Worksheet

• Grade 3: The Amazing Watershed

  In urban settings, litter, car wash detergent, paint, and oil all wash into streets and down storm drains. Students learn what happens to aquatic life and the water supply when these substances ultimately flow into our creeks, rivers, and the San Francisco Bay. The lesson stresses community and individual responsibility to prevent pollution. Students draw posters to share with their families what they’re learned.

  Download: Lesson Plan

• Grade 4: The Incredible Journey

  In earlier grades, students were introduced to the water cycle as a one-dimensional process. This lesson builds on that knowledge with an exciting activity that shows the complexity, efficiency, and beauty of the water cycle. Each student becomes a water droplet, traveling to and from nine different stations: soil, plant, river, clouds, ocean, lake, animal, ground water, and glacier. Students produce and interpret a graph showing where water accumulates in the cycle. 

  Download: Lesson Plan, Student Log, Overhead One, Overhead Two

• Grade 5: Every Drop Counts

  Most students have accepted the need for recycling our natural resources and are active participants in the process. However, many are still unaware of our ability to recycle water. Through an eye-opening demonstration, students recognize the limited supply of potable water on the Earth and the need to recycle it. Then, using the scientific method, they conduct tests to compare the qualities of recycled water to drinking water. In the process, they demonstrate why recycled water may actually be advantageous for the plants that receive it.

  Download: Lesson Plan, Student Worksheet, Usual Test Results, Overheads, Demonstration Notes

• Grade 6: Sum of the Parts

  This lesson demonstrates the cumulative effects of water pollution. Students “inherit” pieces of riverfront property and are allowed to develop them as they please. They soon realize that proper planning can reduce each person’s “pollution contribution.” They identify point source and non-point source pollution and discuss best management practices and individual responsibility for environmental stewardship.

  Download: Lesson Plan, Category Cards

• Grades 7-8: Take the Filter Challenge

  This lesson heightens student awareness of water and wastewater treatment. Students work in teams to design and test water filters. The lesson stresses the scientific method, and students learn that problem-solving involves asking and answering a series of questions.

  Download: Lesson Plan, Student Worksheet, Filter Bottle Overhead, Wastewater Treatment Process Overhead

• Kindergarten: Water Is Your Best Friend

  Students drink water every day, but rarely think about why their bodies need it. Through simple demonstrations, this lesson teaches why water is important to all life and all the places it may be found in the students’ bodies. Students draw and color in life-sized body outlines to illustrate the proportion of water in their own bodies.

  Download: Lesson Plan