NASA
Cleaning Water
From their sweat to the water vapor in their breath, astronauts recycle every possible drop of water while in space. After watching a short video describing the different ways materials are recycled and reused in space shuttles, young...
NASA
Rain Gauge Activity
Complete teacher narrative and presentation slides for teaching about Earth's water make up the bulk of this lesson. Embedded within the slide show, you will find videos about the water cycle, keeping track of the limited supply of fresh...
Curated OER
The Hydrologic (Water) Cycle
Learners construct a model of the hydrologic cycle, and observe that water is an element of a cycle in the natural environment. They explain how the hydrologic cycle works and why it is important, and compare the hydrologic cycle to...
San Francisco Public Utilities Commission
Hetch Hetchy: The Story of San Francisco's Water
How did San Francisco supply enough water for its residents over the last two centuries? Learn about droughts and water conservation in California, as well as specific historical events that led to the water system today. Kids read two...
NASA
Freshwater Availability Classroom Activity
This science assignment produced by NASA teaches inquiring minds the distribution of Earth's water. Learners will appreciate and understand the importance of fresh water and how weather and climate affects everything.
NASA
Cleaning Water
Give young scientists a new appreciation of fresh, clean drinking water. After learning about the ways astronauts recycle their air and water, your class will work in small groups creating and testing their very own water filtration...
Curated OER
T3 Lesson Plan: Number 3
Sixth graders investigate local water. In this water cycle lesson, 6th graders take samples from surrounding water sources. Students record data from the samples, compare and graph the results.
Michigan Sea Grant
Water Quantity
It may be tricky for a young mind to conceptualize that less than 1% of all water on earth is useable for humans to drink. Simulating the amount of fresh water available on earth by removing measured amounts of water from a five-gallon...
Curated OER
A Comparison of Land and Water Temperature
Students examine NASA satellite observations of surface temperature and investigate the seasonal changes of land and water temperature.
Curated OER
Bacteria in Drinking Water And Water Purification
Students explore how sewer systems can contribute to water pollution and perform an experiment to see how well a water purification technique can protect against water-born microbial illnesses. They compare the bacterial growth from...
Curated OER
Investigating the Effect of Salinity on the Density and Stability of Water
Water with varying amounts of dissolved salt are dyed and then used to compare densities. The objective is to discover the effect of salinity, and therefore density, on ocean water on the stability of the ocean. Many branches of science...
Curated OER
2.0 "Water Is Life" Global Water Awareness Mini-Unit (Grades3-5)
Students study the amount of potable water on the Earth. In this water activity, students examine the amount of potable water as compared to all the water on the Earth. They discuss why many parts of the world do not have access to good...
Curated OER
"Water is Life" Global Water Awareness
Students examine and calculate the percentage of potable water remaining on the earth. In this ecology and geography activity, students brainstorm the main factors affecting water distribution. Students use mathematical problem solving...
Curated OER
Water Quality: Water Filtration
Students build a water filtration system. In this water quality activity, students work in groups to construct water filtration units that can purify contaminated water. This activity is part of a larger unit on water quality.
Curated OER
Origins: Earth Is Born
Students develop a timeline of all the major events involved in the formation of the Earth and the emergence of humans. In groups, they focus on a specific topic by watching a PBS program and taking notes. After the video, they list...
Curated OER
The Water Planet
Students use NASA photographs and hands-on activities to compare the amounts of land and water on our planet. They discover that the world has five oceans and that they cover seventy percent of Earth's surface. Students learn how this...
Curated OER
How Much Water?
Young scholars investigate amount of water available in different countries around the world, compare it to their daily water use, and explore how unequal distribution of water can cause challenges to survival. Students then discuss...
Curated OER
Water-Holding Capacity
Students design and conduct an experiment to compare the water-holding capacity of sand, soil, and moss. They measure the change in weight for each material after adding the same amount of water to each material.
Curated OER
Water Systems
In this water systems worksheet, learners refer to their textbook to complete questions about the amount of water on earth and the portion of water in various forms. Students review porosity, permeability, and water table. This worksheet...
Centers for Ocean Sciences
Ocean and Great Lakes Literacy: Principle 1
Is your current lesson plan for salt and freshwater literacy leaving you high and dry? If so, dive into part one of a seven-part series that explores the physical features of Earth's salt and freshwater sources. Junior hydrologists...
NASA
The Cycle of Matter
An educational instructional activity focuses on the idea of conservation of matter through a demonstration of the water cycle, a discussion of digesting food, and the path of carbon and oxygen atoms as they change form.
SRI International
Nanofiltration
How can everyone in the world have access to clean drinking water? Throughout the lesson, learners read about and listen to how water is filtered, what the filtration process removes, and the best ways to filter. They explore the...
Curated OER
Path to Mars
Students compare Earth and Mars to find similarities between the two planets using given websites. They collect and download pictures of geological features of both planets from print and non-print sources. Descriptions of the...
University of Wisconsin
Follow the Drop
Young surveyors look for patterns in water flow around campus. Using a map of the school (that you will need to create), they mark the direction of the path of water. They also perform calculations for the volume that becomes runoff. The...