Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: The Sun and the Water Cycle

For Students 3rd - 5th
Learn about the water cycle through the adventures of two sisters. They will explain how the sun powers the water cycle and describe the different states of water. A glossary and labeled illustrations accompany the video. For the...
Lesson Plan
PBS

Teaching Bhutan: The Water Cycle & Bhutan

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Interactive science lesson plan that teaches young scholars about the water cycle in relation to mountain ranges and monsoons common in Bhutan. Make a cloud in a bottle!
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: The Other Water Cycle

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
For students that have already been introduced to the water cycle, this lesson is intended as a logical follow-up. Students will learn about human impacts on the water cycle that create a pathway for pollutants beginning with urban...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Human Water Cycle

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Young scholars learn about the human water cycle, or how humans impact the water cycle by settling down in civilizations. Specifically, they learn how people obtain, use and dispose of water. Students also learn about shortages of...
Interactive
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

Ucar: Water, Water Everywhere

For Students 3rd - 5th
Dewdrop teaches the water cycle through this interactive map of rivers, oceans, groundwater, the atmosphere, and glaciers.
Lesson Plan
Alabama Learning Exchange

Alex: The Water Cycle

For Teachers Pre-K - 1st
This is an introductory lesson on the water cycle. The internet will be used to help teach the cycle. The student will end the lesson by making his/her own water cycle for observation.This lesson plan was created as a result of the Girls...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Water Desalination Plant

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students use a thermal process approach to design, build and test a small-scale desalination plant that is capable of significantly removing the salt content from a saltwater solution. Students use a saltwater circuit to test the...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Where Has All the Water Gone?

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Students learn about the Earth's water cycle, especially about evaporation. Once a dam is constructed, its reservoir becomes a part of the region's natural hydrologic cycle by receiving precipitation, storing runoff water and evaporating...
Lesson Plan
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research

Ucar: Climate & Water Teaching Box

For Teachers 9th - 10th
Investigate water in a warmer world. This teaching box is filled with explorations and readings that help secondary students learn how climate change is affecting the water cycle.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Natural and Urban "Stormwater" Water Cycle Models

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students apply their understanding of the natural water cycle and the urban stormwater water cycle, as well as the processes involved in both cycles to hypothesize how the flow of water is affected by altering precipitation.
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Natural and Urban Stormwater Water Cycles

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Through an overview of the components of the hydrologic cycle and the important roles they play in the design of engineered systems, young scholars' awareness of the world's limited fresh water resources is heightened. The lesson lays...
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Moving Without Wheels

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
In a class demonstration, students observe a simple water cycle model to better understand its role in pollutant transport. This activity shows one way in which pollution is affected by the water cycle; it simulates a point source of...
Unit Plan
Other

Digital Library for Earth System Education: Teaching Box: Essentials of Weather

For Teachers 9th - 10th
A suite of lessons focusing on the basic elements of climate and weather. Inquiry-based exploration of extreme weather events and the factors of weather including clouds, wind, air pressure, temperature, and the water cycle.
Activity
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Witnessing Evaporation

For Teachers 5th - 7th
The engineers at Splash Engineering (the students) have been commissioned by Thirsty County to conduct a study of evaporation and transpiration in their region. During one week, students observe and measure (by weight) the ongoing...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Water and Dams in Today's World

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Students learn about the importance of dams by watching a video that presents historical and current information on dams, as well as descriptions of global water resources and the hydrologic cycle. Students also learn about different...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Raging Rivers

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
The lesson introduces students to the steps of the water cycle and rivers. They think about the effects of communities, sidewalks and roads on the natural flow of rainwater. Students also learn about the role of engineering in community...
Primary
Smithsonian Institution

Smithsonian Science Education Center: Make It Rain

For Teachers 3rd - 8th
How do you show students that the water cycle is more than just the traditional model of the ocean, clouds, and mountains and actually a part of their daily lives? This video will show multiple models of different part of the water cycle...
Graphic
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: Earth's Water Movements

For Students 9th - 10th
The paths that water can take through Earth's systems are many and complex. Examine the following diagram from NASA depicting the water cycle. Studying the water cycle is important because changes in the water cycle affect all parts of...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Watershed Balance

For Teachers 10th - 12th
This lesson teaches the concept of a watershed and why it is important in the context of engineering hydrology. Students learn about runoff and how we visualize runoff in the form of hydrographs.
Lesson Plan
PBS

Pbs Learning Media: One Year in the Life of Earth

For Students 3rd - 5th
Watch the earth from one million miles away! NASA's camera captured these images showing the majority of the earth's surface is water. View a narrated or unnarrated video of these images. Background information, teaching tips, and a...
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Dams

For Teachers 4th - 6th
Through eight lessons, students are introduced to many facets of dams, including their basic components, the common types (all designed to resist strong forces), their primary benefits (electricity generation, water supply, flood...
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Ocean Water Desalination

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students learn about the techniques engineers have developed for changing ocean water into drinking water, including thermal and membrane desalination. They begin by reviewing the components of the natural water cycle. They see how...
Unit Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Urban Stormwater Management

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Through the two lessons in this unit, students are introduced to green infrastructure and low-impact development technologies. Student teams take on the role of stormwater engineers through five associated activities.
Lesson Plan
TeachEngineering

Teach Engineering: Introduction to Water Chemistry

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students are presented with examples of the types of problems that environmental engineers solve, specifically focusing on water quality issues. Topics include the importance of clean water, the scarcity of fresh water, tap water...