The O-W-L Chart Will Be Used Continually Throughout This Unit. It Can Be Added to at Any

Lesson Plan

Teacher Note:

The O-W-L Chart will be used continually throughout this unit. It can be added to at any given time, not just those listed within this lesson plan. Additionally the Science Journals will be used daily to assess students learning and to clear up misconceptions.

DAY 1

Engage

Read Aloud

Introduce Thomas Locker’s book Water Dance. Have students listen to visualize andidentify different parts of the water cycle.

Hands On

Reread the book and repeat the last line of each page. Have the students do the hand movements from the “Water Dance Script” that correlates to that particular part of the water cycle in order to help students solidify their understanding.

*(See Water Dance script attachment)

O-W-L Chart

Have students chart Observations and Wonderingsabout the Water Cycle.

Demonstrate

Demonstrate“Water Condensation” experiment. Make Predictions with students. What will the water will do? Why are we using colored water?

*(see attached condensation experiment.)

SAFETY
Clean up all spill immediately
Do not ingest food coloring

Explore

Use an O-W-L Chart todiscuss what they saw happening and what they wonder about. Make Inferences. Ask questions such as:

? What is an observation?

? What did you observe?

? How did the water get on the outside of the can?

? Why do you think this happened?

? What was the color of the water on the inside? The outside? Why were they different?

Explain

Address misconceptions and clarify items on O-W-L Charts.

DAY 2

Explore

Think-Pair-Share

Have students work in pairs to read appropriate Scott Foresman grade level textbook (Third Grade Earth Science Textbook, Chapter 5, Lesson 1 and 2, pages 154-159 and Fifth Grade Earth Science Textbook, Chapter 7, Lesson 3 and 4, pages 208-215and synthesize the information as they read. Have students create a T-Chart with two columns, one labeled “Things that I find Interesting” and one labeled “Things that I need help Understanding”. Have students discussthe importance of each part of the water cycle and how they interact.

*(see T-Chart attachment)

Teacher may also use leveled readers, or outside reading sources for students to gain information on the water cycle.

Group Share

Have Pairs share their T-Chart‘s with whole class and share their thoughts on the water cycle.
Record information on class O-W-L Chart.

Explain

Guided Discussion

Teacher led discussion on parts of the water cycle and key vocabulary concepts. Teachers helps students determine the importance of the water cycle and clear up misconceptions.
Record information on class O-W-L Chart.
Introduce song to explain parts of the water cycle to help reinforce concepts.

*(see attached song sheet)

Vocabulary

Using chart paper, create classroom definitions for evaporation, condensation, precipitation.

Engage/Explore

Hands on Activity

Have students investigate using the mini-water cycle experiment.

*(see attached mini-water cycle experiment or pages 162-163 in third grade textbook.)

SAFETY
Clean up all spill immediately
Do not ingest food coloring

Guided Inquiry

Students complete SocttForesman activity book pages (Third grade pages 73-74) for water cycle experiment in order to synthesize information and makeconnections.

Explain

Science Journals

Students use their science journals to make predictions about how their experiments work and what they observed and infer from their lesson. Students will include their Line of Learning in their entries.

DAY 3

Explore

Inquiry

Complete Evaporation Experiment and Graphing Activity

(see evaporation experiment/graphing activity sheets)

Teacher Note – You may want to have each group have their own blackboards and do each part of the experiment on their own.

SAFETY
Clean up spills immediately
Ensure spray bottles are pointed away from you before spraying.

Explain

Science Journals

Students use their science journals to explain how their experiments worked and what they observed and infer.
Students enter observations of Day 2 of their Mini-Water Cycles.

Guided Discussion

Teacher/Student led discussion to use their inferring skills to draw conclusions and make connections from “Evaporation” experiment. Teacher also uses this time to clear up misconceptions and continue to fill out O-W-L Chart.

Evaluate

Science Journals

Teacher uses science journals Line of Learning and experiment data to assess students progress.

Homework: Fifth Grade – Read Scott Foresman textbook pages 212-215 and do checkpoint questions

Teacher Suggestion: Students who finish graphing activity early may begin their homework.

DAY 4

Engage

Demonstrate

Teacher demonstrates the “Making the Cloud” experiment for the class.

*(see attached “Making the Cloud” experiment or pages 216 and 217 in fifth grade Scott Foresman Textbook.)

SAFETY
Clean up spills immediately

Guided Inquiry

Students complete Scott Foresman activity book pages (Fifth grade pages 93-94) for water cycle experiment in order to synthesize information and makeconnections.

Explain/Explore

Guided Discussion

Class discussion as to what they observed during the cloud experiment. Talk about precipitation; how it fits into the water cycle and the different forms it takes. Make connections to what they have observed in nature.

Flip Chart: Parts of the Water Cycle

Students create a flip chart of the parts of the water cycle; describing in their own words what takes place in each part of the cycle.

(*see example of Flip Chart)

Science Journals

Students record observations of Day 3 of the Mini-Water Cycle experiment.

Evaluate

Assessment

Teacher uses students’ Lines of Learning in their science journals and participation in classroom discussions for an assessment.

DAY 5

Elaborate

Readers Theatre

Assign students roles and have class read the Readers’ Theater Script and have students perform the skit.

CAST:

Sun (also the narrator)

Ocean water drop 1

Ocean water drop 2

Water vapor 2

Cloud

Snowflake

Glacier ice 1

Glacier ice 2

Stream Water 1

Stream Water 2

River Water 1

River Water 2

Reservoir Water 1

Reservoir Water 2

Tap Water 1

Tap Water 2

Water in Drain Pipe

Sewage Processing Plant

*(see attached readers theater script.)

Explore/Elaborate

Hands on

Have students do “The Incredible Journey” Activity.

*(see The Incredible Journey attachment.)

Explain

Guided Discussion

Address misconceptions about water cycle and how the water doesn’t travel in a true circle.

O-W-L Chart

Complete charts with what the students have learned.

DAY 6

Evaluate

Assessment

Students write a letter to a local meteorologist of their choice, describing what the water cycle is and how it works. They will also include a diagram of the water cycle.
Students will be given a scoring rubric

*(see attached rubric)

General Suggestions for Teachers and Students

Keep O-W-L charts posted around the classroom during the unit for student reference.

After completing the Mini Water Cycle the teacher will tape the bags to a window. Since this may involve a good amount of time, it may be better for the teacher to do this after school instead of during the class period.

During the Mini Water Cycle activity, using water with food coloring, instead of ice, will help to get the water cycle progressing faster.

When students finish the Flip Chart about precipitation on Day 4 they could glue a copy of the Water Cycle Song to the back of the flip chart for easy reference.

The teacher may want to contact a local meteorologist from a television station to explain that the students are studying the Water Cycle and would like to be recognized for their efforts. Students will be sending him/her a letter explaining the knowledge they have learned.

Use the Scott Foresman Leveled Readers for additional information for students.

Science Misconceptions

Students often hold the misconception that the water cycle involves freezing and melting of water.
In the experiment with the can of ice water showing condensation, students may be confused about where the drops of water on the outside of the can came from.
Students may think the word “cycle” means the water travels in a “circle” (literally) through the water cycle.
Water Loss:
Some students may think that when animals or plants take in water, this water is no longer part of the water cycle.
Both animals and plants produce water vapor that goes into the atmosphere and back into Earth’s water cycle.
Some water is chemically broken down during photosynthesis. This water does not go directly back into Earth’s water cycle.

Clouds: Students might think that all clouds over the ocean contain salt water. Explain that when sea spray evaporates, salt particles left behind might be swept up into the atmosphere. These tiny salt crystals might serve as condensation nuclei for the next stage of the water cycle. If they do, the salinity of each water droplet is less than the salinity of the ocean. However, other particles such as dust can also serve as condensation nuclei for water droplets. Thus, not all water droplets over the ocean contain salt.