Cycling Water--gauging rain, painting with salt

“Human nature is like water. It takes the shape of its container.” ― Wallace Stevens

Grade Level: Elementary

Objective: Students will increase their knowledge of the water cycle, exploring its properties through a variety of experiments.

Today we:

-watched water condense in a glass jar
-read Ecosystems and Food Chains by Francene Sabin
-labeled the "living" and "nonliving" parts of our own "jar garden" ecosystems
-built a rain gauge
-began tracking our water usage
-painted with salt water
-watched Bill Nye

M and M track their school day water usage

Materials:  glass jar, ice cubes, water, Ecosystems and Food Chains by Francene Sabin, salt, paintbrushes, jar, ruler, permanent marker, black paper, poster board, Bill Nye the Science Guy: Episode 47: Water

The Ms and I started our day with an experiment.  We wanted to see how water condenses in a glass jar with a metal lid.  We filled the jar with a little bit of water and a large amount of ice then set it aside to fog.

Making a table of living and nonliving parts of our
jar garden ecosystems

We climbed up into our library reading loft to read Ecosystems and Food Chains by Francene Sabin.  M and M particularly enjoyed the part about primary producers and consumers--so much that they created a rap around the concept which they would repeat back to me every time I read either term.   ("Primary producers...what!?  Primary producers...what?!")  We only read the first 19 pages of Sabin's (rather dense) book on ecosystems but both Ms seemed engaged the entire time.  When we finished reading they descended the reading loft ladder and created labels for their own tiny jar garden ecosystems, categorizing its contents into "living" (moss, plants) and "nonliving" (soil, water, sun.)

We distributed the labor for making our rain gauge.  One M stuck a piece of tape to a mason jar, marking each half inch with permanent marker.  The other M placed the jar outside on the playground.  I explained the concept of a rain gauge and M & M created tables in their science notebooks to use in their tracking of rain.

For our third activity, we brainstormed ways we used water throughout the school day and created a table to tally our water use for the next 24 hours.

Finally, M and M painted pictures using salt water.  They wanted to witness evaporation (in the way the paper dries leaving behind salt residue.)  While they painted we watched Bill Nye's wonderful episode on water.

Washington State Content Areas Covered:


EARL 1: System

Big Idea: Systems
Core Content: Role of Each Part in a System
Students know that:
-A system is a group of interacting parts that form a whole. Give examples of simple living and physical systems (e.g., a whole animal or plant, a car, a doll, a table and chair set).
-A whole object, plant, or animal may not continue to function the same way if some of its parts are missing. Predict what may happen to an object, plant, or animal if one or more of its parts are removed (e.g., a tricycle cannot be ridden if its wheels are removed).*
-A whole object, plant, or animal can do things that none of its parts can do by themselves.
-Some objects need to have their parts connected in a certain way if they are to function as a whole.
-Similar parts may play different roles in different objects, plants, or animals.
Students are expected to:
-Explain how the parts of a system depend on one another for the system to function.
-Contrast the function of a whole object, plant, or animal with the function of one of its parts (e.g., an airplane can fly, but wings and propeller alone cannot; plants can grow, but stems and flowers alone cannot).
-Explain why the parts in a system need to be connected in a specific way for the system to function as a whole (e.g., batteries must be inserted correctly in a flashlight if it is to produce light). -Identify ways that similar parts can play different roles in different systems (e.g., birds may use their beaks to crack seeds while other birds use their beaks to catch fish).


EALR 2: Inquiry 

Big Idea: InquiryCore Content: Conducting Investigations

Students know that:
-2-3 INQA Question: Scientific investigations are designed to gain knowledge about the natural world.
-2-3 INQB Investigate: A scientific investigation may include making and following a plan to accurately observe and describe objects, events, and organisms; make and record measurements, and predict outcomes.
-2-3 INQD Investigate: Simple instruments, such as magnifiers, thermometers, and rulers provide more information than scientists can obtain using only their unaided senses.
Students are expected to:
• Explain how observations can lead to new knowledge and new questions about the natural world.
• Work with other students to make and follow a plan to carry out a scientific investigation. Actions may include accurately observing and describing objects, events, and organisms; measuring and recording data; and predicting outcomes.