National Wildlife Federation
The Water Cycle
Observe the water cycle from the comfort of your classroom with this excellent earth science experiment. Working collaboratively, young scientists first create terrariums complete with hills, plants, lakes, and an...
National Park Service
The Water Cycle Game
Take young scientists on a trip through the water cycle with this interactive science activity. After setting up a series of ten stations representing the different places water can be found, children use the included printable dice...
Signing Time Foundation
What is the Water Cycle?
Dive into an exploration of the water cycle cycle with this simple earth science lesson. After first discussing where rain comes from, young scientists define the terms condensation, evaporation, transpiration,...
UNESCO
The Water Cycle
Young scientists get their feet wet as they learn about the water cycle in this series of activities. Whether they are observing how evaporation causes puddles to dry up, or how plants put water into the atmosphere through...
National Weather Service
The Water Cycle
Looking for a full-color, labeled water cycle diagram? You found one! From evaporation to precipitation to plant uptake and everything in between, it's all here and beautifully illustrated.
Smarter Balanced
Effects of Water
To prepare for a performance task assessment, class members review the stages of the water cycle and then individuals assume the roles of drops of water for a Reader's Theater exercise. The script, a graphic depicting the water...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Water Purification by Evaporation and Condensation
This easy-to-perform demonstration shows students how the water cycle, specifically the processes of condensation and evaporation, purifies Earth's water supply. Just mix up some water, dirt, and gravel in a glass bowl, place a cup in...
Exploratorium
The Dipping Bird
If you have or want to order the dipping bird demonstration, it is useful for showing how evaporation and changes in the pressure of a closed system cause cyclical motion. After teaching about pressure, consider setting this little guy...
National Gardening Association
The Water Cycle
Use this as a pop quiz when covering the water cycle with your elementary earth scientists. There are five blanks to fill in, including the three main steps (evaporation, condensation, and precipitation), and also transpiration and...
California Academy of Science
Dry My Laundry!
Meant to be a pre-field trip lesson, this can also serve as a cute and simple activity to use when your little ones are learning about evaporation or surface area. The children cut tiny t-shirts out of paper towel material, wet them, and...
Curated OER
Exploring the Water Cycle
The water cycle is one of earth's most easily observable processes, but demonstrating each step within classroom walls can be a challenge. Through a series of videos and quick demonstrations, cover each aspect of the hydrologic cycle in...
Scholastic
Study Jams! The Water Cycle
Will tomorrow's soccer game be rained out? That depends on the water cycle. An animated feature explains precipitation, evaporation, transpiration, and condensation with diagrams and dialogue between Sam and RJ as they huddle under a...
Curated OER
The Potential Consequences of Climate Variability and Change
Students analyze the impact of climate variability and change utilizing a broad span of topics over a wide range of grade levels. This three lesson plan unit is easily adapted for the various instructional levels listed.
Curated OER
Gravimetric Determination of the Nonvolatile Content of Paint
Here are the instructions for leading your advanced chemists though the process of measuring the nonvolatile components in a sample of paint. No student handout is provided, so you may want to create one based on the procedure explained....
Curated OER
Call Me Bond, Hydrogen Bond
As amazing as James Bond is, the surface tension of water does not allow him to walk on it! In this series of little lab activities, physical scientists play with the properties of water due to the hydrogen bonds and resulting polarity....
Curated OER
The Water Cycle
An inventive and interesting lesson on the water cycle (and other cycles associated with it), is here for you. After doing a well-designed hands-on inquiry in class, learners also identify organisms and processes that are involved in the...
Curated OER
Physical Changes and States of Matter - Two
Here's a wonderful lesson on how substances change states. Groups of learners are given trays with a chocolate bar, a piece of paper, an ice cube, and a balloon. During the activity, the groups closely observe the changes that each...
Curated OER
Water Cycle Worksheets
A website links you to several water cycle worksheets geared toward an upper elementary or middle school level. Diagrams, word search, crossword, and fill-in-the-blank worksheets are available. As an added bonus, there are links to...
Curated OER
The Water Cycle
A short, but nicely done, presentation on the basics of the water cycle. In it, learners view slides which describe the fascinating process of how the sun creates water vapor, which creates clouds, which create rain, which flows into...
Curated OER
Water Cycle - A SiteMaker Presentation
Have your young scientists explore a single element of the water cycle and write a report to explain findings. Your class can take their writing through all the steps of the writing process and publish it using a Web-based multimedia...
Alabama Learning Exchange
WATER You Doing to Help?
Auntie Litter is here to educate young scholars about water pollution and environmental stewardship! Although the 15-minute video clip is cheesy, it's an engaging look at the water cycle and conservation. Learners start by illustrating...
Curated OER
Crystal Ice Art
This isn't just an art lesson, it's a science lesson too. Kids draw a lovely winter scene and then paint over it with a solution of epsom salts and water. They make predictions, then observe how crystals form as the water evaporates...
Curated OER
Water Cycle Song
Oh my! Get ready for a water cycle song. This short little song, sung to the tune of "Oh My Darling Clementine," is intended to assist young weather enthusiasts in recalling the three parts of the water cycle. Tip: Have your class group...
Curated OER
Student Reading - The Unique Properties of Water
Without water there would be no life on this planet. Biology learners find out why by reading this handout. Create a worksheet of questions to answer after the reading. Follow it up with quick demonstrations or laboratory activities that...