Splish Splash Activity Source: National Geographic Expeditions Overview Crucial to our existence, water sustains all life on Earth. Following the old adage, “What goes around comes around,” water moves continuously through the stages of the hydrologic cycle (evaporation, condensation, and precipitation). How does our drinking water fit into this hydrologic cycle? Where did the water we drink fall as precipitation? Did this water percolate down into the ground as part of a groundwater system, or did it remain on the surface as part of a surface water system? [Read More]

Water Filtration Activity Source: Nebraska Earth Systems Education Network, School of Natural Resources, By Kimberly Flessner Objective: Each group will design a water filtration system and present to the class why they picked their design. Materials: 1 or 2 2-liter bottles scissors 1 250ml beaker filtration materials (examples: soil, gravel, potting soil, cotton balls, scrap material, charcoal, sand, woodchips, Styrofoam packing, charcoal briquettes) screening rubber bands Bunsen burner or heat source for evaporation “polluted water” (tap water with salt, food coloring, sand, and dish soap added to it) Procedure: Each group of 2 or 3 need to design an idea for a filtration system. [Read More]

Water: A Never-ending Story Activity Source: Live From Earth And Mars Approximate time frame: 2 weeks. Background Water on earth is used over and over. The water cycle, the continuous movement of water from ocean to air and land then back to the ocean in a cyclic pattern, is a central concept in meteorology. In the water cycle, the sun heats the Earth’s surface water, causing that surface water to evaporate (gas). [Read More]

What-a-Cycle Activity Source: Adapted with permission by National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration. Water moves from Earth’s surface to the atmosphere and then returns to the surface. This process is nearly always depicted in water cycle diagrams by arrows drawn in a circular direction. However, the actual path water may take in its cycle is far more complicated. In this activity, you will discover multiple cycles by acting as water molecules and traveling through parts of the overall water cycle. [Read More]