Iowa Children’s Water Festival Curriculum
Water Cycle Module
Gaining Understanding
Students learn about precipitation, evaporation, and condensation as well as runoff, percolation and
transpiration
Teacher and Student Resources
Online videos about the water cycle.
 Billy Blue Hair: What is the water cycle and why does it rain? (5:45 min)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=52wY4r66OVc
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.4

Science Court: Water Cycle (22:53) – students help solve a court case about condensation http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JVwUv4uyXxg
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS3-1

Water Cycle Song by Nick Parsons (3:16 min)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rE3a1PuDr6Q
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.4

The Water Cycle Rap with Lyrics (2:47) – good but spelled “precipitation” wrong
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i3NeMVBcXXU
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.4

Thirstin’s Water Cycle – animated water glass explains the water cycle
www.epa.gov/safewater/kids/flash/flash_watercycle.html
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.4
Activities
Specific activity descriptions are on the pages following this page.
 Make it Rain Demonstration: show evaporation, condensation and precipitation
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1

Cloud in a Jar Demonstration or Experiment: show evaporation and condensation
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1
•
Transpiration and Condensation Experiment
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1

Case of the Disappearing Water: evaporation story and activity
www.epa.gov/region1/students/teacher/groundw.html - click on “The Case of the Disappearing
Water” pdf
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.SI.4; ICSEC: S.3-5.SI.6; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1

Water Journey Through the Water Cycle – Water Cycle Wristbands (10 pages): hands-on activity to
help students understand all of the different places water can go as it cycles through our world
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1

Water Cycle Riddles: read the riddles to the class and have them guess what part of the water cycle is
being described
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RL.5.7

Water Cycle in Action: have students act out the water cycle, deciding on hand and body motions for
each part
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; NGSS: 5-ESS2-1

Water Drop Journey: have students imagine they are a water drop and write a story about all the
places they go and what happens to them along the way.
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.9
Activity Sheets
Attached activity sheets and answer keys:
• Wonders of the Water Cycle
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.9
•
Recycled Water
ICSEC: S.3-5.ES.2; ICSEC: S.3-5.PS.2; ICELA: RI.5.4
Cloud in a Jar
Condensation in Action
Kids will love seeing a cloud form right before their eyes!
Materials
Glass quart jar (or larger) with lid
Warm water
Several ice cubes
Aerosol spray (e.g. hairspray)
Directions
1. Put some warm water in the glass jar (about 1/3).
2. Place upturned jar lid containing several ice cubes on top of the jar.
3. Take the lid off and shoot some aerosol spray down into the jar, and quickly place the lid back
on top.
4. Watch as you see a cloud form.
The water vapor from the warm water is cooled and condenses around the aerosol particles to form a
cloud just like it condenses around dust particles in the sky to make clouds.
Transpiration and Condensation Activity
Your students can “see” how plants give off water vapor through transpiration by performing this simple
experiment.
Materials
Quart or gallon size Ziploc baggie
Living plant material – green grass or green leaves
Directions
1. Pick a handful of grass or a few green leaves, place them inside the Ziploc baggie and seal the
baggie.
2. Set the baggie in a spot that will get some sunlight for 24 hours.
3. Check the baggie the next day. Students should see water droplets that have condensed on the
inside of the baggie. Those droplets came from the plants giving off water vapor through
transpiration and then condensing on the inside of the baggie.
Water Journey through the Water Cycle - Water Cycle Wristbands
Adapted from Project Wet Curriculum – Incredible Journey
Materials
9 pages of water cycle strips (following this page), cut into strips and laminated
Pipe cleaners - one per student
Pony Beads (9 different colors- at least 30 of each)
Bowls or baggies for beads
Sign for each of 9 stations – Soil, Plant, River, Clouds, Ocean, Lake, Animal, Groundwater, Glacier
Directions
1. Set up 9 stations for the places water will go on its water cycle, each labeled with a sign and with a bowl or baggie
of beads – a different color for each station (see suggested colors) – Soil (brown), Plant (green), River (medium
blue), Clouds (white), Ocean (navy blue or gray), Lake (light blue), Animal (red), Groundwater (black), Glacier
(clear)*
*If you don’t want to use beads and pipe cleaners, you could have strips of paper with boxes or circles marked on
them that they carry around to each station and color in with a different colored crayon at each station.
2. Set the laminated water cycle strips facedown at each designated station (each strip has a letter in the lower right
corner for where it should be placed – S = Soil, P = Plant, R = River, C = Clouds, O = Ocean, L = Lake, A =
Animal, GR = Groundwater, GL = Glacier)
3. Give each student a pipe cleaner and divide the class among the 9 stations. Tell students they are going to
follow water through the water cycle, so they can see all of the places water travels on its journey, but they
will all be traveling on different paths as they follow water.
4. Have each student put a bead on their pipe cleaner from the first station, and then draw a laminated paper strip.
Have her/him read it and then go to the station it tells her/him to travel to, making sure she/he leaves the paper
strip at that station before she/he moves on.
5. Students put a bead from the next station on their pipe cleaners and draw a new laminated paper strip to read and
follow directions. Movement continues in this manner for either a specified amount of time or until they have a
certain amount of beads (teacher determines) on their pipe cleaners. Sometimes the paper strip will tell them to
stay at their present station, so they should put another bead of that color on and draw another paper strip.
6. When the activity ends, have students get in groups of 3-4 and share their water journeys with each other. The
wristbands can easily be fastened to their wrists.
Plant - Water is absorbed by plant roots.
S
River - The soil is saturated, so water
runs into a river.
S
Groundwater - Water filters into the soil.
S
Clouds - Heat energy from the sun makes
the water evaporate and go to the clouds.
Stay - Water remains on the surface in a
puddle.
S
S
Clouds - Water leaves the plant through
the process of transpiration.
P
S
Clouds - Water leaves the plant through
the process of transpiration.
P
Clouds - Water leaves the plant through
the process of transpiration.
P
Stay - Water is used by the plant and
stays in the cells.
Stay - Water is used by the plant and
stays in the cells.
P
P
Lake - Water flows into a lake.
R
Groundwater - Water filters into the soil.
R
Ocean - Water flows into the ocean.
R
Animal - An animal drinks the water.
R
Clouds - Heat energy from the sun makes
the water evaporate and go to the
R
Stay - Water remains in the current of the
river.
R
Soil - Water rains (precipitates) and falls
on the soil.
Glacier - Water falls (precipitates) as
snow onto a glacier.
Lake - Water rains (precipitates) into a
lake.
C
C
C
Ocean - Water rains (precipitates) into an
ocean.
C
Stay - Water remains as a water droplet
sticking to a dust particle in a cloud.
C
Stay - Water remains in the ocean.
O
Stay - Water remains in the ocean.
O
Stay - Water remains in the ocean.
O
Clouds- Water is heated by the sun and
evaporates to form a cloud.
O
Groundwater- Water filters into the soil.
L
Animal - An animal drinks the water.
L
River - Water flows into a river.
L
Clouds - Water is heated by the sun and
evaporates and goes to the clouds.
L
Stay - Water remains in the lake.
L
Stay - Water remains in the lake.
L
Soil - Water is excreted through feces and
urine.
A
Clouds - Water is expired when animal
breathes, evaporates and goes to clouds.
A
Clouds - Water is expired when animal
breathes, evaporates and goes to clouds.
A
Stay - Water remains in the body.
A
River - Water filters into the river.
GR
Lake - Water filters into a lake.
GR
Lake - Water filters into a lake.
GR
Stay - Water remains underground.
GR
Stay - Water remains underground.
GR
Groundwater - Ice melts and water filters
into the ground.
GL
Clouds - Ice melts and water evaporates
and goes to clouds.
GL
River - Ice melts and water flows into a
river.
GL
Stay - Ice stays in the glacier.
GL
Stay - Ice stays in the glacier.
GL
Through the soil without a sound
Water seeping down, down, down
Slowly moving underground.
Heat from the sun makes water rise
Up as vapor to the skies.
Evaporation
Percolation or Infiltration
Cumulus, stratus, cirrus, too,
Water vapor visible in the skies of blue.
Cloud
From the pores of plants
water vapor escapes
Into the air without a trace.
Once a gas but then it’s changed
Into liquid to be seen again.
Transpiration
Condensation
I start as a trickle and then I grow
Picking up speed as down I go.
Over the surface from land to the sea
Obeying the laws of gravity.
River
Down is the direction this water falls
As crystals, drips, or even balls.
Precipitation
Water going round and round
Changing form but not amount.
Water Cycle or
Hydrologic Cycle
Wonders Of The Water Cycle
6.
1.
4.
!
5.
2.
Raccoon
River
TM
3.
Directions: Write the letter of the alphabet that comes next after each letter listed below the blank to find out the
steps of the water cycle. After you solve the puzzle, fill in the blanks above to label the steps of the water cycle.
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
___
o
___
q
___
o
___
s
___
d
___
b
___
q
___
t
___
d
___
q
___
u
___
n
___
d
___
m
___
q
___
z
___
z
___
m
___
b
___
n
___
b
___
m
___
o
___
c
___
h
___
e
___
n
___
r
___
n
___
d
___
o
___
e
___
k
___
o
___
q
___
m
DEWEY
___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___ ___
h s z s h n m
Water Fun Facts!
TM
___
z
___
h
___
z
___
r
___
s
___
q
___
s
___
z
___
h
___
z
___
h
___
s
___
n
___
s
___
n
___
h
___
m
___
h
___
m
___
n
___ ___
n m
___
m
TM
Amuse, Amaze and Astound Your Family & Friends
• There is the same amount of water on Earth
today as there was when the Earth was
formed.
• Over 1/2 of the Earth’s fresh water is stored
as groundwater.
• Each day, the sun evaporates over a
TRILLION tons of water.
• Once groundwater is polluted, it may stay that
way for several thousand years.