6
WATER, WATER, EVERYWHERE
Review the background information and download the Teacher Reference Sheet available at:
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
Students will be able to:
• Explain how much water is available for human and terrestrial wildlife use
• Discuss how humans use water
• Formulate strategies for conserving water
MATERIALS
• Water
• 2 large, clear plastic containers or an aquarium (4 gallons)
• 2 or 3 smaller buckets or other containers (1 gallon or less)
• 2 or 3 measuring cups or beakers and measuring spoons
• Calculators, water droppers, world map
ACTIVITY
1.
You will want to conduct most of this activity outside - it involves a lot of water! Introduce the activity by asking
students, Where in the world is the greatest amount of water found? (the oceans) Where are other places water
can be found? (Ice caps, ground water, inland lakes and seas, freshwater lakes, the atmosphere, in soil, rivers and
streams.) Write, or have students write, the answers on a board or a large piece of paper. Have them brainstorm the
order in which water on Earth exists, from greatest volume (oceans) to the least volume (rivers and streams).
2. Tell students that for the purposes of this activity, they will begin with 12 liters (about 3.2 gallons) of water, which
will represent all of the water on Earth. The group should have the measuring beakers (or measuring cups) handy
at the start of this activity. Piece by piece, they will remove different bodies of water that are effectively not available
for human use or for use by wildlife that need freshwater. Each time they remove a “body of water,” they should
place the water in a separate container. Ask students to first remove water that represents the ocean. The
approximate amount of water they should remove is on the Teacher Reference Sheet. Or, instead of telling students
how much water to remove in Part 1, give them the percentages represented by each category and have them
calculate how much water to remove from the 12 L starting amount for each step. Have students sit or stand in a
circle around the “world’s water” supply. They should decide with which measuring beaker or cup they will begin,
and then should each take turns (and pass the beaker/cup to the next student) to do their part to remove the water.
Count for them, or have them count along to make sure the right number of units is removed. Have them dump their
full cups into another gallon or large container.
3. Next, they should remove the water stored in ice caps and glaciers, then inland seas, then (if it is possible at this
point) a tiny bit for soil moisture and the atmosphere combined. As the water bodies become progressively smaller,
allow students to decide to use different measuring beakers, cups, or water droppers to extract the water.
