Basic Lesson Plan Template

Name: Alexa Goffos & James Morell

Grade Level: 2nd Grade
Lesson # & Title: #1 Water Cycle
Function of the Lesson (check all that apply):
Introduce New Skill or Content
Practice & Review
Remediation/Reteaching

Date: 04/05/16
Subject(s): Science

Content Standards:
1. Strand: Earth and Space Science
Topic: The Atmosphere
Content Statement: Water is present in the air. Water is present in the air as clouds, steam, fog, rain,
ice, snow, sleet or hail. When water in the air cools (change of energy), it forms small droplets of
water that can be seen as clouds. Water can change from liquid to vapor in the air and from vapor to
liquid. The water droplets can form into raindrops. Water droplets can change to solid by freezing
into snow, sleet or hail. The emphasis at this grade level is investigating condensation and
evaporation at depth.
Learning Objectives (Aligned to Standards & Assessment Plan):
Students will be able to identify four out of the four stages of the water cycle and illustrate how the cycle
moves.
Students will be able to accurately define the term evaporation in one sentence.
Students will be able to accurately define the term condensation in one sentence.
Academic Language (Academic Language Demands and/or Academic Language Objectives):
Condensation - The conversion of a vapor or gas to a liquid
Evaporation - To change from a liquid to a gas
Water Vapor - Water in a vaporous form when below boiling temperature and diffused (as in the atmosphere)
Precipitation - Rain, snow, sleet or hail that falls to the ground
Collection - When water falls from the clouds, it collects in oceans, rivers, lakes and streams
Cycle - A series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.
Assessment Plan (Aligned to Learning Objectives):
Formative Assessment:
1. Students will Turn & Talk and explain to one another what they know about the water cycle as guided by the
questions given to them by the teacher. The teacher will walk around and listen to see what the students are
saying.
2. Students will have to follow along in the provided packet of notes and draw the different stages of the water
cycle accordingly. The teacher will walk around and observe the classroom to make sure students are
drawing each stage of the water cycle properly.
Summative Assessment:
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1. Students will be given a handout and asked to label the different parts of the water cycle. The teacher will
walk around with a list of students and check off who has correctly identified all four stages of the water
cycle.
2. The students will then flip the above handout over and write one sentence defining evaporation and one
sentence defining condensation. The teacher will again read over these sentences to make sure they include
the following information:
a. Evaporation
i. Water goes from a liquid to a gas state
b. Condensation
i. Water vapor gets cold and changes back into a liquid

1.
a.
b.
2.
3.

1.
a.
b.
c.

d.

e.
f.

Procedures - Lesson Introduction: (5 minutes)

Activate Prior Knowledge- Turn & Talk- Lets begin today by turning to your neighbor and talking about
these particular questions:
Where does rain come from?
Where does it go after it comes down from the sky?
Ask the students to share their responses with the class.
Say- Today, were going to be learning about the different stages of the water cycle as well as some, new
exciting vocabulary words!
Procedures - Lesson Body: (30 mins)
Presentation/Explicit Instruction (I do): (2 mins)
The teacher will briefly explain how the water cycle works.
First, the teacher will explain that a cycle is a series of events that are repeated in the same order over and
over.
Next, the teacher will place a picture of a puddle on the whiteboard and explain that first we must start with a
body of water.
The teacher will then place upward pointing arrows above the puddle to show the process of evaporation
explaining that in the first stage the water evaporates into the air. The teacher will then ask the whole class to
repeat the word evaporation.
After that, the teacher will place a cloud above the arrows and explain to the class that the next stage is called
condensation because the water is condensing to form clouds. Again, the teacher will ask the class to say the
word condensation.
Then, the teacher will place raindrops under the cloud to mimic precipitation explaining to the class that this
is the next stage. Once again, the class will be asked to say the word precipitation.
Lastly, the teacher will point to the puddle and explain that the last stage is collection because the drops of
rain are collecting back together. The students will repeat the word collection.

Structured and Guided Practice (We do): (18 mins)

1. Students will be provided a packet of guidenotes and the teacher will have the powerpoint on the smartboard
for students to follow along.
2. On the first page, students will be asked to write their name.
3. On the second page, one student will be called on to read the following sentences aloud while everyone else
is following along on their own copy:
a. The sun heats water from oceans to create water vapor. Water vapor, or steam, rises and collects to form
clouds. This first stage of the water cycle is called evaporation.
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a.

4.
a.

b.

5.
a.

c.

The teacher will then read the statement following these sentences:
Draw a puddle and then use arrows to show how the water is evaporating up towards the sky.
After giving the students a chance to draw their own image, the teacher will ask one student to
come to the smartboard to draw what they drew on their paper. The teacher will make sure
that the student correctly draws a puddle with arrows pointing up towards the sky. The teacher
will then ask the other students to make sure their picture looks identical to the one on the
smartboard.
On the third page, one student will be called on to read the following sentences aloud while everyone else is
following along on their own copy:
Water vapor in the air gets cold and changes back into liquid, forming clouds. This is called
condensation.
The teacher will then read the statement following these sentences:
Redraw your puddle evaporating and now add some clouds in the sky.
After giving the students a chance to draw their own image, the teacher will ask one student to
come to the smartboard to draw what they drew on their paper. The teacher will make sure
that the student correctly redraws the previous picture and has also added clouds. The teacher
will then ask the other students to make sure their picture looks identical to the one on the
smartboard.
On the fourth page, one student will be called on to read the following sentences aloud while everyone else
is following along on their own copy:
Precipitation occurs when so much water has condensed that the air cannot hold it anymore. The clouds get
heavy and water falls back to the earth in the form of snow, hail, sleet, or snow.
The teacher will then read the statement following these sentences:
Redraw the puddle evaporating and the clouds in the sky. Now add different types of precipitation falling
from the sky.
After giving the students a chance to draw their own image, the teacher will ask one student to
come to the smartboard to draw what they drew on their paper. The teacher will make sure
that the student correctly redraws the previous picture and has also added different types of
precipitation. The teacher will then ask the other students to make sure their picture looks
identical to the one on the smartboard.

6. On the fifth page, one student will be called on to read the following sentences aloud while everyone else is
following along on their own copy:
a. When water falls back to the Earth as precipitation, it may fall back in oceans, lakes, rivers, or land. This is
called collection. As the sun heats the water, the cycle starts all over again.
The teacher will then read the statement following these sentences:
d. Redraw your picture from the previous page and have the precipitation fall into the ground as well as a
river.
After giving the students a chance to draw their own image, the teacher will ask one student to
come to the smartboard to draw what they drew on their paper. The teacher will make sure
that the student correctly redraws the previous picture and has also added water following into
the ground below as well as into a river. The teacher will then ask the other students to make
sure their picture looks identical to the one on the smartboard.
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**If pressed for time, the teacher can do all the reading and/or illustrate the pictures on the
smartboard for the class. The teacher may ask the students to explain what they drew and then
draw it for them so there is no wasted time of students getting up from their seats.
Independent Practice/Application (You do): (10 mins)
1. Students will be given a handout and asked to color it first. The handout will be pre-cut on the dotted lines so
as to save time.
2. Then, the students will be given a strip of four labels (evaporation, condensation, evaporation, collection) to
paste onto the handout labeling the different stages of the water cycle. The students should be told to cut the
labels apart and place them where they think each stage is occurring. Before the students are allowed to
paste, they should be instructed to raise their hand to show the teacher where they have placed the four
labels. The teacher will then ask them to read the four stages and point to each one as they read. If the student
responds with incorrect English, the teacher will repeat the answer correctly. The teacher will then okay the
student to paste the labels down ONLY if they are in the correct spot. The teacher should tell the students to
avoid pasting over any of the pre-cut lines.
3. The students will then flip over their paper and write one sentence explaining the term evaporation and one
sentence explaining the term condensation. The teacher should remind the students to use the upper half part
of the paper so as to not write over the pre-cut areas.
4. The sheet should be rolled to the tape line and taped along the edge to create a cylinder.
5. After it is taped, gently press down from the top to make the edges pop out.

1.
2.

3.
4.

Procedures - Lesson Closure: (5 mins)

To end the lesson, play the Water Cycle Song (up to 1:12) to review the material covered in the lesson.
https://youtu.be/TWb4KlM2vts
After the video, ask the students Now who can give me an example of how the water cycle is seen in our
daily lives? Some responses may include:
-Rain -Water evaporating off the streets
-Snow -Drying off at the beach
-Hail -The outside of your water bottle being wet
If there is time, connect the content to the students daily lives by giving them hand sanitizer to show them
how the liquid evaporates off their hands.
Wrap up by saying- I know youll be doing a science fair project very soon so maybe you can use some of
these concepts youve learned today to create a really cool project that incorporates water in the air. There
are so many different things you can do such as a tornado in a jar or a model of the water cycle itself.
Remember to think outside of the box and dont be afraid to be creative!
Instructional Materials and Support:
Smartboard
Water Cycle Packet of Guidenotes
Water Cycle Powerpoint
Hand Sanitizer

Water Cycle Craft

Tape
Scissors
Crayons

Pencils

Differentiation, Individualized Instruction, and Assessment:

To make sure ELL students and students with disabilities are understanding the vocabulary words, visuals
were used at the beginning as well as throughout the entire lesson. Students are also asked individually to say
EDU234 Interdisciplinary Planning for Diverse Learners & Families - Spring 2016

the four stages of the water cycle. If incorrect, the teacher will say the right pronunciation, but will not ask
the students to repeat the correct response when dealing with an ELL student.
Many different modalities are incorporated throughout this lesson such as visual, auditory, and tactile. The
visuals on the board as well as the powerpoint that walks step by step through the guide notes will help
visual learners process the information better. The teacher asking the students to say the vocabulary words
out loud as well as the song at the end will help auditory learners internalize the information. Lastly, the
students will be using their pencil to draw pictures that go along with the guide notes as well as coloring,
cutting, pasting words onto the water cycle activity. This will engage the tactile learners. If needed,
additional accommodations can be used for ELL students and students with disabilities. For writing the
sentences at the end, these students will have the option of saying their answer orally and the teacher will
scribe their response on the paper.
Research and Theory Commentary:
John Dewey encouraged active and engaging learning which is shown in our lesson by having the students
perform the hand sanitizer experiment. The process of evaporation is occurring in the palm of their hands.
The concept of scaffolding is used in the body of the lesson because of Lev Vygotskys work on cooperative
learning. He believes that social interaction plays a fundamental role in the development of cognition. This
interaction is also seen between students when they perform the Turn & Talk.
The body of the lesson is modeled to mimic Albert Banduras social learning theory. Bandura was a strong
believer that students learn by observing thus creating the I do, We do, You do model. This model allows for
a gradual release of just having the teacher do everything to having the student take ownership of their own
learning.
In this lesson, the teacher asks the students to repeat each vocabulary term at least once. The vocabulary is
used many times throughout the activities and each time special attention is being brought to the words. This
is being done because of B.F. Skinners Theory of Transmission which says teaching happens when a subject
is introduced and then reinforced over and over again until the student understands the concept.

EDU234 Interdisciplinary Planning for Diverse Learners & Families - Spring 2016