Inquiry Lesson Plan (with Four Ways of Thinking connection)

Content & Title:

Grade Level:
Water Conservation
7th Grade

Teacher:
Brooke Gloor
Standards:
Strand 6: Earth and Space Science Concept 2: Earths Processes and Systems Understand the processes
acting on the Earth and their interaction with the Earth systems.
Objective(s):
TSWBAT identify water users and their water use or product by describing major water user categories and
how each consumes water and creating a list of common water needs.
Evidence of Mastery:
Formative: Students will participate in a board meeting before we begin the activity- discussing who
the four main users of water are (consumers, flood, drought, and pollution) and which user they
believe take the most water from our sources. After the activity, students will add to their white
boards- things that they noticed during the stimulation and what user used the most of the water.
Summative: After the activity, students will create a foldable where they define each user and relate
the users to their affects on a river.
Sub-objectives:
SWBAT
Identify water users and their water use or product
Describe major water user categories and how each consumes water
List water users four common water needs
Demonstrate the complexity of sharing water among all water users in a watershed
Summarize how water managers use adaptive and integrated strategies to address river basin water
challenges
Lesson Summary and Justification:
Students will begin by discussing the obstacles water might face as it moves downstream and then make
predictions as to which user of water will have the largest effect. Students will be working as a team to move
a can of water through different obstacles and passing the can of water off to other groups to stimulate the
four obstacles water faces as it moves downstream (consumers, flood, drought, and pollution). This lesson
allows students to see how natural causes and human causes (pollution) affect our already limited water
supply and encourage the importance of conserving what we have.
Background Knowledge:
Students should have background knowledge from prior lessons on how much of Earths water is actually
drinkable, as well as steps we can take to conserve water and make sure we arent wasting this valuable
resource.
Misconception: (what possible misleading thoughts might students have?)
Water is always going to be available to us: though we have a perfect water cycle that allows the amount of
water to stay the same since Earth was created, the amount of water is affected by the amount of people
living on the planet and using the water up.
Process Skills: (what skills are you introducing or reinforcing)
Students will use communication and observation skills to complete this lesson.
Four Ways of Thinking connection:
This lesson connects to futures thinking, which states that we view problems of today and come up with
solutions before these problems develop and get worse in the future. I chose to incorporate this way of
thinking in the lesson on water conservation because if we continue to let the use of water continue as
carelessly as we currently are as a society, we risk losing our supply of drinkable water.
Safety:
Students should not drink the water being used durng the activities.
Students will proceed with caution during the obstacles, being careful not to slip on/in puddles.
Student should be aware of their surroundings as to not trip or fall on anything.
Inquiry Questions: (testable in the here and now.)
1. What factors affect water as it flows downsteam?
2. Which factor has the largest impact on water as it flows downstream?

Key vocabulary:
Materials:
1. 1 Can
Earth Systems: how Earth systems interact
2. 1 Rubber band
together; physical, chemical, and biological.
3. 8 2-foot long strings
Direct Water Use: turning on your tap and
4. 1 Jump Rope
water comes out; taking a shower, cooking,
5. 1 Piece of Chalk
watering a garden, etc.
6. 3 Chairs
Indirect Water Use: freshwater consumed and
7. Class set of Dixie Cups (25)
polluted for the production of goods and
8. Glitter (1 small cup per table group)
services.
Watershed: area of land around a river where
9. Sticky notes (8 sets)
water flows out of river.
Bacteria: microscopic living organisms,
infecting other organisms or properties
Virus: an infective agent that typically consists
of a nucleic acid molecule in a protein coat, is
too small to be seen by light microscopy, and is
able to multiply only within the living cells of a
host.
Toxin: an antigenic poison or venom of plant or
animal origin, especially one produced by or
derived from microorganisms and causing
disease when present at low concentration in
the body.
Engage
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Give the students a Dixie cup full of water and
Students will listen to teachers instructions
ask students to share the water with their table
and follow along with the procedure.
group; everyone should take a drink of it from
Students will follow all instructions and not
the Dixie cup.
drink the glitter water.
The teacher will ask students how it tasted and
Students will answer any questions asked
ask them how often they are able to obtain
by the teacher and give explanations.
water (whenever they want it).
Students will discuss in a group what the
The teacher will then instruct students to put
main factors are that affect a river as it
glitter in the water and ask how many students
flows downstream and develop examples
are still inclined to drink the water on the table
of each factor.
(The teacher should ensure that no student
actually does drink the glitter water).
Teacher will explain that the glitter represents
all of the outside factors that affect a stream as
it flows downstream.
Teacher will ask students IQ #1: What factors
affect water as it flows downsteam?
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
The teacher will encourage students to use their notebooks.
The teacher will use cold calls to keep students on task and interested in the content.
Students will be working in groups to help one another and develop new ideas with the help of their
peers.
Explore
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Monitor class discussions by circulating the
Students will engage in an active
room and assisting students who might be stuck
conversation with their group about the

on the questions.
The teacher will ask students IQ #1 again:
What factors affect water as it flows
downsteam? Cold call groups to share what
they discovered through their conversation.
Teacher will write the ideas students develop on
the board.

different factors that might affect the water

in the river as it moves downstream.
Students will work to determine which
factor will lose the most amount of water
and be prepared to share what they
discovered aloud in a class discussion.

Teacher will also ask students who the users of

the water way are and instruct students to write
a different user on a sticky note in their group.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
The teacher will encourage students to use their notebooks.
The teacher will use cold calls to keep students on task and interested in the content.
Students will be working in groups to help one another and develop new ideas with the help of their
peers.
Explain
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
The teacher will ask students to share their post
The students will engage in an active group
it notes with the class and then the teacher will
discussion on what they think the users are
collect them and put them on the board with
on a sticky note.
other sticky notes that are similar to ones that
When instructed by the teacher, the
are already on the board.
students will share each sticky note with
Teacher will then ask students what they should
the class and hand it off to the teacher.
label each group of user (if there is a group that
Students will develop a category name for
isnt named, the teacher will add them and
each group of users with direction from the
discuss why they are there).
teacher.
Teacher will address any misconceptions
students raise and add any necessary, missing
Students will write the information shared
information.
in their notebooks.

Student will ask students to connect the users of

water sources with the outside forces that affect
the water as it moves downstream. Students will
be asked to discuss which factor and/or user
will use the most of the resource.
Teacher will call on each group to share their
explanation and reasoning with the whole class.

Students will discuss which factor and/or

user will use the most of the natural
resource.
Students will take notes and create an
explanation in their notebooks as to why

they believe that specific user/factor will

use the most water in a river or have the
largest affect as it moves downstream.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
The teacher will encourage students to use their notebooks.
The teacher will use cold calls to keep students on task and interested in the content.
Students will be working in groups to help one another and develop new ideas with the help of their
peers.
Elaborate

Teacher Will:
Pose IQ #2: Which factor has the largest
impact on water as it flows downstream?

Students Will:
Be seperated into groups of 8 and receive a
name tag with a different user on it.

Introduce the activity and safety: You will be

Create a group name.
put into groups of 8 and each one of you will
Listen to the rules and follow the rules
represent a different user of water in a stream.
through the activity or else they will be
You will be moving through obstacles which
unable to participate.
represent the different outside factors on a river
Students will navigate through the course
and see how much water is left in your car at
with their team, each holding a string
the end of the obstacle course. Make sure to
which is connected to a rubberband on a
keep track of where you loose the most water
large can of water.
and which team member might take the most of
o The four main obstacles on the
your water.
course represent floods, droughts,
Discuss safety rules and give students an
pollution, and endangered species.
oppurtunity to develop their team name.
Students will move through obstacle and
Explain the obstacle course and what each
then pass the can off to the next team.
obstacle represents:
They will make observations during the
o Pollution: under a rope and through
course as to where they lost the most water
hanging rope
and which use was most responsible in
o Flood: over a rope
each area.
o Drought: under the rope
Students will make sure that each team
o Endangered species: zigzag around a
member is meeting their water needs
chair
throughout the obstacle.
The teacher will instruct each group when to go
(they will go one at a time) and time the teams
as they move and determine which team lost the
least amount of water.
Best Teaching Practice Strategy/Differentiation/ELL and Teacher Notes
The teacher will encourage students to use their notebooks.
The teacher will use cold calls to keep students on task and interested in the content.
Students will be working in groups to help one another and develop new ideas with the help of their
peers.
Evaluate
Teacher Will:
Students Will:
Ask students to reflect on the activity and
Students will talk in their groups to determine
determine which factor had the largest impact
which factor had the largest affect
on the stream.
Discuss what went well for their group and
Address any misconceptions and give
what they struggled with.
students any insight they might have missed
Students will share these thoughts with the
on the topic.
rest of the class and make notes in their
Teacher will close the activity through a
notebook about which factor has the largest
whole class conversation about the factors
impact on the rivers.
that had the largest impact.
Closure:
Students will be asked to revist the question: Which factor has the largest impact on water as it flows
downstream? They will answer this question in a whole class discussion and then create a foldable. After
the activity, students will create a foldable where they define each user and relate the users to their affects on
a river. This foldable will be collected, graded for understanding, and then returned to students for them to
keep in their notebooks and refer to later on.
This activity is worth 20 points: 10 points participation and 10 points for completion/accuracy of their
foldable.
**Best Practices List the Best Teaching Practices you will use to enhance the learning outcomes. In
each section where prompted, list the best practice, how the practices will be used and the purpose.

Source: This activity is adapted from: ProjectWET: Curriculum and Activity Guide 2.0, "8-4-1, One
for All" pg. 299.