Week 6: May 11-13*

Learning Goal:

Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact.

I can play The Water Drop game to show that a single drop of water does not travel in a perfectly circular path through the water cycle.

Estimated Time for The Week:

30 minutes

Type of Lesson:

Science

Materials:

• nine water location cards - print here or create a cards on your own paper
• water cycle activity sheet - print here or copy form on your own paper; one paper for each location
• six sided die

Background Knowledge:

The water cycle progresses in a constant circular path:

• Evaporation - the sun heats water so that it becomes water vapor and rises into the air
• Condensation - the water cools off and condenses, forming clouds
• Precipitation - the water becomes too heavy for the cloud and falls back to earth as rain, sleet, ice, or snow
• Collection - the water flows back in the oceans, lakes, or rivers or ends up on the land
• This game will show that a single drop of water can be found in many places and the path through the cycle may take some time. One drop of water can end up in soil, rivers, plants, oceans, lakes, ground water, glaciers, animals, or the atmosphere. Because the water repeatedly and continually cycles, the same particle (one drop) of water may have traveled down the Mississippi, been encased in a glacier, or quenched the thirst of a president. Water moves; it remains as a part of the earth in one form or another. Play the game; become a drop of water; see where you travel.

Learn & Practice:

1. Print out or duplicate the nine collection posters (linked in a Google Slide above) and place them in various places around your house.
2. Choose a starting location as a "water drop". Go to that specific Water Location poster. Record your location on the Water-Cycle Activity sheet.
3. Roll your die. Find that number on the poster. Read the statement to find out where to go next. Write where you move on your activity sheet after each roll. Even if you stay at that location, you should indicate that result. You may stay in the same location for several moves.
   • Depending on the result, roll the die again at that location, or move to the new Water Location poster before rolling again.
4. Continue rolling the die, moving to the indicated location, and recording your location (even if you have not moved) until you have rolled and recorded ten times.
5. Questions to Consider:
   • Where did you spend the most time?
   • Where did you spend the least amount of time?
   • Did you travel to all possible locations? Why or why not?
   • Would your path be different if you started at a different location?
   • The water remains on our planet; traveling in a never ending cycle. Is it important to protect our water supply? Why or why not?

Extension:

• Draw a picture of the earth showing the ocean, rivers, lakes, atmosphere, glacier, groundwater, soil, plants, and animals. Using arrows, draw the path taken by your water drop.
• Check out the NASA website Global Precipitation Measurement NASA Global Precipitation Measurement to learn more about our water.
• This short video, derived from the Science on a Sphere film "Water Falls", explores how Earth's freshwater resources are allocated and used.

NASA Show Me Water

• The water cycle is the constant movement of water through the Earth and its atmosphere. Water on the ground evaporates, becoming water vapor. The vapor rises, becomes clouds, and then falls back to the earth as rain, snow, sleet, or hail.

Study Jams: Ecosystems/Water Cycle

• Create a water cycle in a Ziploc Bag! Materials needed: Ziploc bag (sandwich or quart size), water, tape (packing tape is best), blue food coloring (optional). Pour the water and two drops of blue food coloring into your baggie so that it is about a ¼ of the way full. Tape it to a window or set it on a windowsill that gets plenty of sunlight. Record observations when you first place it there, three hours later, and then again the next day. What happened? Where did each stage take place?
• It is possible that students will finish the above lesson and may still want to do additional science. In the beginning of the school year, we discussed the different phases of the moon. This would be an additional skill that would be worth reviewing. Below is a link that allows you to journal and track the phases each night. It is not required, but might be fun for the students who really enjoyed the Earth and Sun Foss unit: Moon Phase Journaling

Learning Goal:

The student will expand their understanding of the Four C’s of Engineering: collaboration, creativity, critical thinking, communication

I can think like an engineer using household materials to design and build a Rube Goldberg machine to come up with a complicated way to complete a simple task.

Estimated Time for The Week:

30 to 60 minutes

Background:

• Rube Goldberg was an American Pulitzer Prize winning cartoonist, sculptor, author, engineer, and inventor, and his work is a classic example of the melding of art and science. Goldberg began his career as an engineer, and later became a cartoonist who drew elaborate illustrations of contraptions made up of pulleys, cups, birds, balloons, and watering cans that were designed to solve a simple task such as opening a window or setting an alarm clock. Interestingly, Goldberg only drew the pictures, and never built any of his inventions. However, these pictures have since served as inspiration for makers and builders who want the challenge of making wild inventions to solve everyday problems. This information was found from this website: https://tinkerlab.com/engineering-kids-rube-goldberg-machine/
• You can also watch this video of a read aloud children’s book, Just Like Rube Goldberg: The Incredible True Story of the Man Behind the Machines by Sarah Aronson, to learn more about Rube Goldberg.

Materials:

Any materials around your house can be used; here is a list of ideas, but be creative!

• aluminum foil
• plastic containers
• cardboard
• water bottles
• dominoes
• funnels
• marbles
• golf balls
• toilet paper or paper towel tubes for chutes
• cereal or cake mix boxes to use like dominoes
• beverage cans, soup cans, or batteries to roll
• cups and bowls
• batteries
• magnets
• fans
• PVC pipe
• duct tape
• marble run parts
• miniature car track
• toy cars
• string
• bucket

Learn & Practice:

Click here for the Google Slides with pictures that go with this lesson!

Watch this video to see an amazing contraption designed and built right here at our local Science Museum Oklahoma in conjunction with Steve Spangler. Rube Goldberg Machine

Step 1: Begin with the End

• Identify a simple task you want to achieve. You could turn off a light, open a door, turn off an alarm clock, hammer a nail, pop a balloon, or catch something in a trap etc.

Step 2: Make a Plan

• Brainstorm a series of actions to complete your task and draw a blueprint plan for what you expect to happen. The most important action will be the first step because that is what will start the entire machine and the chain reaction.

Step 3: Gather Your Materials

• Consider the materials that you have on hand and how they might work together to connect your desired actions.

Step 4: Begin your Build

• As you build your machine, follow your blueprint design and place your materials where you think they should go to work together. Do not be discouraged or surprised if all of the steps do not work the first time.

Step 5: Revise your Build

• Trial and error will be utilized on this STEM project. Make adjustments to your placement and combinations; you will get there.

Step 6: Keep Trying

• Now, test your revised machine and try, try again until you are successful.

Step 7: Document your Work

• If you want to, you can document your experience as you go and upload your work through photos or video to Class Dojo, Seesaw, Google Classroom, or whatever format you are using for your teachers to see! Most importantly, HAVE FUN!!!

Step 8: Extension

• Look up more Rube Goldberg designs for ideas. Here is the 2016 Guinness World record for the largest Rube Goldberg machine: Lighting a Christmas Tree

This is our last week of developed curriculum. For more great STEM inspiration, check out these sites.

• Science Museum Oklahoma at Home
• 50 Experiments in 50 Days