The Water Cycle

Title of Project: The Water Cycle

Schools and Teachers

East Moriches Middle School Teacher: Rebecca Posner

ENL Proficiency Level | ENL Program | Standards | Technology

Entering, Emerging | Stand-Alone | ELA/Literacy: 6-8.RST.1 MS-ESS2-5 | Nearpod

Assessments

The assessments used include the following:

Labeling a water cycle diagram
Nearpod matching activity: vocabulary words and definitions
Nearpod matching activity: vocabulary words and pictures
Draw the water cycle
Multiple choice quiz

Description

In this interactive Nearpod lesson, students will explore the water cycle. They will learn about the importance of water on Earth and how it moves through a cycle. The focus will be on the academic vocabulary that students will need to understand the water cycle. These words include evaporation, precipitation, condensation, and water vapor.

Content

I can label the main parts of the water cycle.

Language

I can state the stages of the water cycle and explain why the water cycle is important.

Technology

I can use interactive activities on Nearpod to learn about the water cycle.

Procedure

Students will listen to a read aloud of One Well which is a nonfiction book about the importance of water on Earth. Students will discuss where water is on Earth and how all water is connected.
Students will watch an interactive video about the steps of the water cycle and how it is important.
Then they will label a water cycle diagram given the words “precipitation,” “evaporation,” and “condensation.”
Next they will match content vocabulary words with their definitions through an interactive Nearpod matching activity. This activity is differentiated for language proficiency levels. (For entering/emerging level students, they will match the vocabulary words with pictures)
Then students will have the opportunity to draw the water cycle using the whiteboard tools on Nearpod.
After students take a 4-question quiz, they will complete a fill in the blank activity using a word bank on Nearpod.
Next, students will explore a VR of a waterfall, which will give them the opportunity to practice speaking. Provide verbal sentence starters such as “This is a _____.” For entering level students, have them repeat short phrases such as “The water is splashing” or “The fish is swimming.”
After that, students will watch a video on the water cycle. This video has pause points where students will answer questions through turn and talk.
Next, students will play a Time to Climb game to review the academic vocabulary related to the water cycle.
Lastly, students will answer an open ended question.

Resources and Other Materials

Reflection

Students were engaged throughout the lesson and enjoyed using Nearpod. Since we have used Nearpod in our class, the students were familiar with how to navigate through the various interactive activities, such as drag and drop, matching and drawing. The option to switch from live-paced mode to student-paced mode was very helpful when working with students at various English language proficiency levels. One of my students works at a faster pace so it was helpful to switch to student-paced mode. This allowed me to work one-on-one with the students who needed more support. The various videos and interactive activities about the water cycle were engaging for students because it helped make the content comprehensible. Since this lesson focuses on academic vocabulary, it helps students better understand the content of the lesson. The virtual field trip was a great opportunity to practice speaking. Next time I would provide a word bank of words that relate to what is shown in the virtual field trip to further differentiate for my entering level students. Overall, the lesson went well and had a positive impact on students’ learning.