Creative Sustainability - Water Works

Lesson Plans

GradesPK, KScience

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What it is

  • This early learning lesson invites young children to explore water through sensory play and creativity, while building an appreciation for water as a precious resource.
  • Children engage in activities such as testing whether objects float or sink in water, painting with water, and creating watercolor art, with an age 3 to 5 extension that uses the picture book The Waterhole by Graham Base to connect water scarcity to the needs of living things.

Teaching tips

Preparation:
  • A free Cool.org account and login are required to access the full lesson materials.
  • Send notes home to families prior to engaging in water play, asking them to send extra clothes with students if necessary.
  • For older students, acquire a copy of The Waterhole by Graham Base.
  • Depending on the activity, teachers will need buckets of water, colorful materials, paints, salt, paper, and paintbrushes. 
Literacy Connections:
  • Consider creating a word wall, adding the terms waterhole and environment to the wall with corresponding pictures.
Sustainable Development Connections:
  •  Connect this resource to SDG 6, Clean Water and Sanitation, by helping children value and conserve fresh water.

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