Water Use
Around the World

Subjects

Educational Technology
Mathematics
--Applied Math
--Arithmetic
--Measurement
--Statistics
Health
--Environmental
Science
--Agriculture
--Physical Science
----Environmental
Social Studies
--Geography

Grade

3-5
6-8
9-12

Brief Description

Students compare their water use with water use in other places around the world. Printable work sheet included.

Objectives

Students

estimate/calculate their use of water (in gallons) on a weekly basis.
create a graph comparing their water use with that of people in other countries.
think critically about the availability of clean water in different countries around the world.

Keywords

water, conservation

Materials Needed

Water Use Around the World work sheet
index cards
computer access (optional)

Lesson Plan

The availability of clean water is something that most of our students take for granted. This lesson will explore the availability of clean water throughout the world.

Before the Lesson
Use the Per Capita Water Consumption in Selected Countries table (scroll down to page 2) as a source of information.

Count out index cards equal to the number of students in your class.

On each card write the name of a country and the number of gallons of water each person in that country uses each day. (If you teach students in grades 5 or below, you might round off the numbers; for example, round off 5.8 gallons per day to 6 gallons a day.)

The Lesson
Begin the lesson by asking students to identify the ways in which they use water at home. Make a list of ideas that students share. The ideas students share might include using water to drink, for cooking, for taking showers, for filling an aquarium, for watering gardens

Ask students to study the chart and to identify the most common uses. You might have students work with a partner or in small groups to identify the ten most common uses on the chart. When the groups have completed that task, determine which uses most groups had on their lists.

Provide students with a list of the most common uses of water and the typical number of gallons used for each use. You might write the list on a board or chart

Washing face or hands: 1 gallon
Taking a shower (standard shower head): 50 gallons
Taking a shower (low-flow shower head): 25 gallons
Taking a bath: 40 gallons gallons
Brushing teeth (water running): 2 gallons
Brushing teeth (water turned off): gallon
Flushing the toilet (standard-flow toilet): 5 gallons
Flushing the toilet (low-flow toilet): 1-1/2 gallons
Getting a drink: gallon
Washing dishes by hand: 10 gallons
Running a dishwasher: 15 gallons
Doing a load of laundry: 30 gallons
Watering lawn: 300 gallons
Washing car: 50 gallons

or you could provide a copy of the handout Down the Drain: Personal Water Use Chart. Students in grades 3-up should be able to use the information above or on the handout to calculate/estimate their personal water use and their family's water use.

If you have access to a computer(s) in the classroom, you might have students use the Water Consumption Calculator (alternate calculator) to get a rough idea of the number of gallons of water they use each week, month, and year.

Provide each student with one of the index cards you created. Each student will represent the country named on the card he or she holds. Display a world map and have each student locate the country.

If you are using a wall map, have students write the number of gallons of water each person uses each day on a "sticky note." The student can stick the sticky note on the map.

If you are using a world map transparency on an overhead projector, give each student the opportunity to use a transparency marker to write on that country on the map the number of gallons of water used each day.

Look at the world map. Talk about the disparity in water use from country to country.

In which countries do people use the most water?

In which countries do people use the least water?

On which continent, or in which areas, do people seem to use less water (suffer from a shortage of clean water)?

Independent Activity
Provide each student with a copy of the Water Use Around the World work sheet. Students will study the graph and answer the questions on the work sheet.

ANSWERS
See answers to this work sheet in the assessment section below.

Follow-Up Activities

Discuss the difficulties people face in countries where water use is less than where you live.

Have students create a graph showing the water use per year in a handful of countries. Students might gather in groups and use their index card information as their graph data source. You might provide a bar graph template or, if students have computer access, they might use the free online Create a Graph tool to create their graphs. One bar on each student's graph might represent his/her own personal water-use estimate.

Use jellybeans or cottonballs in this activity that simulates global water use: It's a Small World

Assessment

Answers to student work sheet:
1. United States; 2. Malta; 3. 112,000 gallons; 4. less; 5. 215,000 gallons; 6. Belgium, 99 gallons.

Lesson Plan Source

EducationWorld.com

Submitted By

Gary Hopkins

National Standards

MATHEMATICS: Number and Operations
GRADES 3 - 5
NM-NUM.3-5.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.3-5.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates
GRADES 6 - 8
NM-NUM.6-8.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.6-8.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates
GRADES 9 - 12
NM-NUM.9-12.1 Understand Numbers, Ways of Representing Numbers, Relationships Among Numbers, and Number Systems
NM-NUM.9-12.3 Compute Fluently and Make Reasonable Estimates

MATHEMATICS: Measurement
GRADES 3 - 5
NM-MEA.3-5.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements
GRADES 6 - 8
NM-MEA.6-8.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements
GRADES 9 - 12
NM-MEA.9-12.2 Apply Appropriate Techniques, Tools, and Formulas to Determine Measurements

MATHEMATICS: Data Analysis and Probability
GRADES 3 - 5
NM-DATA.3-5.3 Develop and Evaluate Inferences and Predictions That Are Based on Data
GRADES 6 - 8
NM-DATA.6-8.3 Develop and Evaluate Inferences and Predictions That Are Based on Data
GRADES 9 - 12
NM-DATA.9-12.3 Develop and Evaluate Inferences and Predictions That Are Based on Data

MATHEMATICS: Connections
GRADES Pre-K - 12
NM-CONN.PK-12.3 Recognize and Apply Mathematics in Contexts Outside of Mathematics

MATHEMATICS: Representation
GRADES Pre-K - 12
NM-REP.PK-12.1 Create and Use Representations to Organize, Record, and Communicate Mathematical Ideas
NM-REP.PK-12.3 Use Representations to Model and Interpret Physical, Social, and Mathematical Phenomena

PHYSICAL EDUCATION AND HEALTH: Health
GRADES K - 4
NPH-H.K-4.4 Health Influences
GRADES 5 - 8
NPH-H.5-8.4 Health Influences
GRADES 9 - 12
NPH-H.9-12.4 Health Influences

SCIENCE
GRADES K - 4
NS.K-4.4 Earth and Space Science
NS.K-4.6 Science in Personal and Social Perspectives
GRADES 5 - 8
NS.5-8.4 Earth and Space Science
NS.5-8.6 Science in Personal and Social Perspectives
GRADES 9 - 12
NS.9-12.4 Earth and Space Science
NS.9-12.6 Science in Personal and Social Perspectives

SOCIAL SCIENCES: Geography
GRADES K - 12
NSS-G.K-12.1 The World in Spatial Terms
NSS-G.K-12.2 Places and Regions
NSS-G.K-12.5 Environment and Society

TECHNOLOGY
GRADES K - 12
NT.K-12.1 Basic Operations and Concepts
NT.K-12.3 Technology Productivity Tools

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