Water has many stories to tell. Some are beautiful and some are sad, but in the end the moral of all of the stories is the same. People need to respect water and to take better care of it.

World Water Day

The population of the planet increases rapidly every year. The more people there are, the more water is needed to support life. On top of human demand, climate change impacts the water cycle. Droughts and floods place stress on the water cycle. There's enough water for everyone on the planet, but people need to manage it better. Do a class research project on what water issues affect different parts of the globe. How do people get water in the very dry regions of Africa? What about water usage in very cold places like Antarctica? How much do people use? Do they use it for different things than you? How do they move it from the water source to their home?

Once you've learned about some of the water issues and water usage practices from around the world, join in the global celebration on World Water Day. The United Nations designated March 22 as World Water Day in 1993. Every year, thousands of people from all over the globe celebrate water for life on this very important day. There is an international poster contest as well as educational events and walks for water in communities across the planet. Coordinate something for your classroom or your community to celebrate water and commit to taking better care of it. Visit www.worldwaterday.org for more information.

H2knOw

What do you know about bodies of water? What are the different types of bodies of water? There are oceans, lakes, rivers, streams, wetlands, natural springs, gulfs, and more. Divide the students into small groups and have each group research one type of water body. They should create an educational H2 knOw poster to teach other students about that type of water body. It should include a definition, a few interesting facts, and some pictures. To address the global concerns, you can also have them pick a specific, actual place in the world that represents their body of water and search for water quality issues. For example, if they were assigned lakes, they could research Lake Chad in Africa. Likewise, you can assign each student a water body and have them make their posters as a homework assignment.