Teacher Lesson Information
Summary: The class will observe how water moves through various sediment materials and explore how aquifers form. In the first activity, the class will observe how quickly water can move through individual sediment materials (sand, gravel, and clay). In the second activity, the sediment materials will be layered in a bottle. The students will predict where an aquifer will form and then see if their predictions are correct. In the final activity, each student will make their own aquifer model using candies and icing. The students will draw their aquifers before eating their creations.
Materials:
Percolation Demonstration : 3 clear plastic cups, 3⁄4 cup, sand, gravel , and clay, 1 cup water
Aquifer in a Bottle : 2-liter plastic bottle, soil, sand, gravel, clay, water, blue food coloring, pump from a lotion or soap bottle, small piece of cloth
The Edible Earth : clear plastic cup for each student in the class, angel food cake, fruit leather, M & M's. blue icing, chocolate icing, green icing
Grade Level: K - 8
Activities:
Infiltration Demonstration (Grades K-8)
Poke a small hole in the bottom of three clear plastic cups. Place each cup inside a larger container. Fill the first cup 3⁄4 full with sand, the second cup 3⁄4 full with gravel, and the third cup 3⁄4 full with clay. Press the clay to the edges of the cup. Ask the class to predict what will happen if you pour 1⁄4 cup of water into each of the plastic cups. After the class has made their predictions, pour the water into the glasses and observe how quickly the water moves (infiltrates) through the sediment materials in each glass. Measure how much water runs out of the hole in the bottom of each cup in two minutes. Explain to the class that water flows easily through permeable materials (sand and gravel) but can not easily flow through impermeable materials (clay).
Instead of a teacher-led demonstration, this activity can also be performed by the students, either individually or in small groups.
Aquifer in a Bottle (Grades K – 8)
Cut the top off of a 2-liter plastic bottle. Layer a variety of sediment materials such as soil, sand, gravel, and clay into the bottle. Include a clay layer extending completely across the bottle as one of your lower layers and a second clay layer which only extends partway across the bottle as one of your higher layers. Fill a spray bottle with water (adding a few drops of blue food coloring will make the water more visible). Tell the class that you are going to spray water onto the surface and ask the class to predict where the water will flow. Explain to the class that the area where the water is collecting is called an aquifer and that aquifers are a source of our drinking water. Add a well, by inserting the pump from a soap or lotion bottle into the aquifer region. Place a piece of cloth over the open end of the pump before insertion it to prevent it from clogging.
Ask the class to think about what would happen if the well was pumped faster than water was sprayed on the surface. Explain that this model actually occurs when individuals and communities use water at a faster rate than the water is replenished.
Instead of a teacher-led demonstration, this activity can also be performed by the students, either individually or in small groups.
The Edible Earth (Grades K – 8)
Tell the class that they will use what they have learned about aquifers and sediments to make an earth dessert. Give each student a clear plastic glass and explain that they will layer sweets into their glasses which represent aquifers and sedimentary layers. The available layers can include the following:
Angel Food Cake – limestone
Fruit Leather – clay
M & M's – gravel
Blue Icing – Water
Chocolate Icing – Soil
Green Icing – Grass
Have each student draw a picture of their aquifer and label the layers before eating it.