Name: ______________________________________

1st Grade Science Lesson Plan

Date: 3/20/13
Grade Level/Content Area/Time Period (allotted time): First
Grade/Science/90 minutes
Lesson Title: Water, Water, Everywhere
Unit/Theme: Types of Natural Water Sources
Standards:
Science Standards
Standard 2
Earth and Space Science. Students will gain an understanding of Earth and Space
Science through the study of earth materials, celestial movement, and weather.
Objective 1
Investigate the natural world including rock, soil and water.
b. Identify and describe a variety of natural sources of water, including streams,
lakes, and oceans.
English Language Arts Standards
CCSS.ELA-LITERACY.W.1.8
With guidance and support from adults, recall information from experiences or
gather information from provided sources to answer a question.
Content Objective(s)
Students will be able to distinguish between different natural sources of water, such
as streams, lakes and oceans.

Language Objective(s): to include the 3 parts (verb, content area topic, supports)
Compare and contrast the characteristics of different water sources using a Venn
diagram and explain each orally and in writing. Identify different natural water
sources on a map, which will give visual examples of the water sources. The
students will also begin to justify the importance of natural water sources for an
area.
ELD Language Standard 4: The Language of Science
Key Vocabulary
River
Stream
Lake
Ocean
Sources
Climate

Required Materials/Resources/Technology
Printable Map with Water Sources
16 Pictures (8 different, pairs of two) of water sources for
matching game
Science journal for the students to record their answers and
take notes
Venn Diagram Interactive Website

Name: ______________________________________
Habitat

Computers that the students can use, consider a computer

lab for part of the lesson or take turns on a shared computer

Introduction:
The purpose of the lesson is to learn about different sources of water around the
world. It is important to know this because we use water for many things. The
different sources of water also tells us about the climate of the area and the
resources that they have. What are some water sources that you already know?
We are going to learn about some today and do a few activities that will help us
understand different types of water sources.
Procedures/Timeline:
Procedures (Progression of Instruction)
Lesson Sequence:
a) Cultural Energizer (How will you introduce the
content)
Students will play a matching game with pictures of
common water sources.
Divide the class into pairs
Give each pair a set of pictures to play
matching game
The students will take turns flipping over
two cards at a time trying to match two
of the same cards
Continue playing until all of the cards are
matched
Look at the pictures on the cards and
notice characteristics of each water
source.
The students will write in their journal
the answer to the following question:
Why is it important to have natural water
sources?
b) Community Collaboration/Instruction (activity,
demonstrations, lecture, etc.)

As a class, discuss differences between a

river, lake and ocean as seen in the matching
game pictures.

Discuss what the students think are

different and whether they are correct and
make a class list of differences.

Have each student put the

characteristics of each into a Venn diagram
using the online resource.

The student will discuss with a partner

what is similar between a stream, lake and

Time
10 min
(game)
5 min
(journal
)

15 min
(class
discussi
on)
30 min
(Venn
diagra
m and
partner
discussi
on)

20 min
(map)
10 min

Adaptations
for EL
Students
Have the EL
students look
closely at the
picture and
relate it to
English or words
of their native
language that
they know.
(Levels 1-3)

Have EL
students share
their
characteristics,
even if they are
in the native
language. Also
have them draw
pictures if they
cant describe
the items in
words. (Level 1)

Name: ______________________________________
Procedures (Progression of Instruction)

Time

ocean and what the differences are after they

have made their Venn diagram.
c) Connection and Conclusive Dialogue (coming full
circle, dialogue questions, working through topics,
closing)

Give each student a map of the United

States and ask them to identify which are
rivers, lakes and oceans.

The students will make a list of the

names of two rivers, two lakes and two oceans
on the map.

Have the students answer the following

questions in their journal:
Is there a natural source of water in your
community? Have you ever visited a
river, lake or ocean? What was it like?
Think about how a community could use
a water source for resources and write
down some of your thoughts.

(journal
)

Adaptations
for EL
Students
EL students may
need help with
the writing
portion of this
part of the
lesson. Having
them work on
these answers
using a word
bank or drawing
pictures may
give the support
that they need
to complete the
activity. (Levels
3-4)

Plans for integrating diversity/social justice/multicultural themes and/or

objectives:
Have the students look at maps of different countries other than America. Then the
students will consider how the different water sources affect the climate and habitat
of the different countries. Have them write about the ways that water can be used
in different areas, and how it changes the lifestyle of the area (i.e., the coast vs. the
desert).
Plans for involving students families and communities:
Discuss if the students have ever visited a natural water source with their friends or
family. Talk about the nearest natural water source to their community and how it
affects their area. Interview family members or community members to see what
they think the benefits of water sources are.

Assessment Plans (How will you check that students have mastered the
lessons objectives?):
Checking the answers the student provided in their journal and for the Venn
diagram to make sure they have the right idea is a good formative assessment of
the students understanding. Also if the teacher is unsure of the amount of

Name: ______________________________________
comprehension of the topic, he or she can give a quiz or have the students list out
characteristics of a river, lake or ocean without any help or notes. The teacher can
also see if they can identify which natural water source is pictured in the memory
game after the lesson is finished.

Reflection (Teacher Notes & How will this lesson work to enhance the
learning of the students?):
If there is not accessibility to a computer for the students, you can print out a Venn
diagram for them to fill out on paper and keep in their science journal. Consider
whether these activities are helpful to the students and whether they are helpful in
comprehension or if they need additional supports. This lesson is helpful for
students because it incorporates their own community and what others use water
sources for. The lesson expands past the classroom and is applicable to real life.
This topic is important for students to understand, and the various supports used in
this lesson plan should help them comprehend the topic very well.
Resources
Printable Map
http://nationalatlas.com/printable/reference.html#list
Venn Diagram Maker
http://interactives.mped.org/view_interactive.aspx?id=28&title=
Week 11 "Questions to Ponder"
1. How can I use additional historical perspectives such as those described in Takaki,
to help create themes on which to build social justice/culturally relevant pedagogy
throughout the content areas?
One thing that I thought about for to incorporate historical perspectives into
the curriculum is to consider the how things were taught in the past or how
they are thought of in different countries. This can be compared and
students can think about why we learn things the way that we do, and why
others learn it differently. One example of this would be to consider the
perspectives of other countries in a war. We often teach students about the
American perspective of history, but it is important to incorporate what was
going on in a different part of the world at the same time. I also think that
social justice and culturally relevant pedagogy can be incorporated in almost
all parts of the curriculum. Having students look at things from a different
perspective or asking other members of the community about their opinion
can really expand a students view and diversity experience.
2. What kinds of bias do I need to identify and counter in curriculum and materials?
Like I discussed in the question above, we often teach things from our
countrys perspective only. I think that this is a bias that needs to be
identified and removed from the classroom. Another bias that often presents
itself is thinking that everyone can and should speak English. Everything is
taught in English and if an ELL student is struggling, they are often

Name: ______________________________________
disregarded as falling behind. I think that teachers should take into
consideration that everyone, especially in todays day and age, doesnt speak
English as a first language. It is also important to incorporate different
cultures and history into the classroom, as every student may not have the
same background.