Kindergarten Lesson plan
The Water Tower Above Yarrowgate: Draw and Label Lesson
A 30-minute kindergarten lesson in which students hear how water reaches Yarrowgate School, then draw and label a tank, a pipe, and a tap on one page.
NGSS · Grades K–2
K-2-ETS1-2 Sketch or model how an object's shape helps it solve a problem
Develop a simple sketch, drawing, or physical model to illustrate how the shape of an object helps it function as needed to solve a given problem.
Why water teaches this standard well
Water infrastructure is full of shapes that do jobs: funnels catch rain, gutters carry it away, a water tower's tank sits high so water can flow down. Students can sketch a rain shelter, a gutter, or their own town's water tower and explain how the shape makes it work.
Materials tagged with this code are written to the full standard , and each carries a written note explaining the alignment. See how we review materials.
31 materials aligned to K-2-ETS1-2
Lesson plans
Grade 1 Lesson plan
Closing One Valve on the Cloverdike School Line
A 45-minute grade 1 lesson where students run a two-branch bottle model with clothespin valves, then solve within-20 problems about who loses water during a repair.
Grade 2 Lesson plan
Building the Duncove Valley: A Grade 2 Water Model
Grade 2 students build a clay and paper model of a valley town, showing the hill, creek, and lake that supply its taps, then explain why the supply pipe runs downhill.
Kindergarten Lesson plan
Gooseberry Bend's Water Tower: A Kindergarten Height Lesson
A 40-minute kindergarten lesson where students build a tall block water tower and a short one, test which sends water farther down a tube, and count the blocks in each.
Grade 1 Lesson plan
Painting the Winterberry Water Tower: A Grade 1 Design Lesson
A 45-minute grade 1 art lesson where students draw the tall shape of a town water tower and design a picture for the tank, then defend their choice.
Grade 2 Lesson plan
Painting Tumbleford's Water Tank: Shape and Height by Ruler
A 50-minute grade 2 art lesson where students draw the town water tank, measure their drawing with a ruler, and explain how its tall shape moves water downhill.
Grade 1 Lesson plan
Silverbell Garden's Runaway Hose: A Grade 1 Spray Head Design
A grade 1 engineering lesson in which students find why an open hose end washes soil off the school garden bed and design a punched cap that spreads water gently.
Grade 1 Lesson plan
Zinnia Court's Tall Tank Test: A Grade 1 Water Tower Lesson
A grade 1 lesson where students build block-and-cup water towers for a make-believe town, test whether height sends water farther, and practice subtraction within 20.
Grade 2 Lesson plan
Barnhill's Model Water Tower: Measuring Height in Inches
A 50-minute grade 2 lesson in which students raise a model water tower, measure how far the water reaches, and solve height problems in inches within 100.
Grade 2 Lesson plan
Sparrowfield's Fish Tank Water Line: A Cover Design Lesson
A two-session grade 2 lesson in which students design jar covers that slow evaporation, test three setups, and argue which cover the class fish tank needs.
Kindergarten Lesson plan
A Splash Guard for the Bayberry School Water Fountain
A 35-minute kindergarten design lesson in which students name a splashing hallway fountain problem, then fold and test a paper guard that keeps the floor dry.
Kindergarten Lesson plan
Water for Foxglove School: A Kindergarten Path-Tracing Lesson
A 25-minute kindergarten lesson where students trace water's path from a tall town tank to the Foxglove School fountain and draw a labeled picture naming one fact.
Grade 1 Lesson plan
Testing Two Rain Catchers at Marigold Lane: A Grade 1 Lesson
A 40-minute grade 1 engineering lesson where students test a funnel-shaped and a flat rain catcher, then compare how much water each one collects.
Worksheets
Grade 2 Worksheet
Oakhatch School Rain Garden: A Side View and a Top View
Grade 2 students draw a made-up school's rain garden two ways: a side view showing the bowl shape that holds rain, and a top view with a key for two kinds of plants.
Grade 1 Worksheet
A Fountain Spout for Quince Hollow: A Grade 1 Height Worksheet
A grade 1 worksheet where students order three drinking fountain spouts by the height of their water arc in cubes and pick the spout that fits a first grader.
Kindergarten Worksheet
A Mud Fence for the Fiddlehead Creek Building Site
A read-aloud kindergarten worksheet where students sort five fence materials into ones that stop mud and ones that let it pass, then draw a fence beside a creek.
Kindergarten Worksheet
Choosing a Stand for the Pennywort Garden Rain Barrel
A read-aloud kindergarten worksheet where students compare three barrel stands by height and width, then draw a stand that is tall enough and wide enough to hold up.
Grade 2 Worksheet
Hazel Bend's Water Tower: A Shape-and-Height Worksheet
A grade 2 worksheet where students explain why Hazel Bend's water tower is built tall and use addition and subtraction within 100 to compare tank heights.
Kindergarten Worksheet
From Clearwater Hill to Our Tap: A Kindergarten Water Path Worksheet
A kindergarten science worksheet where students trace and count the steps of a fictional reservoir's water path to the tap, from Clearwater Hill to a kitchen sink.
Grade 1 Worksheet
Birchwood's Puddle Problem: A Grade 1 Rain Spout Design Worksheet
A grade 1 worksheet where students compare test data from two rain spout shapes and use addition and subtraction within 20 to decide which one solves a puddle problem.
Classroom activities
Grade 1 Classroom activity
Two Cups and a Tube at Jessamine Court: A Grade 1 Activity
Pairs pour colored water into a U-shaped tube, raise one end, and build a model showing why the town keeps its water tank up high above the school.
Grade 2 Classroom activity
Rain Garden Crew at Moss Hollow: A Grade 2 Job Role-Play
Grade 2 students take on five green infrastructure crew roles and act out building a bowl-shaped rain garden that holds runoff from a parking lot.
Grade 1 Classroom activity
Snapdragon Row's Leaf-Proof Drain Grate: A Grade 1 Design Shop
A grade 1 build-and-test rotation where teams cut a cardboard storm drain grate that lets rain through while holding back the leaves that clog the schoolyard drain.
Grade 1 Classroom activity
Yarrow Bend's Foot Pedal Tap: A Grade 1 Lever Design Shop
A grade 1 design shop where teams build a cardboard foot lever that lifts a paper tap handle and springs back, so the water stops while hands are soapy.
Grade 2 Classroom activity
Wheelhouse Street's Straw Pipeline Build Challenge
A 40-minute grade 2 team challenge in which groups estimate, join, and measure straw pipelines to carry water 30 inches from a model tank to a house cup.
Kindergarten Classroom activity
The Mossy Marsh Sponge Wall: Two Ways to Slow the Water
A 30-minute kindergarten tray activity where small groups test a sponge row against a block row to see which one slows the water running toward a paper town.
Kindergarten Classroom activity
Building a Stand for the Oakhollow Water Tower Cup
A 35-minute kindergarten build activity where groups count out 12 blocks, raise a cup of water on a stand, and watch a straw carry water down to a paper house.
Grade 2 Classroom activity
Rainy Day at the Model House: A Grade 2 Rain Diverter Design Activity
Grade 2 teams define why water pools at a model house's door, then design, build, and test two foil or index-card diverters to route rain to a rain garden cup.
Kindergarten Classroom activity
Duckville Pond Filter Test: Comparing Two Simple Water Filters
A kindergarten engineering activity where small groups build and test two simple water filters, then compare which one leaves cleaner water for toy pond ducks.
Reading passages
Kindergarten Reading passage
The Night the Lights Went Out in Hollypark: A Water Tank Story
A kindergarten read-aloud about a fictional town whose crew fills the hilltop tank before a storm, so taps still run after the wind knocks the power out.
Kindergarten Reading passage
One Drop's Journey to the Kindergarten Sink
An original kindergarten read-aloud story that follows a single water drop from a fictional reservoir through a treatment plant and tower to a school sink.