“Water is Life”

Students will estimate the proportion of potable water on Earth and compare it to the rest of the water on the planet. Students work in small groups. Instruct them to draw a large circle with a marker on white sheet of paper. Offer them two sheets of different-colored construction paper. One color represents available fresh water; the other represents the rest of the water on the planet. Next, inform students that they will be tearing the two sheets of paper into a total of 100 small pieces. Students will estimate how many pieces will represent potable water and how many pieces will indicate the rest of the water on the planet. Instruct each group to tear up their paper and arrange the 100 pieces within the circle so that these pieces reflect their estimates. Have groups record the number of pieces representing “potable” water and “remaining” water.