2nd grade · Science · Unit 3 of 7
Water World
The water cycle
What your child practices
The water cycle, where our water comes from, and simple ways to save water and keep rivers clean.
Arizona Academic Standards learning standard: 2.E1U1.5 · water as a solid, liquid or gas, and where it is found on Earth
How we explain it
Children can open this short lesson before they practice.
- The sun warms water, and it rises into the air.
- The water forms clouds of tiny drops, then falls as rain or snow.
- The water flows back to lakes and oceans, and the cycle starts again.
Example: What comes right after clouds form in the water cycle? Clouds hold tiny drops of water. When the drops get heavy, they fall. Answer: rain or snow falls
Water World in Arizona
In the Arizona Academic Standards, this is unit 3 of 7 in 2nd grade Science, after Solids & Liquids and before Mixtures & Materials.
Gradelings describes a child's practice on this unit as Beginning, Approaching, Meeting or Exceeding (Four practice steps). That reflects practice, not a report-card mark: the teacher decides the mark.
Source: Arizona Department of Education
Sample questions
A taste of this unit. In the app, questions change every time and get easier or harder to match your child.
Question 1
Put the water cycle in order. Start with the sun warming the water.
- 🌧️Rain or snow falls
- 🌊Water collects in rivers and oceans
- ☁️Clouds form
- ☀️Sun warms water and it rises
Sun warms water and it rises → Clouds form → Rain or snow falls → Water collects in rivers and oceans
Hint: Warm water rises into the sky, makes clouds, falls as rain, and collects in rivers and oceans.
Question 2
Which animal lives in water all its life?
- 🐦a robin
- 🐿️a squirrel
- 🐟a fish
🐟 a fish
Hint: Fish breathe underwater using their gills.
Question 3
What do people use water for every day?
- 🚫nothing at all
- 🎨only for painting
- 🚿drinking, cooking and washing
🚿 drinking, cooking and washing
Hint: We use water for lots of things at home and at school.
Question 4
Where does most of Earth's water live?
🌍- 💧in puddles
- 🌊in the oceans
- 🛁in bathtubs
🌊 in the oceans
Hint: Oceans are huge! They hold almost all the water on Earth.
Question 5
Does it save water or waste water?
Sort into: 👍 saves water · 👎 wastes water
- 💦leave the hose running
- 🚰let the tap drip
- 🚿take a short shower
- 🛁take a really full bath
- 🪥turn off the tap while brushing
- 🪣collect rain for plants
👍 saves water: take a short shower, turn off the tap while brushing, collect rain for plants · 👎 wastes water: leave the hose running, let the tap drip, take a really full bath
Hint: Using only the water you need saves it. Leaving water running wastes it.
Question 6
A very big, deep body of salt water is an…
- 💧puddle
- 🦆pond
- 🌊ocean
🌊 ocean
Hint: Oceans cover most of our planet.