Pokemon Academy: Water Type
Water is everywhere and takes many different forms. It is essential to life and is home to millions of creatures on earth. It was hard to distill a topic on water to just a few subjects, so this is how we chose to approach it. There are still many more topics that you could cover.
Phases of water
Water Cycle
Salt water vs Fresh Water
Light and Water
Marine Biologists
Scientist book list
Secrets of the Sea - The Story of Jeanne Power, Revolutionary Marine Scientist, by Evan Griffith and Joanie Stone
Shark Lady - The True Story of How Eugenia Clark Became the Ocean’s Most Fearless Scientist, Written by Jess Keating, Illustrated by Marta Alvarez Miguens
The Brilliant Deep - Rebuilding the World’s Coral Reefs - Kate Messner and Matthew Forsythe
The Vast Wonder of the World - Biologist Ernest Everett Just, Written by Melina Mangal, Illustrated by Luisa Uribe
Life in the Ocean - The Story of Sylvia Earle, by Claire A. Nikola
Man Fish - A Story of Jacques Cousteau, by Jennifer Berne, Illustrated by Eric Puybaret
The Fantastic Undersea Life of Jacques Cousteau, by Dan Yaccarino
“Reading a Shell’s Story”
Culture
Japanese Wave Print
https://www.thistlesandbiscuits.com/product-page/japan-study-unit
Japanese Koinobori Windsock craft
https://www.littleworldwanderers.com/units/little-world-wanderers-japan
Science
Salt Water vs Fresh Water Osmosis Experiment
Water beads in salt and fresh water absorbed at different capacities
Geyser - Coke Mentos Geyser
In a real Geyser, super heated water expands rapidly to be forced out of the geyser cone.
In the Experiment, a physical reaction between the gas bubbles trapped in the soda and the (microscopically) rough surface of the mentos candies, allow the rapid expansion of carbondioxide gases in the bottle. This increased pressure forces the soda out of the opening, creating a geyser.
Materials:
One tube of Mentos (about 14 candies)
Two pieces of paper
Tape
A bottle of Coke (Diet coke works best)
Safety goggles
How to do the experiment: https://youtu.be/ZwyMcV9emmc
Why it works: https://youtu.be/3ZjYZ2iEqjc
Light refraction in Water
Materials
Zip top bag
An image printed or drawn on paper that you will make disappear
Scissors
A permanent marker
Container of water, deep enough that your image can be submerged vertically.
Print or create an image that you will make disappear
Trim it with scissors so that it will fit into your bag
Place the image inside the zip top bag and seal the top.
Trace the image with the permanent marker on the out side of the bag
Submerge vertically into a container of water so that the image is completely covered by water. Observe from the surface of the water. The contents of the bag will disappear as the light reflects off of the bag but does not transmit the light from the bag.
Book List
Hey, Water!, By Antoinette Portis - A beautifully, simple survey of water bodies, forms, sounds, and there’s even a summary of the water cycle at the back.
Water is Water, by Miranda Paul, illustrated by Jason Chin. - This book follows two kids through a year in their life exploring the many forms that water can take in our lives.
Books on Animals in Water
Dory Story, by Jerry Pallotta and David Biedrzycki - A fictional story of a boy observing the food chain as he dares to row out into the bay.
Bubble Homes and Fish Farts, By Fiona Bayrock, Illustrated by Carolyn Conahan - This book was so interesting and beautifully illustrated to learn how many different ways animals use bubbles to enrich their lives under the water.
Seashells - More Than a Home, By Melissa Stewart, Illustrated by Sarah S. Brannen - This seashell book was an artful list of similes describing how shells help a mollusk thrive.
Stories about Bodies of Water
The Ocean Book - Explore the hidden depths of our blue planet, Lonely Planet Kids - A Reference book that surveys many facets of the ocean. This fell right in the sweet spot for my girls of not too much detailed information and not too simplified.
Earth’s Incredible Oceans - Jess Frenchhttps and Claire McElfatrick (DK) - Another reference book that was beautiful to refer to when we wondered about the ocean.
The Magic School Bus - On the Ocean Floor, By Joanna Cole & Bruce Degen - Mrs Frizzle takes her class down to the deepest depths of the ocean and back, causally discussing the life they find at the many different levels and ecosystems.
How Deep is the Sea?, By Anna Milbourne and Serena Riglietti - A simple, fictional account of a penguin trying to get to the bottom of the sea. (Pairs well for littles with “Ocean Speaks” (Keating and Hickey) and “Solving the Puzzle Under the Sea” (Burleigh) about how Marie Tharp discovered the mid-ocean ridge of mountains surrounding a trench in the Atlantic Ocean).
What is a River?, By Monika Vaicenaviciene - A beautiful compilation of so many ways to think about a river. Bringing in folk tales and histories and perspectives.
Over and Under the Pond - By Kate Messner and art by Christopher Silas Neal - A walk through the ecosystem surrounding a pond.
Turtle Pond, by James Gladstone, Illustrated by Karen Reczuch - Poetic observations of the turtles that live in a botanical garden’s pond.
Welcome to the River of Grass, by Jane Yolen, Illustrated by Laura Regan - A poetic tour through the wildlife found in the swampy, grasslands of the Florida Everglades.
One Well - The Story of Water on Earth, By Rochelle Straus, Illustrated by Rosemary Woods - One Well walks through the sources of water on earth, how they are being treated, and the importance of taking care of whe fresh water that we have. This one was word heavy and not as enticing for my early elementary audience.