Water, the Never Ending Story

Water, The Never-Ending Story was created by the KMAC Kids 2002. KMAC stands for: Kids Making A Connection, Health & the Environment; KMAC activities were originally supported by an NIEHS grant in K-12 environmental health science education, "Toxrap" Network. You can learn more about NIEHS educational grant programs at the NIEHS K-12 Teacher Enhancement and Development, Environmental Health Sciences K-12 Education Grants materials, and the NIEHS K-12 Initiatives websites.

Did you know that dinosaurs might have drunk the same water we drink today? Living on the earth is like living in a terrarium. All the water on the earth has always been here. The water that we have never goes away and new water is never created. You might say the water we use is recycled!

Water changes form as it moves through the water cycle. Scientists have learned that the water cycle (they call it the Hydrological Cycle) helps to purify the water. When the soil and air are polluted it is harder for the water to get clean.

Sometimes water takes on a liquid form. That's called precipitation. Rainwater falls to the earth and flows down to the rivers and streams. Sometimes when the air is very cold the rainwater becomes a solid and turns into ice and snow. Water accumulates in lakes and oceans and even in underground aquifers. As the sun shines on the water and warms it, a tiny invisible gas is formed. This part of the cycle is called evaporation.

As the water molecules rise, they form around small particles of dust and dirt creating clouds. As the clouds rise more and more, water is collected. When the water molecules get too heavy they rain back down to earth, starting the cycle all over again.

The human body is more than 70% water. Next to oxygen, water is the most important element (part) of our life. We drink water. We bathe and shower in water. We use water for cooking. Each person uses about 70 gallons of water each day. (That is a lot of water!)

Did you know it takes 36 gallons of water to fill a bathtub? Out of all the water on the earth only 1% is fresh water that can be used for drinking.

We can all help conserve water by doing things like filling the dishwasher before using it, shutting off the water when we brush our teeth, turning off the faucet when you wash the car and filling the tub less full.

Water can get contaminated with many different things. Sometimes it happens when people are careless with the chemicals they use in their homes and businesses. Every year thousands of people get sick from contaminated water. Everyone must work together to have and keep clean water. Our lives depend on it!

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