Land, air and water

Age
3-6

Materials
3 see-through clear cylinders:


 * one with lid and bottom painted brown for land
 * one with lid and bottom painted blue for water.
 * one is for air.

A brown container. A spoon for soil. A sponge. A tray. Sets of pictures of scenes that highlight some aspects of:


 * The air (clouds) mounted on white card.
 * Water (sea, lakes, waterfalls, rivers, etc) mounted on blue card.
 * Land (mountains, fields, desert, etc) mounted on brown card.

Presentation

 * 1) Directress asks a child to get some soil from the garden and put it in the pot. She also asks the child to fill up a jug with some water from the tap.
 * 2) Then, the Directress asks the child to pour the soil into the brown container. Explain the land in the world is made of soil and rock. Discuss a bit about the land.
 * 3) Next, pour the water into the blue container. As the child looks, talk about water, about all the places where we find water, and how living things need water to survive.
 * 4) Finally, look at the air container. Blow some air into the container and close the lid. Explain that air is invisible and normally we don't feel it. But, if you move your hand quickly, you can feel the air pressing against it. You can feel the air move when the wind blows. We need air to breathe.

Purpose

 * Provide a concrete experience of the fact that the Earth is made of land (soil) water and air.
 * Provide the opportunity to learn through activity.