Sunday, August 18, 2013

A Drop Around the World- A Science Mentor Text for Teaching the Water Cycle



Happy Sunday to everyone!

This week I am going to share a Science text that is awesome to use in Language Arts as well. This is a book that truly can be used across the curriculum- and because time is always precious, this is exactly what I need! :)

A Drop Around the Word by Barbara Shaw McKinney is a phenomenal book! 

From Amazon.com: "This book is a year-after-year favorite with teachers. It engagingly leads readers around the world following a drop of water--whether as steam or snow, inside a plant or animal, or underground--teaching the wonders and importance of the water cycle."
When I first saw this book, I knew I had to have it. I love teaching the water cycle, and I have some other great books about the water cycle, but none that it explain it as a journey that one single drop takes. That is one of the things that makes this book a must-read! The students learn about the water cycle by going on adventure with a little drop of water around the world. It really makes the "cycle" part of the water cycle come to life. They understand what a cycle is and how water changes. This book also does an awesome job showing the states of matter and how water changes based on temperature.


The illustrations are absolutely stunning as well!!!

I love using this book in Language Arts too because of the rich vocabulary and vivid language the author uses. While reading the book, I give the students a vocabulary chart. When we come to a new word, we discuss it together and try to use context clues to figure out the meaning. Then, we record it on our chart. Finally, we draw a picture to help us remember the word. Click below to download the Vocabulary Chart Freebie.  :)


The figurative language in this book is also awesome! Check out the examples below.





This book is written as a poem with a couple of stanzas in each poem. A couple of weeks ago, I talked about close reading (click HERE to see that post). This is a GREAT book for close reading. Give students one page of text and then really analyze it together. Look at the content and the vocabulary but also the author's craft. It definitely lends itself to thinking deeply. 

I hope that this book can be useful for you and your students!
Have a great weekend, Stacia  :)

I can't wait to see what texts y'all link up!

Please Link Up!

Next week's linky- Social Studies

13 comments:

  1. I have never heard of that book, but it looks great. Those illustrations are beautiful as well! I especially like that it is a poem! Thanks for sharing!

    Amy
    Eclectic Educating

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  2. See, one more reason I miss being down the hall from you- I always borrowed this book from you, but now I can't! Wah!!! I need to buy it though, because it was a great one!!
    Jivey
    ideas by jivey
    Follow me on Facebook!

    ReplyDelete
  3. I am excited to grab this book on Amazon. I am moving to third grade this year and I will be teaching the Water Cycle. Thanks for the great freebie and the suggestion. This looks like a neat way to integrate literature and science!

    ❁ Kate
    Purely Paperless

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  4. Great idea. We are getting close to finishing up our unit on Native Americans and will turn to weather soon. This is the perfect book. Now if only I convince Jivey to buy it so I can borrow.

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  5. This book looks so great. Looks like I'm adding another one to my Amazon cart...I knew today was going to be expensive!

    Hunter's Teaching Tales
    Find me on Facebook

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  6. What a great book! I love all the figurative language, vocabulary, and, of course, the illustrations.

    Thank you for another great recommendation!

    Mary

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  7. I linked up a favourite of mine, which I was inspired to write about because of your choice. I posted about an author named Rochelle Strauss. She has written a book on a similar theme to yours called "One Well: The Story of Water on Earth". I wrote about one of her other books, "The Tree of Life: The Incredible Biodiversity of Life on Earth". Her non-fiction texts are truly amazing and so engaging for children of a variety of ages. Thanks for giving me something to write about other than the ubiquitous sales!
    Sidney
    Teachingisagift

    ReplyDelete
  8. Hey it's Jamie at Teaching Tidbits and More with Jamie. You said if I left a message, you would check to see if I corrected my "no reply" blogger issue. I really appreciate you helping me out with this. Let me know what you find out. Thanks for your help!

    Jamie

    ReplyDelete
  9. I love that you keep tying your science and social studies books into language lessons as well since I am not sure of what my schedule is going to look like and I may have to do some creative cross-curricular teaching this year. Thanks for another great suggestion and freebie!

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  10. This is great! With my focus on ELA, I will be looking for books that fit in with my teammates topics in SS and science:) Thanks for hosting the linky each week!
    ~Holly
    Fourth Grade Flipper

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  11. I'll have to remember that one! It sounds fantastic!

    Jenny
    Suntans and Lesson Plans

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  12. This book will be perfect for our "cycles" unit AND for Reading Workshop! I love getting my money's worth out of a book- when you can use it to teach several concepts & skills! And I can get it on my Kindle! Awesome share :)
    Thanks,
    Karli
    Creating a Thoughtful Classroom

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