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Science lesson plan · 4th grade (Year 5 in England) · 45 minutes

What makes water evaporate faster?

States of matter

CCSS NGSS.5-PS1-1CCSS NGSS.SEP 3England: KS2 Y4 States of matter

Objective and success criteria

Students will: What makes water evaporate faster?.

  • I can answer questions on today's skill on my own, without help.
  • I can explain each step and say why it works.
  • I can check my answer and spot a mistake.

Before and after

Needs first: Melting, freezing, evaporating and condensing

Leads to: the next skill in this area.

Materials: Ice, water and a kettle (teacher demo), Particle diagrams, Mini whiteboards, A diagram or short video clip of the idea, Printed student sheet (below).

Warm-up · 5 min

  • Quick retrieval from earlier learning (Melting, freezing, evaporating and condensing). Students answer on mini whiteboards.
  • Show answers together and note who needs support in the main task.
  1. Which change of state is this: sweat drying on your skin? (melting / freezing / evaporating / condensing) → evaporatingPrompt: What state does it start in, and what state does it end in?
  2. What is the name for a change from liquid to solid? (melting / freezing / evaporating (or boiling) / condensing) → freezingPrompt: Heating makes solids melt and liquids evaporate.
  3. Changes of state: which statement is true? (Water evaporates faster on a warm, windy day. / Water only evaporates when it boils. / The water on the outside of a cold can leaks through the metal. / Melting makes a substance lose mass.) → Water evaporates faster on a warm, windy day.Prompt: Where does the water on a cold can come from?

Hook · 5 min

  • Show an ice cube melting and a kettle steaming and ask what is the same and what is different.
  • Share the objective: What makes water evaporate faster?. Read the success criteria together.

I do: model it · 10 min

  • Work through the example out loud, saying why you do each step, not just what you do.
  • Example: In a fair test of whether wind speeds up drying, what must stay the same?
  • Step 1: Keep everything else the same so only the wind can explain the difference.
  • Step 2: So the answer is: the amount of water, the cloth and the temperature
  • Answer: the amount of water, the cloth and the temperature
  • Pause after each step and ask a student to say what comes next.

We do: guided practice · 10 min

  • Do these together. Students try each step on whiteboards before you reveal it.
  • Use the hints as prompts rather than giving the answer.
  1. In a fair test of whether wind speeds up drying, what must stay the same? (the wind / only the colour of the pegs / nothing / the amount of water, the cloth and the temperature) → the amount of water, the cloth and the temperaturePrompt: Change only the wind.
  2. True or false? Puddles dry faster on cold, still days. (True / False) → FalsePrompt: Warmth, wind and surface area: what does each do?

You do: independent practice · 10 min

  • Students work on the student sheet. Circulate and check the first two answers of every student early.
  • Students who finish: write a question of their own for a partner, with the answer.

The 8 questions are on the student sheet below, with answers in the key.

Exit ticket · 5 min

  • Two questions on their own. Sort answers into got it / nearly / not yet to plan the next lesson.
  1. True or false? Puddles dry faster on cold, still days. (True / False) → FalsePrompt: Warmth, wind and surface area: what does each do?
  2. Why does washing dry slowly on a cold, damp, still day? (Clothes like being wet. / Cold makes water heavier. / Damp air is too light. / Cold, still, damp air slows evaporation.) → Cold, still, damp air slows evaporation.Prompt: Which three things speed drying?

Watch out for

  • Everyday meanings of words getting in the way of the science meaning: define key words explicitly.
  • Remembering facts without the reason: ask "why?" and "what is the evidence?"

Support and stretch

Support

  • Review first: Melting, freezing, evaporating and condensing.
  • Use concrete materials: ice, water and a kettle (teacher demo).
  • Give the first step of each question, or a partly worked example to finish.
  • Pair with a confident partner for the guided practice.

Stretch

  • Explain a common mistake in writing and how to fix it.
  • Write a word problem that uses today's skill, then solve a partner's.

Homework and more practice

Free online practice with hints and printable worksheets for this skill: eurekami.com/science/grade-4.

Free lesson plan from eurekami.com/lesson-plan-builder

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What makes water evaporate faster?

Name

Date

Score/ 8

  1. Question 1

    True or false? Evaporated water is destroyed.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  2. Question 2

    Four identical wet towels were hung in different places. Where did the water evaporate fastest?

    Hours for a wet towel to dry0246810121sunny and windy4sunny, no wind6shady, no wind12cold cupboard
    • A. sunny and windy
    • B. sunny, no wind
    • C. shady, no wind
    • D. cold cupboard

  3. Question 3

    Puddles in a wide, shallow tray dry faster than the same water in a tall, narrow glass. Why?

    • A. More water surface is touching the air.
    • B. The glass makes water.
    • C. The tray is heavier.
    • D. Water in glasses never evaporates.

  4. Question 4

    True or false? Puddles dry faster on cold, still days.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  5. Question 5

    Why does washing dry slowly on a cold, damp, still day?

    • A. Damp air is too light.
    • B. Cold, still, damp air slows evaporation.
    • C. Cold makes water heavier.
    • D. Clothes like being wet.

  6. Question 6

    True or false? Water evaporates faster when it is warmer.

    • A. True
    • B. False

  7. Question 7

    How many hours longer did the towel take to dry in the shade than in the sun (both with no wind)?

    Hours for a wet towel to dry0246810121sunny and windy4sunny, no wind7shady, no wind11cold cupboard

    Answer

  8. Question 8

    Salt farmers let seawater sit in wide, shallow ponds in the sun. Why?

    • A. Shallow water freezes into salt.
    • B. The sun makes more salt.
    • C. To keep fish in.
    • D. The water evaporates quickly, leaving the salt behind.

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Answer key: What makes water evaporate faster?

  1. 1. B. False

  2. 2. A. sunny and windy

  3. 3. A. More water surface is touching the air.

  4. 4. B. False

  5. 5. B. Cold, still, damp air slows evaporation.

  6. 6. A. True

  7. 7. 3

  8. 8. D. The water evaporates quickly, leaving the salt behind.