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Ahhhh, Water!Riddled with WaterWe drink it, swim in it, cook with it, bathe with it, wash our cars with it, waterthe garden with it. Nothing on Earth is used in as many different ways as water.In fact, you don't even see how most of the world’s water is used: to irrigate farmcrops, to nourish the thirst of cattle, to cool electric generating power plants, tomine gold ore out of rock, and to help make everything from copper coins to computerchips.Luckily, the Earth is blessed with an abundance of water, about 100 billion billiongallons of water. Most of that (97%) is in the oceans, and two-thirds of theworld’s fresh water is locked in the polar ice caps!But, there are many problems with water. Before 1970, there was very littleclean-up of the world’s waters. Many pipes dumped chemicals and raw sewageright into waterways. The first Earth Day helped change that. Congress passed aClean Water Act in 1970 right after Earth Day, resulting in less pollution inAmerica's rivers. Still, there is much work to be done. Our rivers and streams arestill not fully clean and each of us needs to do our part to conserve this importantresource.On Earth Day, consider how you use water, and how you can help the worldconserve water by using it more carefully. To best conserve water, you first need toknow how you use water. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency,the typical family of four consumes 243 gallons of water every day!Can you guess which single use of water in your home represents 100 gallons ofthat, almost half of a family's water? The largest user of household water can bediscovered by reading each of the riddling rhymes below. Write the correctanswer in the space provided, one letter in each blank. Remember, the answersmust rhyme! Use the numbered letter to solve the mystery water use; the first letteris provided for you.It’s the:_____T_____ _____ _____ _____ _____1 2 3 4 5Using this faucet, you gotta understandA family does much more than scrub its handsFood is washed, water is poured to drinkA family uses five gallons in the kitchen ___ ___ ____ ___2To keep teeth shiny, to make them glowTo make sure cavities will never growIn a bathroom sink, eight gallons will rushWhen a family of four uses its____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ___ ____5Some do this in the morning, some at nightYou come out looking clean and brightThe soap might help you smell like a flowerBut families use 80 gallons per day in the ____ ____ _____ ____ ____ _____1You hate to do it, but you’ll be a real winnerWhen you volunteer to do this after dinnerYou’re taking water away from fishesWhen you use 10 gallons a day to wash ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____4When shirts get dirty, when socks smell phewYou know exactly what you have to doIn a washer, 30 gallons flows through the hoseEvery day your parents wash your ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ ____ _____3Discussion: If a family of four wishes to do ONE THING to conserve the amount ofwater their family consumes, what might that be? Which one change in how yourfamily uses water might have the most benefit?Extra! Extra! Learn More!1. Use the numbers provided on thispage to create a bar graph of wateruses. Be sure there is a bar for eachof the following home uses: ToiletFlushing; Shower/Bathing; Laundry;Dishwashing; Bathroom Sink; KitchenSink.2. A dripping faucet can add as manyas 50 gallons per day to a household’swater consumption. Watering a gardenor lawn can add another 100 gallons ofwater! What would a family’s totalconsumption be if you added those twonumbers to 243 gallons?3. Where does your school’s watercome from? A river? A well? Howabout your home? How can you findthis out? Choose someone from theclass to call your local water companyto find out the water source for yourcommunity. Have the utility companysend materials to your class. Considerinviting someone from the company totalk about water for Earth Day. Askthe water company representative torecommend ways for you to conservewater both at school and at home.Check Out The Newspaper!Learning standard: understanding factors thataffect the weather◆ Look for the weather informationin today’s paper. Can you find out howmuch rain has fallen in your area thisyear? Is that more or less than average?Check the weather information for thenext few days. See if you can find outwhere in the country it is raining themost this week.◆ Look through the newspaper to findout if the weather made the news.Write a summary of any weather newsstory you find.◆ Locate the national weather map inyour newspaper. How does the weatherin your town compare to other placesaround the country?7