Investigating the water cycle in P6

P6 have been investigating the stages of the water cycle as part of our Rainforest topic!

To observe how water changes state, we filled some plastic containers with water and left them in the hot sun. Using our magnifying glasses, we were able to clearly see the water heat up and condense to form water droplets.

To see all the stages of the water cycle more clearly, we also placed a stone in a tray and filled the tray with cold water. Then we placed an ice cube on top of the stone and wrapped the tray with cling film (representing the clouds). Finally, we placed our experiment in the hot sun. Very quickly we watched the ice evaporate in the heat and “run off” the stone; we observed the water vapour condense into the clouds (cling film); and observed precipitation as the water droplets fell from the clouds.

We have also learned that because the rainforest is so hot, the water evaporates and condenses a lot quicker than it does in Scotland! (but thankfully we got a scorching, sunny day to conduct our experiment!)