H2O Properties/Facts: Print Resources

This is a collection of Print Resources about the properties of water. Separate collections of Electronic Resources and National Academies Press e-Books are also available.

Most titles below are outstanding and recommended by the National Science Teachers Association that fit this year’s theme for Chemists Celebrate Earth Day. Descriptions are based on reviews from the NSTA or publishers web site.

Key: E = Elementary (K–5), I = Intermediate (6–8), HS = High School (9–12), C = College, G = General Public

BATHTUB SCIENCE. Shar Levine and Leslie Johnstone. NY: Sterling, 2001. 80 pp. ISBN 0-8069-7185-1. (E, I)
Bathtub Science offers children, parents, and teachers a compendium of science experiments relating to water. This collection of investigations of the concepts of fluids, density, and buoyancy will encourage independent exploration for elementary and middle school students. The authors have made the topics of water clocks, pressure, surface tension, and absorption so interesting that readers are likely to stay in their baths doing science until they wrinkle up! There are illustrations on every page. A glossary, table of contents, and index are included. All materials needed (usually items readily available in the home) are listed. Each experiment has an intriguing or eye-catching introduction, step-by-step procedures, and clear explanations of the scientific basis or background for the reader’s observations. Fun facts are interspersed throughout the book.
Source: NSTA Recommends
BUOYANCY. John Farndon. Tarrytown, NY: Benchmark Books, 2003. ISBN 761414673. (E, I)
Presents information on floating and sinking in liquids or air, providing instructions for relevant scientific experiments.
Source: Athena
THE CHEMISTRY OF WATER. Susan E. Kegley and Joy Andrews. Sausalito, CA: University Science Books, 1998. 167 pp. ISBN: 093570244X. (HS, C)
This introductory laboratory manual will help students design a sampling plan, understand the instrumental and analytical techniques used for the assessment of water quality, learn how to interpret data and use statistical analyses, and apply scientific reasoning to an environmental problem. Ideal for use in the laboratory portion of an introductory environmental chemistry or general chemistry course, the manual provides substantial background information about water chemistry and gives the instructor a choice of procedures for each analysis, from instrument-intensive techniques to those requiring nothing more than a buret and a few chemicals. A detailed Instructors’ Manual is also available.
Source: University Science Books
DO FISH DRINK? : FIRST QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS ABOUT WATER. Alexandria, VA: Time-Life for Children, 1993. ISBN 783508506. (E)
Discusses, in question and answer format, the sources, cycle, and uses of water, why oceans are salty, and other related topics. Includes simple experiments.
Source: WorldCat
DO FISH DRINK WATER? : PUZZLING AND IMPROBABLE QUESTIONS AND ANSWERS. Bill McLain. New York: Morrow, 1999. ISBN 688165125. (G)
Source: WorldCat
THE DROP IN MY DRINK: THE STORY OF WATER ON OUR PLANET. Meredith Hooper. Illustrated by Chris Coady. NY: Viking, 1998. 32pp. ISBN 0-670-87618-6. (I)
Here is the amazing and ever-changing story of water-where it comes from, how it behaves, why it matters-and the crucial role it has played throughout life on Earth. The eye-catching illustrations are realistic and thought-provoking.
Source: NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Books for Children in 1999
A DROP OF WATER: A BOOK OF SCIENCE AND WONDER. Walter Wick. Illustrated with photographs by the author. NY: Scholastic, 1997. 40pp. ISBN 0-590-22197-3. (I)
Easy-to-read text and exquisite photographs explain the concepts of evaporation, condensation, capillary attraction, and surface tension. The camera halts and magnifies the action so all states of water can be observed. A collection of simple, exceptional experiments offers ways to further investigate the principles of water transformation.
Source: NSTA Outstanding Science Trade Books for Students K-12 for 1998
EXPERIMENTS IN SCIENCE: WHAT IS IT MADE OF? David Glover. NY: Dorling Kindersley, 2001. 125 pp. ISBN 0-7894-7850-1. (E, I)
This book is a scientifically accurate, hands-on activity book. It offers simple activities that can be completed in reasonable amounts of time and with materials that are readily available either at home or at your closest hardware store. Vibrant photographs illustrate topics such as: “Testing Materials,” “Using Materials,” “Changing Materials,” and “Wonderful Water.” In the lesson, “Float or Sink?”, children are asked to observe how different items such as clay, a metal spoon, and a pebble react with water. Do they float or sink? Why? They are asked to examine each item and to carefully place them in the water to see what happens. The glossary goes beyond definitions to provide examples and explanations.
Source: NSTA Recommends
HANDS-ON SCIENCE SERIES: WATER. Martin Allen, Ph.D. Portland, ME: J. Weston Walch, 1998. 92 pp. ISBN 0-8251-3758-6. (I, HS)
Water is one of eight volumes of Hands-On Science from J. Weston Walch designed to enrich traditional text-based curricula. Each volume follows a similar format, a carefully structured set of 16 to 20 activities requiring one or two class periods. Certain activities are designed for out-of-class involvement; others are intended for in-class participation or team projects. The strength of these low-cost editions is the teacher-friendly format; tips “before you begin,” objectives, the National Science Education Standards, materials, adaptations for both high and low achievers. The reproducible student pages are equally rich, with procedure diagrams, questions, links, and follow-up activities to extend and clarify learning. Although many of the activities in these volumes can be found in various other sources, busy teachers — especially those with limited experience — will find the selection included in these volumes effective and helpful.
Source: NSTA Recommends
I AM WATER. Jean Marzollo. New York: Scholastic, 1996. ISBN 0590265873. (E)
Source: Athena
I GET WET. Vicki Cobb. New York: HarperCollins, 2002. ISBN 688178383. (E)
Renowned science author Vicki Cobb has concocted just the right formula for making scientific principles easy for even the youngest kids to understand.
Source: Athena
INSIDE RAIN: WORKING WITH PRECIPITATION CHEMISTRY DATA. Jay Barracato. Arlington, VA: NSTA Press, 2000. ISBN 0-87355-482-6. (HS)
Inside Rain: Working With Precipitation Chemistry Data is a set of resources that includes the Database Basics manual and Inside Rain activities. Information from The National Atmospheric Deposition Program guide makes this collection a valuable unit that will enable even statistics novices to learn good data analysis techniques and develop a foundation for the study of more complex work. The Database Basics manual includes three units: Creating Databases, Working With Data Sets, and Making Decisions Based on Data. The booklets from the National Atmospheric Deposition Program include weekly data from the National Trends Network (NTN), daily data from nine selected sites through the Atmospheric Integrated Research Monitoring Network (AIRMoN), and the Mercury Deposition Network (MDN). All data can be obtained through the Internet site at http://nadp.sws.uiuc.edu, and the booklet contains maps of concentrations and depositions for pH, sulfate, nitrate, ammonium, calcium, magnesium, sodium, and chloride ions.
Each activity is complete with a student section, teacher section, materials and equipment lists, answers to all questions, and permissions to reproduce for classroom use and workshop instruction. This guide is excellent. It follows all the tenets of the STS (Science, Technology and Society) approach to teaching science, and teachers will find that the topics addressed find their way into all science disciplines. The explanations are clear, and the graphics are easy to download, read, and analyze. Questions that follow each activity involve higher level thinking skills, and each activity has several extensions listed in the teacher section. These extensions could provide an avenue for more advanced work or optional work for students who complete their work early. This excellent package is highly recommended as a source of activities for investigating rain in the lab, outdoors, and online.
Source: NSTA Recommends
IT COULD STILL BE WATER. Alan Fowler. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1992. ISBN 0516060031. (E)
A simple description of the uses, properties and forms of water.
Source: Athena
LIFE’S MATRIX: A BIOGRAPHY OF WATER. Philip Ball. Berkeley: University of California Press, 1999, 2001. 417 pp. ISBN: 0520230086. (HS, C, G)
Water is the fabric of snow, hail, vapor, and ice, and is the only substance to exist on earth in all three of its physical states: solid, liquid, and gas. Water is central to our planetary environment. But what exactly is it? Life’s Matrix tells of water’s origins, history, and fascinating pervasiveness: there are, for example, fourteen different forms of ice, and a provocative exploration of water on other planets highlights the possibilities of life beyond Earth. The book reveals the unexpected in the most ordinary places — a drop of dew, a frozen pond, a cup of coffee — and the familiar in unexpected settings: there is water on the sun and the moon, at the heart of molecular biology, at the core of the cell, and there may be enough of it beneath the surface of the Earth to refill the oceans thirty times over. The final chapter surveys the grim realities of our natural water resources, and shows how it will become a scarce commodity in the twenty-first century. Life’s Matrix offers a fresh exploration of one of the oldest substances known to man, and ensures that we will never think about this ubiquitous substance in the same way again.
Source: University of California Press
THE MATRIX OF LIFE: A VIEW OF NATURAL MOLECULES FROM THE PERSPECTIVE OF ENVIRONMENTAL WATER. J.C. Collins. East Greenbush, NY: Molecular Presentations, 1991. ISBN 962971901. (I, HS, C, G)
Source: WorldCat
MY WORLD OF SCIENCE: WATER. Angela Royston. Crystal Lake, IL, Heinemann Library (Rigby), 2001. 32 pp. ISBN 1-58810-247-5. (E)
This book covers a great deal of content usually included in primary curricula: phases of water, the water cycle, and the dependence of all living things on water. It also includes practical observations, like the water content of fruits and vegetables, and applications, such as using water to clean or fight fires. The author explores phase changes and movement of water through gravity and negative air pressure (suction). Activities demonstrate some of the more difficult concepts; for example, children can measure a puddle over time to observe evaporation. Students can also try to push a balloon under water to show that water pushes back. These experiences will help students to understand some of the unique properties of water. This book is highly recommended for its child-friendly text and visual representations that are accurate and realistic.
Source: NSTA Recommends
RAIN. Kay Davies. Austin, TX: Raintree Steck-Vaughn, 1995. ISBN 817240438. (E)
Source: Athena
THE SCIENCE BOOK OF WATER. Neil Ardley. San Diego: Harcourt Brace Jovanovich, 1991. ISBN 152005757. (E)
Simple experiments demonstrate the properties of water.
Source: Athena
SCIENCE EXPERIMENTS: SOLIDS, LIQUIDS, AND GASES. John Frandon. Tarrytown, NY: Benchmark Books, 2001. 32 pp. ISBN 0-7614-1338-3. (E, I)
Part of the Science Experiments series, this book combines accurate information with simple experiments. The author begins with a clear definition of matter. Sections that follow delve more deeply into the liquid, solid, gas, and plasma states of matter. Information is also included about crystals, mixtures, and solutions. The photos are sure to capture the reader’s eye, and all of the experiments are written in kid-friendly terms.
Source: NSTA Recommends
SCIENCE MAGIC IN THE BATHROOM. Richard Robinson. NY: Simon And Schuster, 2001. 96 pp. ISBN 0-689-84333-1. (E, I)
This book is organized into eight areas: Weird Water, Dishing the Dirt, Grease, Coming Clean, Light Delight, Air We Go!, Hot and Cold, and Sounds Interesting. The common theme among these topics is that each can be performed in any bathroom. Steps to perform each act are provided in an easy-to-understand format, complete with illustrations. Troubleshooting tips are offered in case the trick does not work with alerts about possible complications. But the beauty of this little book is that the author does not allow the child to maintain the impression that these are tricks. Each “magic trick” is followed by a highly detailed, accurate, yet very kid-friendly explanation of the elements of science that made that particular experiment seem so magical.
Source: NSTA Recommends
SCIENCE WITH WATER. Helen Edom. London: Usborne, 1990. ISBN 088110485x. (E, I)
Source: Athena
WACKY FUN WITH SCIENCE: 69 PROJECTS YOU CAN FLOAT, SINK, SQUIRT, AND SAIL. Ed Sobey. NY: Mcgraw-Hill, 2000. 88 pp. ISBN 0-07-134809-3. (I)
This book is a great primer on the chemistry and physics of water for middle grade students. Beginning with the explanations of the properties of water, the authors answer typical questions like “Why don’t submarines have windows?” with accuracy and humor. Demonstrations and experiments include helpful black-and-white line drawings, and many of the experiments can be used in science fair activities. The book includes helpful tips for planning a science fair project and all necessary safety precautions.
Source: NSTA Recommends
WATER. L.B. Leopold. New York: Time, Inc., 1966. OCLC 712049. (G)
Source: WorldCat
WATER. Christopher McHugh. New York: Thomson Learning, 1993. ISBN 156847024x. (E, I)
A brief examination of the ways artists from all over the world have portrayed water in their art.
Source: Athena
WATER. Wendy Richardson. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1994, 1989. ISBN 0516092863. (E, I)
Presents paintings, woodcuts, and a tapestry by notable artists expressing ideas about water in its various forms.
Source: Athena
WATER. Kim Taylor. New York: Wiley, 1992. ISBN 471571946. (E, I)
Source: Athena
WATER, THE DROP OF LIFE. Peter Swanson. Minnetonka, MN: NorthWord Press, 2001. ISBN 1559717823. (G)
Companion to the public television series.
Source: WorldCat
WATER THE ELEMENTS. Ken Robbins. New York: Holt, 1994. ISBN 805022570. (E, I)
Source: Athena
WATER & FLOATING. David Evans. New York: Dorling Kindersley, 1993. ISBN 1564582086. (E)
Uses simple observations and experiments to explore the properties of water.
Source: WorldCat
WATER AND FLOATING. Alan Ward. New York: F.Watts, 1992. ISBN 0531142302. (E)
Uses simple experiments and activities to demonstrate the properties of water and such principles as floating.
Source: Athena
WATER: FOR HEALTH, FOR HEALING, FOR LIFE: YOU’RE NOT SICK. F. Batmanghelidj. New York: Warner Books, 2003. ISBN 446690740. (G)
Source: Athena
WATER & OTHER LIQUIDS. R. C. Mebane. New York: Twenty-first Century Books, 1995. ISBN 0805058404. (E, I)
Learn about the properties of water and other liquids through 16 experiments that make use of common household items.
Source: Athena
WATER SCIENCE TRICKS WITH PROFESSOR SOLOMON SNICKERDOODLE. Peter Murray. St. Paul, MN: Child’s World, 1998. ISBN 1567660819. (E, I)
Professor Snickerdoodle explains how to perform various experiments and tricks with water, including making a clay bowl float and using a drop of water as a magnifying glass.
Source: WorldCat
WATER SCIENCE, WATER FUN: GREAT THINGS TO DO WITH H2O. Noel Fiarotta. New York: Sterling Pub., 1996. ISBN 806942487. (E, I)
Presents basic facts about water and includes simple experiments to illustrate such aspects as surface tension, dispersion, saturation, and buoyancy.
Source: Athena
THE WATER’S JOURNEY. Eleonore Schmid. New York: North-South Books, 1990, c1989. ISBN 1558580131. (E, I)
Explains the water cycle from precipitation through a stream into a river, a like, and on to the ocean and back into the atmosphere by evaporation to repeat the cycle.
Source: Athena
WHERE DO PUDDLES GO?. Fay Robinson. Chicago: Childrens Press, 1995. ISBN 0516060368. (E)
Source: Athena

Copyright © 2004 American Chemical Society