Date: April 1, 2016

Teacher Name: Murat Konac

Lesson Plan Type: Inquiry/Problem-solving
Grade: 7, Science
Lesson: Watershed
Content Area: Science, Earth Science
Time Line: 90 minutes
TEKS: 7.8C Model the effects of human activity on groundwater and surface water in a
watershed.
English Language Proficiency Standards (ELPS):
Learning Strategy: 1G
Demonstrate an increasing ability to distinguish between formal and informal English and an
increasing knowledge of when to use each one commensurate with grade-level learning
expectations.
Listening: 2F
Listen to and derive meaning from a variety of media such as audio tape, video, DVD, and CDROM to build and reinforce concept and language attainment.
Speaking: 3J
Respond orally to information presented in a wide variety of print, electronic, audio, and visual
media to build and reinforce concept and language attainment.
Lesson Objective: Students will be able to

Make predictions and use appropriate tools to conduct an investigation of soil sample
porosity and permeability.
Use data based on observations to determine scientific relationships of soil and
groundwater.
Compare data collected in the lab to what happens in nature.
Explain why engineers need to measure the porosity and permeability of different soils

Materials:

2 paper cups (one with a hole in the bottom, and one without)
2 5 different types of soils (with varying grain sizes), labeled Sample 1, Sample 2, etc.
(Note: write on a popsicle stick and stand it up in the dirt or affix a sticker to the outside of
the cup.)
access to water (faucet or pitcher/jug of water)
large beaker or other type of container to collect water
graduated cylinder or measuring cup
large waste container for wet soil
stopwatch
plastic spoon or other utensil for scraping
safety goggles, one per student
1 copy of the Porosity and Permeability Lab Worksheet

Introduction:

Students will answer following questions as a warm up:

What do you remember from the water cycle?

What is meant by a cycle?

Is there a beginning to the water cycle?

Students will share their answer and discuss questions after they answer the questions.
Instructional Activities and Procedures:

Student will start the bell work. (10 minutes)

Students will view water cycle animation. And the teacher will ask following questions:
(15-20 minutes)

What is transpiration?
What is surface water?
How does water get into an aquifer?

Students will start porosity and permeability lab. (25-30 minutes)

Students will read background information and inquiry question about porosity and
permeability.
After, students will form a hypothesis that which substrate (sand, rock, clay or soil) has the
highest permeability and porosity.
Then, students will read the procedure.
After, they read the procedure students will conduct the experiment.
Students will collect data.

Students will analyze the data and draw conclusion. After they are done, they will share their
finding with class. (20-25 minutes)
Closure (5-10 minutes) Students will answer some questions.
Modification/Accommodations:

Some students need to sit proximity seat to the teacher.

Check for understanding.
Make sure that the learning objectives are clear and easy to read and understand
Remind student stay on task.
Provide written instructional guides on the board.
Give students extra time.
Teach content area vocabulary/terminology

Differentiated Instruction:
For GT Students: Students will time how long it takes to fill a gallon jug with a water tap on low then calculate the flow
rate. Then students will calculate flow rate of a water tap on high.
For ESL/ELL Students: Students will work in a groups of four to create a set of flashcards to help them remember the
key vocabulary for this lesson.

Evaluation:

Pre-Activity Assessment
Question/Answer: I will lead a general discussion of porosity, permeability and groundwater. I will
ask students the following questions:

What is groundwater?
What is an aquifer?

Activity Embedded Assessment

Question/Answer: I will ask students questions and have them raise their hands to respond. Write
answers on the board and discuss as a class.
What is porosity?
How is porosity calculated? What is permeability?
Porosity and Permeability Worksheet: Students will record measurements in their data table and
follow along with the activity on their worksheet. After students have finished their worksheet, I
will compare answers with their peers. Review their answers to gauge their mastery of the
subject.
Post-Activity Assessment
Prediction Analysis: Students will compare their initial predictions with their test results, as
recorded on their worksheet. I will ask the students to explain why some soils had a better
permeability to water than others.
Problem Solving: As an environmental engineer, which of the following soils would you
recommend as the best for placing a drinking water well?
Soil with porosity of 30% and permeability of 30 seconds through 100 mL.
Soil with porosity of 50% and permeability of 15 seconds through 100 mL.
Soil with porosity of 70% and permeability of 5 seconds through 100 mL.
Drawing and Class Discussion: Students will depict their subject area knowledge gained by
sketching and labeling some of the concepts or activities. For example,
Each group will draw or graph their results of different soil porosity and permeability. Students
will compare the groups' results as a class and discuss the validity of each drawing.
Closure:
Students will answer following questions:

As an environmental engineer, where would you recommend locating a drinking water

well? Why?
As an environmental engineer, which soil sample had the greatest risk of transferring
harmful chemicals into a drinking water aquifer? Why?
What factors would you consider when locating your drinking water well?

Porosity and Permeability Lab (Student Worksheet)

Purpose: Students will determine porosity of various soils. And students will measure
permeability of water through 3 different substrates (sand, soil, and gravel).
Background: While some precipitation falls to the earth and runs off into streams and
rivers, another portion seeps slowly through the soil into the upper layers of the earths
crust. This underground water, or groundwater, fills the empty spaces of pores between
rock and soil particles. Subsurface rock and sediment units through which large volumes
of water can flow and be stored are called aquifers. How water travels through these
aquifers is determined by a number of factors.
Two major factors affecting groundwater movement are permeability and porosity.
Porosity is the percentage of open pore spaces in a given volume of rock or sediment,
and determines the total amount of water a material will hold. The larger the volume of
pore spaces, the higher its porosity, and the more water it can hold. Porosity is largely
influenced by factors of particle size, shape, assortment, and compaction.
Permeability refers to the ability of a rock or sediment to transmit water freely. The rate
at which a material transmits water depends not only on its total porosity, but also on
the size of the passageways between its openings. To be considered permeable, the
open spaces in a rock must be connected. The size and sorting of the particles
composing the rock or sediment will affect its permeability. Generally, materials of larger
particle size, which are well sorted, will be more permeable.
Materials:
2 paper cups (1 with a hole and 1 without a hole in the bottom)
Graduated cylinder
Large jar or beaker
Soil samples
Spoon/scraper
Stopwatch or other timing device
Procedure:
A. Measuring Porosity of Samples
1. Pour 100 mL of water into your cup and draw a line where the water comes up to.
Write 100 mL in the total volume column on your data sheet. Dump out
the water.
2. Fill the cup with the first soil sample up to the line you drew.
3. Using your graduated cylinder, slowly and carefully pour water into the cup until
the water reaches the top of your sample. Write the volume of water
remaining in the graduated cylinder on your data sheet.
4. Subtract the volume remaining from the total volume. This is the amount of water
you added to your sample. Write the volume of water added to the sample
on your data sheet this is the pore space.
5. To determine the porosity of the sample, divide the pore space volume by the total
volume and multiply the result by 100. Write the porosity on your data sheet.
(Note: % pore space = pore space / total volume x 100)

B. Measuring Permeability of Samples

1. Hold the empty cup with a hole in it over a jar or an empty cup/container. Carefully
pour your sample into the cup with the hole, allowing the water to drain into the
jar.
2. Pour 100 mL of water into the cup with your sample. Time how long it takes from
when you begin pouring until when the water drains out of the sample. Write this
time down on your data sheet.
C. Repeat Parts A and B for all other soil samples.
Prediction
Which soil sample do you think will have the greatest porosity? How about the greatest
permeability?
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________
___________________________________________________________________________________

Data Table
Type of Soil

Total Volume

Volume
Remaining in
Cylinder

Pore Space

Porosity
(% pore space)

Permeability
(seconds)

Coarse Gravel

100 mL

70 mL

100-70= 30 mL

30/100 * 100 =
30%

Conclusion:
1. Which sample had the greatest porosity?
____________________________________________________________________________________
2. Which sample did the water pass through most quickly? That is, which had the
highest permeability?
____________________________________________________________________________________

3. As an environmental engineer, which of the following soils would you recommend

as the best for
placing a drinking water well?

Soil with porosity of 30% and permeability of 30 seconds through 100 mL.
Soil with porosity of 50% and permeability of 15 seconds through 100 mL.
Soil with porosity of 70% and permeability of 5 seconds through 100 mL.

4. Draw or graph their results of different soil porosity and permeability.