Water Works: Build or Break? Script

Introduction (Warm-Up)

"Good morning, everyone! Today we're going to become science detectives and learn about how our bodies, and all living things, work with water to build and break things down. It's pretty cool!"

"First, let's warm up our brains! I'm going to hand out a quick paper called Warm Up: Molecule Match-Up. Please take one and a pencil. On this paper, you'll see some words and some actions. Your job is to draw a line to match the word to the action. For example, if you see 'Build,' you'd match it to 'put together.' Take about 2-3 minutes to complete this."

(Allow students to complete the warm-up. Circulate and assist as needed.)

"Alright, let's quickly go over the answers. Who can tell me what 'Build' matches with? (Wait for response). Great! How about 'Break'? (Wait for response). Excellent!"

Objective and Vocabulary

"Now, let's look at our slides for today. (Advance to Water Works Slides - Slide 2: Today's Goal!). Our goal today is to understand how living things build big molecules and break them apart, all using water. This helps us understand how our bodies grow, get energy from food, and stay healthy!"

"We have some important new words today. They might sound big, but we'll break them down to make sense. (Advance to Slide 3: Important Words!)"

"First, we have Monomer. Say it with me: Mon-o-mer. A monomer is like a single LEGO brick. It's a tiny building block."

"Next is Polymer. Say it with me: Poly-mer. A polymer is like our big LEGO house – many tiny building blocks put together to make something bigger."

"Then we have Dehydration Synthesis. This is a big one! Say it with me: De-hy-dra-tion Syn-the-sis. This means to build something big by taking water out. Think of 'de-hydrate' – what happens when you're dehydrated? You need water! So, dehydration means to take water away. And 'synthesis' means to make or build. So, building by taking water out!"

"And finally, Hydrolysis. Say it with me: Hy-dro-ly-sis. This means to break something big apart by adding water. 'Hydro' means water, like a hydroelectric dam uses water. And 'lysis' means to break. So, breaking apart with water!"

Explaining Dehydration Synthesis (10 minutes)

"Let's think about building. (Advance to Slide 4: Think about Building Blocks!). Who here likes to build with LEGOs or other blocks? (Pause for responses). It's fun, right? You take small pieces and put them together to make something bigger. Our bodies do something very similar with those tiny molecules, our 'monomers.'"

"(Advance to Slide 5: Dehydration Synthesis: Building Up!). So, Dehydration Synthesis is how our bodies build. Imagine you have two LEGO bricks, and you want to connect them. When our bodies connect two small parts, they actually take out a tiny water molecule! It's like the water is a 'glue' that gets removed to make space for the connection."

"(Advance to Slide 6: Dehydration Synthesis: Real Life!). A great example is how plants grow. Plants take small sugar molecules and, through dehydration synthesis, they link them together to make bigger sugar chains, like starch. That starch is what makes up a lot of the plant, and it stores energy! They are building by taking water out."

Explaining Hydrolysis

"Now, what about breaking things down? (Advance to Slide 7: Hydrolysis: Breaking Down!). Hydrolysis is the opposite of dehydration synthesis. Here, our bodies break a big molecule apart by adding water."

"Think of it like this: if you have that big LEGO house, and you want to take it apart into individual bricks, sometimes it's easier to add a little 'push' or a 'tool.' In our bodies, that 'tool' is water! The water molecule actually goes in and helps to break the bond between the smaller pieces."

"(Advance to Slide 8: Hydrolysis: Real Life!). A perfect example is when you eat food! When you eat a sandwich, your body needs to break down the big starch molecules from the bread into tiny sugar molecules so your cells can use them for energy. Your body does this by adding water to those big starch molecules, breaking them down into smaller, usable parts!"

Recap

"So, to quickly recap: (Advance to Slide 9: Recap: Build or Break?).

• Dehydration Synthesis = BUILDING by taking water out!
• Hydrolysis = BREAKING by putting water in!

Can everyone show me a 'building' motion with their hands? And now a 'breaking apart' motion? Great!"

Activity Introduction

"Now, let's try it ourselves! (Advance to Slide 10: Let's Get Active!). We're going to do the Building Blocks Activity. I'm going to give you some shapes, our 'monomers,' and you're going to work to build and break molecules, just like our bodies do. I'll explain more once you have your shapes."

(Distribute shapes and activity instructions. Guide students through the activity.)

Worksheet and Cool Down

"You all did a fantastic job building and breaking molecules! Now, let's practice what we've learned on paper. (Advance to Slide 11: Time to Practice!). I'm handing out the Build or Break Worksheet. Please take one and answer the questions based on what we've learned today."

(Allow students time to work on the worksheet. Circulate to assist.)

"Great work on the worksheet, everyone! To finish up our lesson today, we have one more quick thing. (Advance to Slide 12: Exit Ticket!). It's called the Cool Down: Show What You Know. On this paper, I want you to answer the questions to show what you remember from our 'Water Works' lesson! It's a quick way to reflect on what you learned."

(Collect worksheets and cool-downs.)

"Thank you all for an amazing job today! You are all fantastic science detectives!"

Warm Up: Molecule Match-Up

Name: _________________________

Date: _________________________


Directions: Draw a line to match each word on the left to its meaning or action on the right.


1. Build

A. Taking apart

2. Break
   
   B. Put together

3. Water
   
   C. You need this to live; H2O

4. Food
   
   D. Gives your body energy
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   
   ---

Building Blocks Activity: Build or Break!

Name: _________________________

Date: _________________________

Part 1: Building Big Molecules (Dehydration Synthesis)

Materials Needed: Small paper shapes (monomers), tape or glue stick

Directions:

1. You have been given several small paper shapes. These shapes are like our monomers (tiny building blocks).
2. Your goal is to connect three or four of these small shapes together to make one long, bigger shape. This bigger shape is like a polymer (many building blocks put together).
3. As you connect each small shape, imagine that a tiny water molecule is leaving! This is called Dehydration Synthesis – building by taking water out.
4. Use tape or a glue stick to connect your shapes securely.
5. Once you have built your long molecule, hold it up and show your teacher!

Part 2: Breaking Down Big Molecules (Hydrolysis)

Materials Needed: Your long paper molecule from Part 1

Directions:

1. Now you have a big molecule (your polymer).
2. Your goal is to carefully break your big molecule back down into the smaller shapes (monomers).
3. As you break each connection, imagine that a tiny water molecule is coming in to help break the bond! This is called Hydrolysis – breaking by adding water.
4. Carefully separate your connected shapes.
5. Count your small shapes to make sure you have all of them back.

Reflection Question (Discuss with your partner or write down):

When we built our big molecule, did we take water out or add water in?

When we broke our big molecule, did we take water out or add water in?

Build or Break Worksheet

Name: _________________________

Date: _________________________

Directions: Read each sentence and decide if the process is BUILDING or BREAKING. Then, decide if WATER IS ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT.

1. Your body puts small sugar pieces together to make a long starch chain.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING?
   
   
   

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT?
   
   
   

2. When you digest food, big protein molecules are split into smaller amino acid pieces.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING?
   
   
   

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT?
   
   
   

3. A plant connects many small glucose molecules to grow a new leaf.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING?
   
   
   

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT?
   
   
   

4. Your muscles break down stored energy molecules into smaller units when you exercise.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING?
   
   
   

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT?
   
   
   

5. Circle the correct word:

   Dehydration Synthesis is a process that BUILDS / BREAKS molecules by ADDING / TAKING OUT water.

   Hydrolysis is a process that BUILDS / BREAKS molecules by ADDING / TAKING OUT water.

Build or Break Answer Key

Directions: Read each sentence and decide if the process is BUILDING or BREAKING. Then, decide if WATER IS ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT.

1. Your body puts small sugar pieces together to make a long starch chain.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING? BUILDING

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT? WATER IS TAKEN OUT

   Explanation: When small molecules (monomers) are joined to make a larger one (polymer), it's a building process called dehydration synthesis, and a water molecule is removed.

2. When you digest food, big protein molecules are split into smaller amino acid pieces.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING? BREAKING

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT? WATER IS ADDED

   Explanation: Breaking down large molecules into smaller ones, like during digestion, is called hydrolysis, and water is added to break the bonds.

3. A plant connects many small glucose molecules to grow a new leaf.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING? BUILDING

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT? WATER IS TAKEN OUT

   Explanation: Growth involves creating larger structures from smaller units, which is a building process (dehydration synthesis) where water is removed.

4. Your muscles break down stored energy molecules into smaller units when you exercise.

   Is this BUILDING or BREAKING? BREAKING

   Is WATER ADDED or WATER IS TAKEN OUT? WATER IS ADDED

   Explanation: Releasing energy often involves breaking down complex molecules into simpler ones, a process of hydrolysis where water is added.

5. Circle the correct word:

   Dehydration Synthesis is a process that BUILDS / BREAKS molecules by ADDING / TAKING OUT water.

   Hydrolysis is a process that BUILDS / BREAKS molecules by ADDING / TAKING OUT water.

   Explanation: Dehydration synthesis removes water to build, while hydrolysis adds water to break apart.

Cool Down: Show What You Know

Name: _________________________

Date: _________________________


Directions: Answer the questions below to show what you remember from today's lesson!

1. Name one thing your body BUILDS using water-related processes. What is this process called? (Dehydration Synthesis or Hydrolysis?)
   
   
   
   

2. Name one thing your body BREAKS DOWN using water-related processes. What is this process called? (Dehydration Synthesis or Hydrolysis?)
   
   
   
   

3. When your body BUILDS something, is water added or taken out?
   
   
   
   

4. When your body BREAKS DOWN something, is water added or taken out?
   
   
   
   

Cool Down: Show What You Know Answer Key

Directions: Answer the questions below to show what you remember from today's lesson!

1. Name one thing your body BUILDS using water-related processes. What is this process called? (Dehydration Synthesis or Hydrolysis?)
   Possible Answers: Building muscle, growing hair/nails, making bigger sugar chains (starch) from smaller ones.
   Process: Dehydration Synthesis

2. Name one thing your body BREAKS DOWN using water-related processes. What is this process called? (Dehydration Synthesis or Hydrolysis?)
   Possible Answers: Digesting food (breaking down starch, protein, fat), breaking down stored energy.
   Process: Hydrolysis

3. When your body BUILDS something, is water added or taken out?
   Answer: Water is taken out.

4. When your body BREAKS DOWN something, is water added or taken out?
   Answer: Water is added.