Water Cycle Craft for Kids: Learn About Rain & Evaporation

Step 1: Take the brown modeling clay and flatten it to create a landmass or mountains on one side of your paper plate. Press it down firmly.

Step 2: Next, use the blue modeling clay to form a large body of water, like a lake or ocean, and place it adjacent to the landmass on the paper plate.

Step 3: Create a thin, winding strip of blue clay to represent a river flowing through the brown land and into the larger body of water.

Step 4: If desired, use small pieces of green clay to make trees or bushes and place them on your brown mountains/land.

Step 5: Form a small yellow circle with the yellow clay for the sun and place it in the upper part of your paper plate. You can use an orange marker to draw sun rays around it.

Step 6: Shape a few fluffy clouds using the blue clay and position them near the sun in the sky area of your plate.

Step 7: Once the model is complete, discuss with your child how each element represents a part of the water cycle: the sun provides heat, the water evaporates, forms clouds (condensation), and then falls as rain (precipitation) back into the rivers and oceans.