Water time

Water time

Pencil and paper
Overview
Using this Resource
Connecting to the Curriculum
Marking Student Responses
This task is about constructing a water timer.
 
 
You are going to make and test a water timer. Follow the instructions below to make the timer.
 
1. Push the drawing pin through the bottom of the cup to make a small hole.
2. Cut the top off the plastic drink bottle so that the cup can fit into the top of it (make sure an adult helps you with this step).        
3. Fill the cup with water and using a timer or clock and a felt pen, mark the water level on the outside of the bottle every minute for 5 minutes. Label these markings 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5.
4. Show your timer, with its markings, to your teacher.
5. Now, without using a timer or clock, make marks on your bottle to show 7 minutes and 10 minutes.
6.
To test your marks, fill your water timer to the 5 minute mark. Your teacher, or a partner, will then use a timer or clock to check the marks you have made for 7, and 10 minutes.

Peer assessment sheets 

Partner's Name: ________________________
 
My partner's markings for 7, and 10 minutes are: 
 
Excellent
(very accurate)
 
 
Good (quite accurate)
 
 
Need work (not so accurate)
 
 
 
Partner's Name: ________________________
 
My partner's markings for 7, and 10 minutes are: 
 
Excellent
(very accurate)
 
 
Good (quite accurate)
 

Need work (not so accurate)
 
 
Partner's Name: ________________________
 
My partner's markings for 7, and 10 minutes are: 
 
Excellent
(very accurate)
 

Good (quite accurate)
 
 
Need work (not so accurate)
 
 
Task administration: 
Equipment
Clock and/or timers; felt pen; polystyrene cup; drawing pin; clear plastic soft drink bottle with straight sides (e.g., 1.5 or 2 litre bottles from the Schweppes range.
NOTE: Coca-Cola bottles are not suitable); scissors/craft knife; jugs or large containers of water; peer assessment sheets (optional).
  • Students could work in pairs or groups to carry out this assessment task.
  • Students will need supervision when cutting the top off the plastic drink bottle.
  • You may like to have a sample of the water timer prepared beforehand (without the markings).
 
  • Students will need to make the hole in the cup large enough to allow the water to flow through smoothly. In trials, we found that a hole made by pushing the drawing pin through twice was successful.
  • To assess the students' marks, get students to fill their timers to the 5 minute mark then time them for 1, 2, 3, 4, and 5 minutes.
Level:
2
Curriculum info: 
Maths, Geometry and Measurement, Measurement
Key Competencies: 
Relating to others
Keywords: 
time, model construction, peer assessment, practical
Description of task: 
In this practical task, students follow a plan to construct a water timer. They then put on markings for times 1-5 minutes based on observations and recordings.
Curriculum Links: 
This resource can help to identify students' understanding of applying measurement sense to time for the Measurement objective.
Answers/responses: 

 

  

2 marks
or
1 mark

1-5 minute marks are horizontal and evenly spaced up the bottle.
 
1-2 errors in markings.

 
1 mark
1 mark

Teacher Assessment
7 minute mark is accurate ± 2mm.
10 minute mark is accurate ± 2mm.

 
2 marks
or
1 mark

Peer Assessment
Peer assessment sheet rated 'Excellent'.
 
Peer assessment sheet rated 'Good'.