Print and use this classroom activity on sweet drinks.

Prompting questions and additional activities for the classroom:

1. Did you know your body is mostly water?

Think of some ways you can see that there is water in your body. Here are some ideas…

• If you breathe on a really cold mirror, you will see droplets on the glass (condensation). This is from the water in your breathe.
• After you’ve been active, you may see water droplets on your skin (perspiration or sweat). This is water coming from tiny holes in your skin called pores.
• When you cry, tears are mostly water.
• When you drink extra water, your urine changes colour.

2. Fact or Fiction?

Read these statements about water and ask students to choose whether they think they are fact or fiction? Students could research their own statements to include in the game.

1. You only need 1 glass of water each day

Fiction: You need plenty of water each day

2. Fruit juices are not necessary

Fact: Fruit juices are not necessary. It is better to each fruit instead and have a drink of water. Fruit juices are high in sugars and low in fibre.

3. Drinking water is bad for you

Fiction: Tap water is the best everyday drink choice. It quenches thirst and contains no added sugar.

4. You should drink at least 1.2 litres of fluid a day

Fact: Children aged between 4-8 years need about 1.2L (about 5 glasses) a day. Fluid includes all beverages, however water and reduced fat milk are the best drink choices for children.

5. There’s water in some foods

Fact: Most foods have some water in them. Foods such as yoghurt, fruit and some vegetables have a lot more than dry foods like toast or breakfast cereal.

6. If you are very active you should drink more

Fact: The amount of water children need to drink depends on the weather, physical activity and their body size. The more active they are, the more they will need to drink.

3. How much water? How much fluid? what's the difference?

• Students measure how much their water bottle and a standard cup holds.
• Use the activity to discuss quantities and fractions (half a bottle, multiple cups, quarter of a bottle etc)

Children need to drink at least 1.2 litres of FLUID every day.

The best fluid choices for children are water and plain milk.

• How many cups or bottles of fluid will I need to drink each day to make at least 1.2 litres?
• How much of my daily fluid intake is water? at school? at home or other places?

Children could keep a personal note of how much water they drink each day at school (note that they do not need to drink 1.2L of water at school).

• What is a "fluid "? What fluids are drinks?
• When are fluids safe/or unsafe to drink?
• How do we make sure water is safe to drink?