WQ-100
High in the sky a tiny drop of water named Splish-Splash watched as other drops of water jumped and fell to Earth.
"I wonder what water drops do on Earth?" said Splish-Splash, "I think I'll go and see." With a big leap, Splish-Splash began his adventure.
Splish-Splash saw drops landing in pastures, city streets, rivers and lakes. Splish-Splash dropped into soft, green grass. He hit the ground with a nice, soft "splish splash".
Splish-Splash slowly moved into the ground. Below the surface he saw the roots of grass and other plants pulling in water drops. "How lucky those water drops are. They will help those plants grow tall and green," Splish-Splash said.
Splish-Splash moved deeper into the ground. He squeezed between the small spaces in the soil. He could not see any other water drops.
Deeper and deeper Splish-Splash slowly moved into the ground. He met other drops that had been living under-ground for a long time. Splish-Splash joined them as they slowly flowed together.
"Water underground does not move fast like streams and rivers," Splish-Splash thought.
One day Splish-Splash and his friends began to move faster. Splish-Splash felt himself being pulled up. He went up, up, up into a dark pipe. Until he...
... dripped from a leaky pump and dropped into a bucket below "SPLISH-SPLASH!"
Splish-Splash floated happily in the bucket. A thirsty dog came for a drink. Splish-Splash swam fast to avoid the dog's tongue. Watch out Splish-Splash!
The sun was very warm and bright. Splish-Splash began to feel very strange. He felt light. He began rising above the water.
The sun smiled brighter helping Splish-Splash go higher and higher. By changing into a gas he had floated up into the sky. Soon he was back on his cloud.
Splish-Splash had learned many things from his adventure--water comes in different shapes besides drops. Water can be snowflakes, which are solid; or water can be a gas, like the steam from a teapot.
Water in lakes, rivers and oceans slowly changes into a gas which floats back up to the clouds. It is seen as the fog or mist hanging above a lake. Plants return the water they take in back to the air.
Splish-Splash couldn't wait for another trip to Earth. "Maybe I'll be a snowflake next time," he thought.
Water comes in many shapes. Because water changes shape, it never really disappears. It keeps moving back and forth between the sky and Earth.
Every living thing needs clean, safe water. Because we all share the water, we must learn to take care of it.
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