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Speaker 1: Water is all around us. We have liquid water in rivers and oceans. We have frozen water in ice
and glaciers. And we have water vapor in clouds and steam. Water is very important. How many oceans
are there? What is the biggest ocean animal? How much water do we use to take a bath? What percent
of our body is water?

Salt-Water.

About 70 percent of Earth is covered with water. Most of the water is in the oceans. There are five
oceans, the Pacific Ocean, the Atlantic Ocean, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean and the Arctic
Ocean. The largest ocean is the Pacific Ocean. It's one hundred and fifty six million square kilometers, it's
about 15 times bigger than the USA. There are also many species on earth, the largest sea is the South
China Sea, it's three million square kilometers. One of the smallest seas is the Marmara Sea. It's only
about 11000 square kilometers. All the water in the oceans and seas is salt water, the Dead Sea is about
30 percent salt. It's the saltiest sea on Earth. It's so salty you can float in it.

Freshwater.

About three percent of the water on earth is fresh water. Most of this fresh water is frozen. It's ice, it's in
glaciers or polar ice caps. Some of the fresh water is in lakes and rivers, one of the biggest lakes on earth
is Lake Superior in North America, it's about 82000 square kilometers. The longest river on earth is the
River Nile in Africa. It's about six thousand seven hundred kilometres long. Some of the fresh water is in
the sky. It's in the clouds and the rain. Some of the water is in the soil, in rocks or under the ground in
caves. Most of earth is covered with water, but only about one percent is fresh water that we can drink.
The rest is salt water or ice.

The water cycle

. Do you know where water comes from? When it rains, water falls from the sky. This is called
precipitation. Rain water goes into streams, stream water goes into rivers, river water goes into seas and
oceans. When it's sunny, the ocean water gets warm, some water goes up into the sky. This is called
evaporation. The water in the sky makes clouds, then it rains again. This is called the water cycle. We are
lucky to have water in our homes. About one billion people don't have clean water in their homes. Most
of the water we use comes from rivers and reservoirs, clean water goes through pipes to our homes.

Water at home.

We use a lot of water at home, we drink water and we cook with water, we also use water for washing.
We use about 80 litres of water when we take a bath, we use about 27 liters of water when we take a
shower. We use water to brush our teeth and we also ned water to flush the toilet. We use about nine
liters of water every time we flush. We use water to wash and clean other things, too, we wash the
dishes with water, we wash clothes with water, we wash and clean everything in the house with water.

Water activities.

We use a lot of water outside the home. We need water for the food we eat. Meat comes from animals
and animals drink water, fruits and vegetables, also need water to grow. We need water to travel, we can
travel by ship and by boat. We can also make power with water. Hydro electricity is electricity made from
water. We have fun with water. We like to go to the beach in the summer. We also like to visit rivers and
lakes. Lots of sports need water, sailing, surfing, swimming, water skiing and diving, all use water. Which
water sports do you like?

We need water.

The human body contains lots of water. Our body is about 70 percent water. Our brain is about 85
percent water and our bones are about 33 percent water. Water is very important for the human body.
We can live for four weeks without food, but we can't live for more than about three days without water.
We need to drink about eight glasses of water every day. We need to drink even more water when we
play sports and when it's hot. We need water because it keeps our blood healthy, our blood is about 50
percent water. Blood takes food to different parts of our body, it takes oxygen from our lungs to other
parts of our body too, if we don't drink water, our body gets dehydrated. If we're dehydrated, our
kidneys and our brain don't work, then we get very sick.

Ocean animals.

Lots of animals live in water. Some animals live in saltwater, they live in seas and oceans. The biggest
ocean animal is the blue whale. It can be more than 30 meters long and 200 metric tons. It eats very
small ocean animals called krill. It can eat four metric tons of krill in a day. Blue whales live in most of the
oceans, the blue whale is the biggest animal on Earth, it can be as big as 25 elephants. Many other
animals live in saltwater, there are sharks and lots of other fish. All ocean animals need water, water
gives them food and oxygen. Jellyfish are not fish, they are invertebrates, they don't have a skeleton,
they need water to support their bodies.

Other animals.

Some animals live in freshwater. They live in rivers and lakes, fish, frogs, beavers and ducks live in
freshwater. Big animals also live in fresh water, the Nile crocodile lives in rivers and lakes in Africa. When
large animals come to drink, it pulls them under the water and eats them. Land animals need water, too,
they drink water in the African savannah, animals like zebras, giraffes and elephants come to the
waterhole to drink. The savannah can be very hot and dry, and these animals cannot live without water,
hippos need water to keep their skin healthy. They stay in water all day to keep cool. If they don't have
water, they get sunburned.

Too much water.

Floods can happen when there is too much rain, rivers and lakes become very full, floods can also
happen when there are very big waves in the ocean. Where there are floods, the water covers roads and
paths, cars and people can't get out of the area, just 60 centimeters of water can make a car float. The
water goes into houses and people have to leave their homes, sometimes they have to get on the roof of
their house to wait for help. Cars and people can't get into the area to help. The police and firefighters
rescue people with boats and helicopters. Floods can be very dangerous, the water moves fast and it's
very strong. Don't play in floodwater.

Save water.

When there is no water, rivers and lakes become dry, plants can't grow and animals can't drink. If there is
no food and no water to drink, people die to. Water is very important, we all need to save water. You can
save water at home. Turn off the water when you brush your teeth, take a shower, not a bath. You can
also save water outside the home, collect rainwater to water plants, don't throw things into rivers or
lakes. People and animals need clean water, not dirty water. Remember, our earth needs water, people,
animals and plants need water. Save our wonderful water.