Chapter 1 — Water — The Essence of Life

Chapter 1 of the Class 5 The World Around Us NCERT textbook (Our Wondrous World), "Water — The Essence of Life," introduces students to the forms and sources of water, the water cycle, groundwater, surface water, and freshwater habitats — download the PDF and read a summary of how water shapes the land and supports all living beings on Earth.

• Forms and Sources of Water — Water exists in three forms — liquid (rain), solid (ice and snow), and vapour (steam). Most of Earth's surface is covered with water, but the vast majority is salty; if all Earth's water filled a 200 ml glass, freshwater would amount to only about 5 ml — a teaspoon.
• The Water Cycle — The Sun's heat causes water from oceans, rivers, and other sources to evaporate into water vapour. This vapour rises, cools, forms clouds, and falls back as rain, snow, or hail, returning to rivers, lakes, and oceans — a constant circular movement called the water cycle.
• Groundwater and Surface Water — When rain falls, some water seeps through soil and rock layers and is stored underground as groundwater, accessed through wells, borewells, and handpumps. Rivers, ponds, and lakes are surface water sources; rivers begin in mountains and flow downhill, shaped by the land's contours.
• Freshwater Habitats and Aquatic Life — Freshwater bodies host a rich variety of plants and animals — fish with fins, pond herons with long legs for wading, dragonflies, water scorpions, freshwater turtles, and plants such as lotus, water hyacinth, and reeds — each with special features suited to life in water.
• Conserving Water — Cemented city surfaces prevent rainwater from seeping into the ground, reducing groundwater recharge. Open areas, soak pits, ponds, and trees help rainwater return underground. Traditional structures like Johads in Rajasthan — small earthen dams — collect rainwater and recharge groundwater.

1. 01Most of Earth's water is salty; freshwater is so scarce that if all Earth's water filled a 200 ml glass, freshwater would be only about 5 ml.
2. 02Water exists in three forms: liquid (rain, rivers), solid (ice, snow, glaciers), and vapour (steam, clouds).
3. 03The water cycle is the continuous movement of water — evaporation from water bodies, cloud formation, and precipitation back to Earth as rain, snow, or hail.
4. 04Rainwater that soaks into the ground and is stored in rock layers is called groundwater; it is drawn up through wells, borewells, and handpumps.
5. 05Rivers begin in mountains and flow downhill, shaped by the land; Indian rivers flow either toward the Bay of Bengal or the Arabian Sea depending on the terrain.
6. 06Freshwater habitats support diverse life including fish, frogs, pond herons, dragonflies, lotus, and water hyacinth, each adapted with special features like fins, webbed feet, or floating leaves.
7. 07Cities with many cemented surfaces reduce groundwater recharge; open land, soak pits, and traditional rainwater harvesting structures like Johads help replenish underground water.