Air Pollution Worksheet

Air is easy to forget about, because a child cannot see it. Science makes it visible by looking at what goes into it: exhaust from an engine left running, smoke from a burning pile of leaves, tiny bits of ash that drift from a pipe. This Air Pollution Worksheet gives third graders six ordinary scenes from a street and a schoolyard and asks the one question that matters for each of them, which is whether it puts something into the air or keeps the air clear.

The page works in two steps. First, students read six short actions and write D in the box for dirty air or C for cleaner air. Every action is decided by a single physical fact rather than by opinion, so each one has exactly one defensible answer: an engine that is running adds exhaust, an engine that is switched off adds nothing, burning adds smoke and ash, and leaves take gases in and give clean air back. Then the sheet turns to writing. Two questions ask students to pick one action that dirties the air and explain why, and to name one thing their own class could do to keep the air clean. Those answers vary, so the key shows a sample for each. Used as a science warm-up, a station, or homework, this 3rd grade environments worksheet takes about fifteen minutes and shows clearly who can explain the reason and not just sort the pictures.

What’s Included

• 1 print-ready PDF worksheet
• 6 everyday actions to mark D for dirty air or C for cleaner air
• 2 written response questions with two full writing lines each
• A complete answer key, with a sample answer shown for each written question

Three things make this worksheet do real work. First, it keeps the science concrete: every item names something a child has actually watched happen, so the idea of air quality attaches to a memory instead of a definition. Second, it pairs sorting with explaining, which is where third grade sits in the standards, and the explanation is what shows whether the sorting was understood. Third, the closing question is local and practical, asking what this class could do this week, so the lesson ends on something students can act on rather than something to worry about.

Teachers and parents can keep the thinking going in a few simple ways. Stand outside the school at pickup time and count how many engines are running, then talk about what those engines are adding to the air everyone is breathing. Tape a white index card to a windowsill for a week and look at what has settled on it. Plant a seedling in a pot by the window and track its leaves, connecting growth to the clean air the plant gives back. Each of these takes a few minutes and makes the ideas in this Air Pollution Worksheet something students can see for themselves.

Related Resources

• Pollution Worksheet
• Water Pollution Worksheet
• Recycling Sort Worksheet
• Going Green Song (Animated Music Video)