Seasons
Duration/age
As the seasons change the weather will change and we will see changes happening to the plants and trees in the garden. Talk to your child about the names of the seasons - spring, summer, autumn, winter - and the order they will follow. This may include looking at the calendar and highlighting the different months of the year that match the seasons.
Talk about the changes you may see in the garden such as the leaves falling off some of the trees as the weather moves from hot summer weather to the cooler weather of autumn. As the weather changes from being cold in winter and into spring, new leaves will appear on the trees. As the seasons change we often change the type of activities that we do as the temperature and the length of sunlight each day will determine if we want to be out and about doing things or snuggled up inside where it is warm.
Skills this activity improves
Why does this matter?
Noticing and discussing the seasons supports children to make predictions about patterns that they see in the environment and gives them the language to describe the changes they see. As they notice these patterns and changes they are sorting, grouping and comparing ideas.
What does this lead to?
Being able to compare, sort and groups ideas relating to time, temperature and patterns helps children to understand that we are able to measure different attributes and describe them using language that is specific to each attribute.
Language to use
- Spring, summer, autumn, winter
- Season, trans-seasonal, annual, perennial
- Hot, cold, fine, mild
- Longer, shorter
Questions to use
- What happens when the seasons change?
- Do we do different things in summer than in winter?
- What happens to the sun in winter?
- Do we wear different clothes for different seasons?
Useful tips
Remember to talk to your child in your home language.
More ideas
- Borrow books from the library about seasons and changes.
- Visit your local garden shop to explore what plants are in season.
- Visit the Adelaide Central Markets to explore what produce is in season.
- Go on a trip to the hills and record with a camera what you see.
- Make a weather chart and station, plotting the changes to the temperature.
Variation by age
Three to five year olds
- Borrow books from the library about seasons and changes.
- Visit your local garden shop to explore what plants are in season.
- Visit the Adelaide Central Markets to explore what produce is in season.
- Go for a trip to the hills and record with a camera what you see.
- Make a weather chart and station, plotting the changes to the temperature.
- Explore cook books that describe and illustrate seasonal food and cooking.
- Explore animal life cycles and how they link to the seasons.
Questions to ask
- What is in season?
- What is a month?
- What changes can you see?
