What is the weather today?
Duration/age
Every day the weather is different and this will effect what we can do and wear. Talk to your child about the different ways that you can find out about the weather. You could listen to the weather forecast the night before on the radio, watch it on the news on the TV or read the predicted weather forecast in the paper. Looking at the predicted weather the day before will help plan what you will be able to do for the day and what to wear. You may choose to find out about the weather on the day.
Is the weather forecast different to the day before? Why would this be?
When you look at the weather forecast talk about the different symbols and numbers used to describe the weather. What does a sun with a cloud mean compared to a sun with rain? How important is the number when added to the symbols?
Talk about the number as a measure of temperature and that it is measuring how hot or cold the day will be. Does this change if we add a cloud symbol to the temperature? Talk about what the minimum and maximum temperatures are and when these will occur during the day.
Materials you will need
- Tablet / smart phone
- TV
- Newspaper
- Radio
Skills this activity improves
Why does this matter?
Talking about the weather helps children to understand that symbols have meaning and they help us to interpret information such as number and temperature and to make decisions.
What does this lead to?
Through exploring symbols and how symbols are presented we are able to interpret and compare data through asking questions and sorting and comparing information. Understanding and comparing symbols helps us to make predictions about what may happen or how likely it is to happen.
Language to use
- Wind, rain, clouds, sun, hail, thunder and lightning, storm
- Hot, cold, extremely hot, very cold,
- Fine, mild, severe
- Minimum, maximum, average temperature, temperature range
- Early, late, midday, morning, evening, overnight
Questions to use
- What will the temperature be?
- Will the weather be the same all day?
- What do the symbols mean?
- Will we wear different clothing if the temperature is 20 and fine compared to 20 and windy?
Useful tips
- Talk about the different clothing for the weather.
- Smart phones, Google and Foxtel's weather channel can give you instant weather reports.
- Remember to talk to your child in your home language.
More ideas
- Create a weather chart.
- Make a rain gauge for measuring the rain.
- Watch a storm roll in on the weather tracker map on the weather bureau’s website.
Variation by age
Birth to two year olds
- Borrow from the library books about the weather to read together.
- Sing songs together about the weather such as “Rain, rain, go away” or ”Incy Wincy spider “.
- Talk about what clothes we wear for different types of weather.
Three to five year olds
- Create a weather chart.
- Make a rain gauge for measuring the rain.
- Watch a storm roll in on the weather tracker map on the weather bureau’s website.
- Borrow books and sing songs on the weather.
- Make a book about the weather talking about the different things you can do when it is hot, cold or wet.
- Make felt dolls and clothing that matches the different weather, seasons and activities.
Questions to ask
- What can you see in the sky?
- Is it hot or cold?
- Do you need to wear your boots and coat?
- If it is raining what do you need to wear?
Questions to ask
- Are there more hot days than cold days?
- Can we still do the same things when it rains?
- Where does the rain go when it falls?
- Do we play outside more when it is hot or cold?
- What do you see in the sky after it rains?
