Hands-on Weather Activities and Provocations
Are you a kindergarten or first-grade teacher looking for some hands-on weather activities and science learning provocations to engage your students? The Early years science Weather Unit has so many excellent opportunities for children to scientifically explore the world around them and how the weather affects them.
In this blog post, we will explore some of my tried and tested science learning provocations on Weather so you can develop a love for scientific inquiry in your students. These hands-on activities will not only spark their interest but also encourage important higher order scientific thinking skills.
Weather is a topic that naturally captivates young children. By providing them with engaging learning provocations and encouraging hands-on investigations, we can ignite their passion for science and nurture that innate curiosity.
This blog post has a range of activities that are suitable for both kindergarten and first-grade classrooms. From using their senses to exploring and observing the weather to learning about the impact of seasonal weather changes on plants and animals, I’ve put together a collection of stimulating ideas that will leave your students asking to discover more.
Before we explore all the hands-on weather activities in this blog post, we need to take a little look at the concept of science learning provocations and their role in early childhood science education.
What is a Science Learning Provocation?
A science learning provocation is a hands-on learning invitation. You set them up in your classroom to "provoke" scientific thinking and learning.
When it comes to setting up a learning provocation, the key is to create an environment that sparks interest and encourages your students to ask questions.
A well thought out science learning provocation will encourage your children to explore and investigate concepts and ideas related to your science curriculum learning intentions.
Your science provocations should be intentionally and purposefully designed. I always design them with our science curriculum learning intentions in mind. However, the science curriculum is not the only thing you need to consider.
Your children’s interests and their developmental needs are also important considerations you need to make if you want your learning invitations to be successful.
To set up an intentional weather investigation area, you will need to have a comprehensive understanding of two things.
the curriculum
your children
If you would like some clarification on the ACARA science curriculum and how to teach it effectively though play-based and inquiry learning, you should read this blog post: Teaching Science in Early Childhood. It explores in greater detail how to effectively teach all those science curriculum learning intentions through hands-on activities and learning provocations.
Setting up a Weather Science Provocation
Setting up your weather science provocations can be as simple or as elaborate as you like. If you are keen to set up purposeful science learning provocations, begin with these 3 easy steps:
1. Choose a Space
A provocation for learning about the weather should be set up in a clearly defined space. Most teachers choose a designated science table or bench. You can also set up engaging and effective learning provocations in a portable tray, on a shelf or even on the floor. The size of the area is dependent on the learning intent and the resources you will be using.
2. Consider Design Principles
If you consider basic design principles when you set up your science learning provocations, your investigation area will be inviting and engaging. A well-designed science learning space requires a bit of thoughtful planning.
Design the area so it will be easy for your children to keep tidy. Well organised and labelled resources in baskets and are easily tidied up by the children. An organised science area also sends the message to your children that the resources should be respected and cared for.
A cluttered investigation area can be distracting and might even negatively impact focused learning. We certainly don’t want that!
The design principles of colour, texture and lighting all have an impact on the aesthetics of your science investigation areas. Consider using natural materials, soft lighting, and neutral tones to create a peaceful focused space.
3. Reinforce Learning Intentions
Focus on your science curriculum learning intentions by adding relevant resources and tools. Think about texts, posters, and vocabulary cards related to weather.
Also, add clipboards, blackboards, whiteboards, cameras, or blank notebooks for your children to record their learning. This documentation can be discussed during the reflection time with the whole class and during your explicit science teaching lessons.
You might like to also add direct challenges or open-ended questions related to weather. I call them learning prompts.
Learning prompts play a crucial role in learning provocations that encourage students to think critically and explore independently. By posing questions like What do you wonder about weather? or How does the temperature affect the weather patterns we observe? you invite your students to reflect, hypothesize, and delve deeper into their understandings. The goal is to foster a sense of wonder and curiosity that provokes your students to actively engage in their own learning journey.
The ACARA Version 9 Earth and Space Sciences Learning Intentions
In Version 9 of the Australian Curriculum, there are no specific learning intentions for the Earth and Space strand. They appear in Year 1.
In Foundation, learning in Science builds on the Early Years Learning Framework and each student’s prior learning and experiences. Science encourages students to explore their environment and be curious about their surroundings. Students build wonder and their natural curiosity by observing everyday objects, materials and living things and by exploring changes in the world around them, including changes they can effect, such as making things move or change shape. They learn that observations can be organised to make patterns and that these patterns can be used to make predictions about phenomena. They seek answers to questions they pose using their senses to gather different types of information. They understand that making observations and predictions is a core part of science.
If you are interested in teaching Weather in the Foundation stage, these are the learning intentions you would address:
Science as a Human Endeavour:
Explore the ways people make and use observations and questions to learn about the natural world. Using their senses to make observations and exploring how scientists use their senses as well as equipment to make observations. Exploring how First Nations Australians gain knowledge about the land and its vital resources, such as water and food, through observation. (AC9SFH01)
Science Inquiry:
Pose questions and make predictions based on experiences. (AC9SFI01)
Engage in investigations safely and make observations using their senses. Recording observations using numbers, dots, drawings, voice recordings, digital photography or video. Use simple digital tools to explore sorting data and information provided as part of learning experiences. Classify and group data using digital familiar tools to answer simple questions. (AC9SFI02)
Represent observations in provided templates and identify patterns with guidance. (AC9SFI03)
Compare observations with predictions with guidance. Revisiting their predictions and with guidance identifying whether their predictions matched their observations. Using a provided table to draw or dictate their prediction and their observation and identifying whether they are the same or different. (AC9SFI04)
Share questions, predictions, observations and ideas with others. Sharing questions, making predictions and describing observations to others through discussions and circle groups. Communicating questions, predictions and observations using posters, collages, digital displays, drawings or storyboards. (AC9SFI05)
In Year 1, there are learning intentions specifically addressing Weather. Then there are lots more related to Science as a Human Endeavour and Science Inquiry.
Science Understanding:
Describe daily and seasonal changes in the environment and explore how these changes affect everyday life (AC9S1U02)
Science as a Human Endeavour:
Describe how people use science in their daily lives, including using patterns to make scientific predictions. Recognising how First Nations Australians use changes in the landscape and the sky to answer questions about when to gather certain resources. Sharing examples of how they have used science knowledge at home, such as by listening to or viewing weather forecasts or observing weather patterns when planning family events or outings, or wearing appropriate clothing for the season. (AC9S1H01)
Science Inquiry:
Pose questions to explore observed simple patterns and relationships and make predictions based on experiences. Making predictions about patterns of observable phenomena such as seasonal changes of plants or changes in temperatures across the seasons. (AC9S1I01)
Suggest and follow safe procedures to investigate questions and test predictions. (AC9S1I02)
Make and record observations, including informal measurements, using digital tools as appropriate. recording observations through text, drawing, counts, informal measurements, digital photography or video. (AC9S1I03)
Sort and order data and information and represent patterns, including with provided tables and visual or physical models. Using drawings or digital photographs to document changes in weather over a series of days or weeks. Ordering images of seasonal changes across the year. (AC9S1I04)
Compare observations with predictions and others’ observations, consider if investigations are fair and identify further questions with guidance. Exploring if making weather observations at different times of day makes a difference and considering how they could compare weather across each day more fairly. (AC9S1I05)
Write and create texts to communicate observations, findings and ideas, using everyday and scientific vocabulary. Exploring the difference between everyday and scientific vocabulary when describing objects or events. Representing seasonal changes of plants using sequential drawings, calendars or digital photographs. Role-playing or recounting how people they know or have observed identify and use patterns to make predictions at work or in their daily lives. (AC9S1I06)
Learning prompts can of course be linked to your Earth and Space Sciences learning intentions, but sometimes these prompts can also come directly from your students. Take note of their questions. These can become wonderful learning provocation prompts.
Now you know what a science learning provocation is and how to set up your own purposeful and engaging science investigation area, we can explore the hands-on weather activities I have had success with in my play based classroom.
11 Hands-on Weather Activities and Provocations for Science Investigation Areas to Teach About the Weather
Classroom Weather Station
Consider creating a weather discovery station in your classroom. Add interesting visuals like weather pictures and posters to encourage discussions and create interest in the area. Include any age-appropriate books on weather too. You can use both factual and fiction texts.
Add other related weather resources like weather instruments (like thermometers, wind vanes, and rain gauges), models, and experiments to make the space inviting and thought-provoking. By immersing your students in a captivating environment, you can tap into their curiosity and lay the foundation for exciting hands-on Weather investigations.
Weather Sensory Bin
Transform a corner of your classroom with a weather sensory bin. This hands-on learning provocation combines sensory play with weather-related elements and will invite your students to explore, create and discuss many different weather events and scenarios.
To set up your weather sensory tray, begin by displaying interesting photos that depict different types of weather. Add weather pictures and posters that showcase sunny days, stormy skies, rainbows, and snow-covered landscapes. Visuals will serve as conversation starters, encouraging discussions and igniting interest in your weather exploration area.
Next, add some age-appropriate books on the weather. Young children will like to look at both factual and fiction texts. Picture books that beautifully illustrate weather patterns or stories are a great addition too. If you read these books together at a class story time, it can help you link this investigation area to your explicit teaching lessons.
I made a sensory base layer with blue gravel. To provide a sensory experience, include manipulatives that suggest different weather types:
A large yellow pompom for the sun
Puffed out cotton balls for clouds
Bent glittery pipe cleaners for lightning
Glass pebbles for raindrops
When children make a weather picture in the sensory tray, don’t forget to take a photo of their creation. Your children will feel so proud if you print and display these in the weather investigation area. You can also use them as writing prompts in your writing area or in a guided writing lesson.
Weather Gnomes for Small World Weather Play
Create some cute little weather gnomes and let your kids bring them to life in a weather themed small world play area.
Small world weather play is a delightful learning provocation that invites children to immerse themselves in imaginative play while exploring weather concepts.
To set up a small world play invitation on a weather theme, start with these weather gnomes. They are easy to make! Check out this blog post: How to Make Weather Gnomes
In the post, I provide step-by-step instructions, along with heaps of crafting tips and tricks to bring these delightful characters to life.
These little weather peg dolls each represent different weather conditions. They include rain, sunshine, wind, or snow, and will capture the imagination of your students. They are such a great invitation to storytelling and imaginative play.
Some ideas for other weather-themed small world props to add could include sand, blue glass gems and natural elements like rocks, twigs, and leaves to create a realistic seasonal vibe. Your children might like to play with cotton balls for clouds, small umbrellas for rainy days, or a pompom mini sun too.
An imaginative play space like this becomes a canvas for your students to create their own weather narratives and experiment with different weather scenarios so make sure to include some blank weather booklets or clipboards and paper so your kids can record their ideas.
Small world weather play is an opportunity for young learners to develop a deeper understanding of weather concepts and the impact it has on our daily lives. By exploring this imaginative learning invitation, your students will build their creativity, storytelling skills, and scientific thinking. So, gather your materials and head to the blog post: How to Make Weather Gnomes so you can invite the weather gnomes into your classroom!
Weather Story Stones
Weather story stones are a great option to add to your small world play, to the writing table, and to sensory play trays.
Making story stones is a fun and creative activity that both you and your students can enjoy. They will be a great resource for children learning about the weather or the Earth and Space curriculum.
Here's a step-by-step guide on how to make them:
Gather Your Materials: To make story stones, you'll need smooth glass stones, wood slices or rocks of various sizes, printable weather icons, scissors or a 1 inch circle paper punch, paintbrushes, and a waterproof sealant (I like Mod Podge or PVA Glue).
Clean and Prepare the Stones: Start by washing the stones with soap and water to remove any dirt and dry them thoroughly before adding the icons.
Print and cut out the weather icons. Use scissors or a circular paper punch.
Using the paintbrush, apply a thin coat of the Mod Podge or PVA glue onto your stone. Paint it all over the general area where you would like to have your weather icon. Mod Podge dries clear, so you don’t need to be exact.
While the Mod Podge is still wet, place the icon on top and gently smooth it down with your finger.
Still working while the Mod Podge is wet, apply another coat of Mod Podge over the top of the icon. Ensure you apply it out over the edges of the cut icon. Smooth it all down with your finger. Then smooth out any ridges in the wet Mod Podge with your brush.
Set aside and allow to dry thoroughly. Sometimes this can take 24 to 48 hours. You can speed up the drying process with a hair dryer.
Now they are all ready for storytelling activities, small world, or sensory play. Story stones are a really versatile resource to have in the classroom. You can add your weather story stones to a Science Weather table or Weather Station. They also make wonderful loose parts to add to the blocks area. Weather Story Stones can even be used in the writing area to extend vocabulary or used as a writing stimulus.
If you would like the icons already done for you and ready to download and print, I have 2 sets for you to choose from. There’s a boho-coloured set and a traditional brighter-themed set.
When using the story stones, encourage your children to choose and discuss the stones that they would like to tell a story about. These stones can inspire drawings and paintings at the art table too.
The beauty of story stones lies in their open-ended nature. They can be counted, sorted, used to spark conversations, and even become characters in their own right.
Whether it's a stone portraying a swirling tornado, a radiant sun, or a fluffy cloud, each image will serve as inspiration for your young storytellers to create their own weather narratives.
Autumn Art and Writing Provocation
By setting up an Autumn provocation, you can cultivate an environment that encourages children to connect with nature, embrace their senses, and talk about their experiences with this colourful season.
Start by bringing in some locally sourced items from your local environment. Collect a variety of natural materials like colourful leaves or pinecones and add them to a dedicated investigation area. These tactile materials not only serve as prompts for observation and exploration but also provide opportunities for vocabulary development and discussions around climate and the seasons.
Enhance the Autumn atmosphere in your learning invitation by incorporating visual aids like posters or photographs that showcase the beauty of this season. Display images of Autumn landscapes, changing foliage, or seasonal fruits and vegetables. These visuals can spark conversations and inspire children to reflect on their own experiences and observations of Autumn.
I always like to add texts to our learning invitations, so consider adding some Autumn-themed books to your provocation. Add both factual and imaginative texts that celebrate the season. Encourage children to immerse themselves in the stories, inspiring them to explore their thoughts, emotions, and connections to Autumn.
Provide open-ended materials for creative expression and mark-making. Offer drawing or painting supplies and craft materials in Autumn tones. Resources like these invite children to represent their ideas, thoughts, and experiences about Autumn in various forms of languages – through writing and art.
Encourage discussions and reflection by using open-ended questions or prompts related to Autumn. Display questions like "What do you love most about Autumn?" or "How does the changing season make you feel?" These prompts invite children to express their thoughts, engage in meaningful conversations, and deepen their understanding of the unique characteristics of Autumn.
By creating an inviting Autumn provocation, you're fostering an atmosphere of curiosity, creativity, and connection with nature. Children will be encouraged to explore their sensory experiences, express their emotions, and share their observations. This provocation serves as an invitation for children to embrace the beauty of Autumn and develop a deeper appreciation for the wonders of the changing seasons.
Sorting Plants and Animals into Climate Habitats
Sorting is a fundamental mathematical and scientific skill that lays the foundation for critical thinking and problem-solving. It is one of the most important skills children need to master in kindergarten and grade one so make sure to add the opportunity for children to learn and practice this skill frequently.
One exciting way to get your kids involved in sorting activities is by inviting them to explore and categorise animals and plants based on different climates. This activity fosters a deeper understanding of the seasons and climates. It also develops their sorting abilities in an engaging and meaningful context.
To create a weather-related sorting provocation, gather a collection of animal and plant figures that represent various climates. I set up ones for the rainforest, a desert, and a snowy polar region. If you don’t have many small toys, you can always use pictures.
Provide sorting mats or labelled containers that represent each climate zone. Your students will love sorting the animals and plants into their various climates.
Encourage your kids to discuss the thought processes and reasoning behind their sorting decisions. This learning provocation will spark conversations about the characteristics and adaptations of the creatures and vegetation in each climate. It will not only develop their sorting skills, but also promote scientific thinking and classification skills.
Don’t forget to add other learning resources like books, vocabulary cards, and posters to provide further information about the various climates. You will be surprised how often your children will use these related resources.
Weather Data Collection
My students love this easy-to-set-up data collection provocation when we are learning about the weather. It is part of my Boho-themed Weather Investigation Display Pack
I use it to help me teach weather vocabulary, record and display the daily weather and set up beautiful weather themed Math/Science Investigation areas.
There are 10 bonus learning provocation prompts also included so you will be able to easily integrate the Earth and Space Science Learning Intentions into other classroom curriculum and learning areas too if you want.
This pack contains:
A WEATHER Banner
10 Illustrated Weather Vocab Cards
A Poster to display the daily weather
Weekly Weather Observations Poster to record the weather in a table format
Weather Vocabulary desk mat or wall display
A Weather Learning Provocation to integrate Math Data Collection skills
10 Weather themed Learning Provocation Prompts to use in your art area, play dough table, collage area, tinkering table or construction zone
2 editable display posters or provocation prompts. The editable text boxes are included so you can quickly and easily personalise the themed pages before printing.
This comprehensive display pack is also available in a bright theme HERE.
Create a DIY Wind Tunnel for Investigative Play
This hands-on exploration of wind properties is hands down one of our most popular weather activities. With just a sheet of laminate, some tape, and a fan, you can create a DIY wind tunnel that sparks curiosity and encourages children to experiment with different objects as they soar through the tunnel.
To set up this exciting weather activity, head to your school library and beg for a sheet of laminate. Once you have your material, fold it into a cylinder shape, securing it with tape to form the structure of the wind tunnel. Punch a few holes around the top edge to tie on some string. I suspend this end from the ceiling. When the fan below is turned on, a gentle breeze will flow through the tunnel, simulating the sensation of wind.
Next, put an electric fan, face up on the table under the cylinder. I like to put the fan inside a basket to stop it wobbling around on the table. You will need to hold the wind tunnel to keep it steady while the fan is turned on. Don’t worry, your kids will quickly get the hang of it.
Now comes the fun part! Encourage your children to explore the properties of wind.
Provide them with a range of objects, such as feathers, paper airplanes, cotton balls, or small lightweight toys. Your kids can experiment by sending these items up the wind tunnel, observing how they interact with the airflow. They can investigate how the speed and direction of the wind affects the movement of different objects.
Feathers from our collage trolley are always the first thing they head for. Tissues are also popular. Someone always tries to send a wooden block up the tunnel. 🤣
As children engage in this hands-on exploration, prompt them to make predictions, ask questions, and discuss their observations. Encourage them to think critically about the properties of wind and how it impacts the objects they test in the wind tunnel. This open-ended inquiry allows children to develop their scientific thinking skills and fosters a deeper understanding of the concepts related to wind and air movement.
After a day or so of experimenting, someone usually comes up with the idea of making a small parachute. Encourage children to design and create their own objects to test in the wind tunnel, such as homemade kites or wind-powered contraptions. This allows them to apply their knowledge, engage in problem-solving, and express their ingenuity.
This is a very popular investigation. The excitement of the first few items sailing up the tunnel are always met with little squeals of delight. The excitement is contagious and the learning engagement is fantastic!
You can read more about it here on this blog post: Weather Wind Tunnel
Observing the Day Sky
Part of our Weather Unit in grade one involves children observing the day and night skies. This learning provocation invites children to observe the day sky in a fun and engaging way and invites them to paint what they see.
To create this engaging learning experience, prepare a selection of frames of various sizes and shapes. These can be made from cardboard, craft sticks, or any other sturdy materials you have available. I found a few blank frames in the craft section of the discount store. Attach the frames to your classroom windows, ensuring they are securely fixed and offer clear views of the sky.
Invite your students to observe the day sky and its ever-changing elements by looking through the frames. Encourage them to notice and discuss the colours, cloud formations, presence of birds or airplanes, and any other phenomena they encounter.
Add some printed prompts to deepen their observations. "What shapes do you see in the clouds?" or "How does the sky change throughout the day?" are a couple you might like to use.
Once children have had the opportunity to observe and discuss the day sky, supply easels and paints for children to record their observations through the art of painting. Have various paints, brushes, and paper on hand so your kids can experiment with colours, shades, and brushstrokes. You might even like to add collage materials like cotton wool balls and cellophane.
This creative process not only reinforces their scientific observational skills but also enhances their artistic expression too.
Weather and Block Play
Adding these popular rainbow blocks to your block play area is a great way to invite children to explore rainbows and the weather through block play.
These colourful building materials not only enhance fine motor skills and spatial awareness but also ignite imaginative play and facilitate meaningful discussions about the weather. By adding rainbow blocks to your block play area, you can create an opportunity for your children to construct and represent their understanding of rainbows and weather patterns.
These blocks can be made of wood, plastic, or other suitable materials, featuring different colours that mimic the hues of a rainbow. I purchased my rainbow blocks cheaply from Kmart but there are numerous rainbow block sets available through Grimms.
Wonderful discussions can happen through block play when you prompt your students to consider how the weather affects their block creations and how they can incorporate elements like rainbows into their designs.
This open-ended play not only fosters creativity but also cultivates critical thinking skills as children explore the relationships between the weather and their constructions. Through these conversations, children can expand their vocabulary, deepen their knowledge, and make connections between their play experiences and real-world weather events.
Make sure to include some rainbow-coloured pencils and pens and a clipboard with paper so your students can record their learning and draw their structures. To further enhance the learning experience, provide resources like weather-themed books or images of rainbows and weather phenomena that children can refer to and gather inspiration from.
Recording Learning in a Weather Book
Writing is a powerful tool that allows children to express their thoughts, ideas, and knowledge. When it comes to weather exploration, providing opportunities for children to write about the weather not only enhances their literacy skills but also deepens their understanding of weather concepts.
One effective way to encourage weather writing in your classroom is by creating blank weather books and placing them in your writing center. These weather books serve as an invitation for children to document everything they know about the weather.
To implement this engaging weather writing activity, prepare a set of blank weather books for your students. These can be simple folded booklets made from paper or more elaborate journals dedicated to weather writing. Place these books in your writing center, and stand back. Children love making their own books.
To encourage your students to use scientific and accurate language as they write about the weather, add weather-related vocabulary cards and posters to your writing area. You could even create a weather word wall. Don’t forget to add word banks related to weather elements like temperature, precipitation, or cloud types.
Once children have completed their weather books, add them to your classroom library area and read them together to revise science understandings and concepts.
And an added bonus! These little books provide you with evidence of learning and are also a great way to assess student understandings.
By introducing blank weather books into your writing center, you foster a love for writing, nurture weather-related knowledge, and provide a means for assessment and revision. As children document their weather observations and ideas, they develop their literacy skills, expand their vocabulary, and solidify their understanding of weather concepts.
It’s a WIN- WIN!!
Now all you need to do is grab some resources and get started. I would love to see any of the weather provocations you set up in your room. If you post any pics on Instagram – please tag me @myteachingcupboard so I can check them out!
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Conclusion
In this blog post, we have explored some fun and exciting weather activities that will spark curiosity and foster scientific learning in your kindergarten or first-grade classroom.
We started by discussing the power of learning provocations in science, emphasising the importance of setting up an inviting environment that sparks curiosity and encourages hands-on investigations.
Whether it's a weather sensory tray, weather gnomes for small world play, story stones, or an Autumn provocation, these learning provocations invite children to explore, express their thoughts, and engage in meaningful science learning.
We also looked at some great ideas for observing the day sky and looked at how simple window frames can transform classroom windows into discovery windows. By encouraging children to observe the day sky and paint their observations, we not only foster their observational skills but also develop their artistic expression.
Incorporating sorting activities into the curriculum was our next idea. By providing opportunities for children to sort animals and plants into different climates, we enable them to practice sorting while also deepening their understanding of weather and habitats.
We also explored the excitement of wind exploration through a DIY wind tunnel. By allowing children to experiment with objects in the wind tunnel, we tap into their natural curiosity and provide them with a hands-on experience that enhances their understanding of wind properties and aerodynamics.
Incorporating rainbow blocks into block play was another learning invitation we explored. By introducing these colourful building materials, we invite children to explore rainbows and weather phenomena, encourage creativity, critical thinking, and connections between the natural elements.
Lastly, we uncovered the power of writing by providing students with a provocation to write about the weather, we enhance their literacy skills, deepen their understanding of weather concepts, and create valuable assessment and revision resources.
Investigations, imaginative play, and mark-making can give your students valuable learning experiences that all align with the ACARA Science learning intentions. You can do it all by using these engaging hands-on weather activities in your classroom.
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