Weather and Seasons: Enquire
How do we measure weather?
Provide learners with the opportunity to observe and compare daily weather patterns through enquiry, helping them to understand how weather conditions are measured and recorded to help see any patterns and changes over time.
This is recommended as session three in the Key Stage One Weather and Seasons unit, supporting learners to investigate how to measure weather.
Preparation
Green skills
- Recording data
Step by step
Quick Starter Activity
Begin by asking learners what types of weather they can think of to record.
Ask them to think about how they might measure temperature, wind, rain or cloud cover and if they can think of different ways they could record this information so that other people would understand it.
Main Activity Suggestions
Suggestion 1 (Indoors/Outdoors)
Oak National Academy: Make a rain gauge. This activity can be used to support children to measure rainfall by making a rain gauge.
Suggestion 2 (Indoor)
Met Office: Weather carousel. An introductory quiz to explore a range of weather reporting stations and understand the importance of weather forecasting.
Suggestion 3 (outdoor)
ASE Primary Upd8: Summer sun? In this activity, learners will investigate ways of measuring sunshine and discuss the validity of these methods.
Top Tips
Consider inviting a volunteer science ambassador with a relevant role to speak with pupils about how they measure and record weather.
Together as a class, create a weather journal, recording the weather conditions (temperature, rain, cloud over) at the same time each day.
Curriculum links
- To observe and describe weather associated with the seasons and how day length varies.
- Working Scientifically Skills - observing closely and gathering and recording data to help answer questions.