Weather Routines

Week 1

Weather Routines

Decide whether these activities will be conducted once, daily, weekly, or monthly. Some of these are the same ones I have listed for Kindergarten but there are new activities this year for 1st grade as well. Remember you aren’t doing everything on this list, pick the activities that best suit your children. Choose the activities that will help them grow as learners and that fit with your style of teaching.

Styles: Traditional Approach, Charlotte Mason Approach, Montessori Approach, Waldorf Approach.

(Teacher To Do: Have your child start brainstorming a list of science topics they might be interested in learning more about. They will pick 1 to go in-depth with during weeks 3-4. So having them pick one sooner will give you time to grab books from the library and any other learning materials you might want to set out. I recommend letting this be an open-ended exploration. A good place to start is by creating a list of questions your child has about a topic and start looking for places to find the answers. Even ask them where they think you should look to help them find the answers to their questions. It doesn’t need to be decided this week, but should be decided by the end of week 2.)

  • Use a weather bar graph or tally graph to chart the weather. Throughout and at the end of the year compare your monthly graphs.
  • Read a real thermometer and record the temperature each day.
  • Read: Flash, Crash, Rumble, and roll by Franklyn Branley
  • Read: Weather Forcasting by Gail Gibbons
  • Read: Looking at Weather by David Suzuki
  • BrainPop Video– Temperature
  • Read Ch. 4 in this 1st grade Science online textbook. (Read about 3 pages each day)
  • Complete these extra writing worksheets that go along with Ch. 4 listed above
  • Read: Thunder-Boomer
  • A little simple but a good introduction to weather.
  • Scholastic Mini-Book of the Week- “What Will the Weather Be?”
  • Magic School Bus Episode 113 “Kicks Up a Storm” – About weather
  • Cut and Paste: Science Page 30, 31, 32
  • Cut and Paste: Science Page 53 (if related to rain)
  • DK Workbook weather page 45 and 33
  • eduplace.com Social Studies Textbook state: Georgia username: grade1ourcountry password: 123456. Unit 3 – Page 56-61
  • A great Science video about taking notes. You get to practice recording rainfall in your journal and make a graph.
  • Take frequent nature walks and make weather observations. Take photos and make sketches in a nature journal.
  • Guess what temperature it is several times a month.
  • Once a month discuss what color the weather reminds you of. Make a page in your nature journal to record your color with images or watercolors.
  • Write a monthly letter to a friend or relative telling them about the current weather.
  • Resource Books on Weather:
    • Living Book “Outdoor Secrets” by Margaret P. Boyle
    • Treasury of Children’s Poetry – page 58, 60, 62, 63, 64, 66, 67, 142, 143, 144, 218, 219
    • The “Let’s Read and Find Out about it” series by various authors
    • Parables of Nature by Margaret S. GattyThe Among the… series by Clara Dillingham PiersonHandbook of Nature Study
    • Temperature: Heating Up and Cooling Down

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  • Set out a mini weather station with binoculars, an outdoor thermometer, a barometer, weather books, and other weather materials.
  • Have your child place felt weather pictures or laminated weather picture cards up on a felt board or in a pocket chart to represent the weather for the day.
  • Lesson on Weather: Water Cycle Kindergarten Types of Weather on Comparing Different Types of Weather. The worksheet that goes with this lesson.
  • Create a weather display by punching/cutting leaf shapes out of various colored cardstock. Choose colors to represent warm & sunny, windy, rainy, cloudy, etc. Each day have your children describe the weather and choose the right leaf. Then have them write the numerical date on the leaf. Create a vine out of string or yarn and attach the leaves in order.
  • Enjoy the weather each day, week, or month. Play in the sunshine, jump in puddles, play in the rain or snow, etc.
  • Include open ended pay for your child each day. A good resource for parents on this is: Seven Times the Sun: Guiding your child through the rhythms of the day by Shea Darian.
  • Children are also encouraged to spend time each day helping with chores.