There was a farm set on the light table and there were tadpoles in an aquarium nearby. One child (in the Green Frog class of course) was taken with the frog-to-tadpole sequence models and wanted to add them to the farm set-up. I asked, “Don’t they need some water?” and he said he would add a pond. He got blue paper, another child drew the oval pond shape, and another cut it out, each one contributing their expertise. Somehow that developed into making a model of a weather system (I missed the connection) and one child added a storm cloud, puddle, lightning, and thunder, all represented with paper shapes which they allowed me to label.
Then they hung the rain clouds over the light table using pipecleaners taped to the bookcase and the play began in earnest. Wish I had taken more photos. When I shared with the parents one of them replied, “I’m so glad you let me know about this! I asked my child about it at breakfast this morning, and he went into a ten minute, detailed explanation. Wish I had been there to see it—thanks for the pictures!”
Read more about connecting your students to changes in the weather in the April/May 2010 Young Children. In the Methods & Strategies column, “Making the Climate Connection,” Bruce Larson writes about beginning teaching about climate by teaching about weather and about “learning progressions”—the order in which students can best learn and understand science concepts. The column is chock full of resources for K-1, 2-3 and 4-5, as well as adult learners, with additional resources listed online.
Take a look!
Peggy