Drawing Weather Patterns to Track Daily Changes

Grade 1 · Science · 45 minutes

Objective

Students will observe and record weather patterns by creating visual weather journals over multiple days.

Materials

• paper
• crayons
• markers
• chart paper
• weather observation sheets

Hook

Let's go to the window and look outside together! What do you see in the sky right now? Draw a quick picture of what the weather looks like today on your paper.

Main Activity

Students create personal weather journals by drawing daily weather observations including clouds, sun, rain, or snow. They use different colors and shapes to represent weather patterns, drawing symbols for sunny (yellow circle), cloudy (gray puffy shapes), rainy (blue lines), and snowy (white dots) conditions. Each day for one week, students add a new weather drawing to their journal and compare their observations with classmates. They create a class weather chart showing patterns they notice, discussing how weather changes from day to day. Students then design their own weather symbols and predict what tomorrow's weather might look like based on their observations.

Discussion Questions

1. What patterns do you notice in our weather drawings from this week?
2. How can drawing help us remember what the weather was like?
3. What weather symbols would you create to show a windy day?
4. Why do you think the weather changes from day to day?
5. How do the clouds in your drawings look different on sunny versus rainy days?

Exit Ticket

Draw one weather pattern you observed this week and write or tell one word that describes it.

Differentiation

Support: Provide weather symbol templates for students to trace and color, focusing on just two weather types like sunny and cloudy.

Extension: Have students create a weather prediction book with detailed drawings showing what causes different weather patterns, including wind direction arrows and temperature colors.