Activity: Weather and seasons – Early Learning

Quick summary: This activity has been developed to give children the opportunity to learn more about weather and seasons. Through play and experimentation, children investigate how objects change in colour and texture when wet. Older children explore different types of weather and how different types of weather affect people and our environment.

This activity is designed to help connect children to the wonders of the natural world through sensory and play-based learning.

EYLF Learning Outcome	Elaborations
Outcome 2: Children are connected with and contribute to their world	3. Children become socially responsible and show respect for the environment
Outcome 4: Children are involved and confident learners	1. Children develop dispositions for learning such as curiosity, cooperation, confidence, creativity, commitment, enthusiasm, persistence, imagination and reflexivity 2. Children develop a range of skills and processes such as problem solving, enquiry, experimentation, hypothesising, researching and investigating 3. Children transfer and adapt what they have learned from one context to another 4. Children resource their own learning through connecting with people, place, technologies and natural and processed materials

 

Equipment needed:

• Ages – 0 to 3: Tub of water and pouring cups. A range of objects to get wet: try to pick some objects that don’t look or feel very different when wet (such as a plastic cup or a metal spoon) and some objects that look and feel quite different when wet (such as a stone that changes colour, or beach glass, or fabric, or soil or sand). Try to include objects such as paper or bread that will be damaged or disintegrate with water. Also consider including an object like soap that will become very slippery when wet. You may want to experiment in advance to see what the changes to objects will be when they are wet.
• Ages – 3 to 5: Weather and seasons flashcards

Supporting resources:

• Weather and seasons flashcards
• Websites – Climate Kids – NASA
• Collect items and images that are associated with the theme of weather and seasons to use as conversation starters.

Other resources:

• Cool Australia Climate Change Toolbox
• Cool Australia Climate Change video (below)

Cool Australia Presents Climate Change from Cool Australia on Vimeo.

 

Cool Australia would like to acknowledge the support of the Seedlings Early Years Education for Sustainability (EYEfS) program.