Special guest teaches first graders about weather

At the School District of Haverford Township, first grade students recently had a special guest to aid their learning about weather. All first graders in the district study weather, pushes and pulls, and organisms. This includes six weeks of the weather, where students learn that the physical world is made of materials that can be identified by their unique properties and are organized into interconnected systems. They learn weather is characterized by features such as temperature, wind speed and direction, and precipitation as well as that weather may be quantified using tools such as thermometers, rain gauges, and wind speed and direction indicators. They even build mini rain gauges and measure the rain. Students also learn water exists in solid, liquid and vapor states. Clouds and fog are made up of droplets of water. Finally, students learn humans can use their observations and records to understand and forecast the weather. Scientists who do this are called meteorologists.

The first-grade students in the district were virtually joined by meteorologist Sue Serio of Fox 29 to meet and discuss all that they had learned about the weather and ask questions. One student wanted to know how a Rainbox happens and Sue Serio explained all of the concepts to the children at a first grade level. Another had a story to tell Sue Serio about his rain gauge. Many of them said they saw her many different times on TV! It was a connection that the children will always remember.