With the weather turning colder, it's a good time to talk about the changes in the trees, the darker evenings and of course, the weather.
I've shared some simple activities to investigate the changing weather and develop maths and science skills at the same time.
Make a Rain Gauge
Take a large plastic bottle and cut it in half. The edges where you've cut can be sharp so cover in tape to protect little hands.
Fill the bottom of the bottle with some stones or other heavy items to weigh it down.
Pour water until it just covers all of your stones or heavy items.
Tape the top of the bottle inside the bottom half upside down like a funnel.
Put a line of coloured tape vertically down the side of the bottle. Make a line to indicate 0 at the water level. Then use a ruler or tape measure to mark off and label centimetre measurements up the tape. If you don't have any coloured tape you could do this straight onto the bottle or on paper that you cover in sellotape.
Leave the bottle in a rainy place and check the water level after any rain falls.
You can record the rainfall by day of the week together using our free rainfall table. Download here.
Make an Anemometer
Cut two strips of cardboard and staple or tape together in the centre to make a sturdy X shape.
Take 4 paper or plastic cups or yogurt pots and staple or tape them firmly to each end of the X facing the same way in a circle.
Push a pin or tac down through the top of the cardboard X and through to secure into a rubber on the end of a pencil. This creates a simple handle to hold it up with.
Test by blowing into the cups at different strengths then go outside on a windy day and hold up your anemometer facing into the wind.
Count the number of spins in 10 or 20 seconds to record the wind speed. You could make one of the cups or pots a different colour so it's easier to count the spins.
You can record the wind speed by day of the week together using our free wind speed table. Download here.
To get more activities to do at home together, you can join Little STEAMers Club for fun science, technology, engineering, arts and maths on your own schedule.