What's that in the sky.....

What's that in the sky….is it a bird? Is it a plane? Yes, it is all these things because it's a cloud!

What are clouds?
A cloud is a large collection of very tiny droplets of water or ice crystals. The droplets are so small and light that they can float in the air.

How are clouds formed?
All air contains water, but near the ground it is usually in the form of an invisible gas called water vapour. When warm air rises, it expands and cools. Cool air can't hold as much water vapour as warm air, so some of the vapour condenses into tiny pieces of dust that are floating in the air and forms a tiny droplet around each dust particle. When billions of these droplets come together they become a visible cloud.

Over the past few weeks, K-1M have been investigating the weather, in particular, clouds. As we observed cloud movement in the sky, we discovered the cloud shapes looked like different things including dinosaurs, dragons, faces, turtles and fish! We soon realised how quickly the clouds change shape as well due to the wind.

Our outside lesson allowed us to draw and learn about thermometers- the tool that measures the temperature. We were able to show the correct end of the thermometer for a hot or cold day, and discuss the different types of clothing and activities you might engage in on these types of days. Sienna suggested surfing at the beach on a very hot day wearing swimmers, sunscreen and a hat. Aden talked about the importance of keeping warm in places that had very cold temperatures like the snow, indicating mittens or gloves, very warm clothing and a beanie would be appropriate clothing to wear in this type of weather, especially if you were making snowmen!