Clouds Activity

Clouds are given different names according to their shape and how high or low they are in the sky. This fascinating activity teaches children about the ten major cloud types, how they are formed, what type of precipitation they can produce, and much more about our atmosphere and weather. An excellent activity for research and discussion in the classroom or at home. The set consists of a printed fabric control mat measuring 55 x 35 cm (about 21" x 14"), a working mat measuring 67 x 35 cm (about 26" x 14"), cloud image cards, labels, descriptive/info cards, and a booklet. A list of suggested activities follows:

1. Using the control mat as a control of error, children place the images of each cloud at the correct altitude level on the working mat.
2. The child places a label under each cloud on the working mat, using the control mat as a control of error.
3. Study the control definition cards.  Once the child is confident, they move onto working with the cards that have a redacted word, by writing the redacted word on a separate sheet of paper.
4. Place the header cards on a working mat.  The children build a matrix of the images of clouds (from the definition cards), under the relevant title on the header cards.
5. Placing the header cards on a work mat, the children match the mix & match labels under the title on the header cards.
6. Once the children have mastered the activities, they can use their new-found knowledge and the mix & match labels to make up the names of other clouds.
7. The booklet provides the teacher/parent with an overview of the material.  The children or the teacher can use the booklet as a control, to check information and as reading practice for the child.

This new weather vocabulary stimulates the child’s imagination to investigate further and to broaden their vocabulary.