Name Weather folklore Weather forecasters A sunshiny shower won t last half an hour. Rain before seven; clear by 11. Yellow streaks in sunset sky, wind and daylong rain is nigh! Red sky at night, shepherd s delight. Red sky in the morning, shepherd s warning. Evening red and morning grey, speed the traveller on his way. Evening grey and morning red, bring down rain upon his head! The south wind brings wet weather, the north wind, wet and cold together. The west wind always brings us rain, the east wind blows it back again. Plant forecasters When the dew is on the grass, rain will never come to pass. When the daisy shuts its eye, rain will tumble from the sky. If you see toadstools in the morning, expect rain by evening. Dandelion blossoms close before a storm. Animal forecasters When the birds are flying low, expect the rain and a blow. IMAGES PHOTOS.COM/JUPITERIMAGES/GETTY IMAGES; WORDS SUE JACKSON Crows on the fence mean rain, crows on the ground mean fine weather. When a cow tries to scratch her ear it means a shower is very near! Cats scratch a post before a wind, wash their faces before rain and sit with backs to the fire before snow. When spiders weave their webs by noon, fine weather will follow soon. Expect rain and severe weather when dogs eat grass. When the rooster goes crowing to bed, he will rise with a watery head. PHOTOCOPIABLE 1 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus
Weather folklore (cont...) Long-range forecasters If ducks do slide at Hallowtide, at Christmas they will swim; if ducks do swim at Hallowtide, at Christmas they will slide. (Hallowtide 31 October and 1 November) Year of snow, fruit will grow. Ash before the Oak, the summer s all a soak. Oak before the Ash, the summer s but a splash. (Refers to when the trees come into leaf.) If autumn leaves are slow to fall, prepare for a cold winter. A large crop of acorns a harsh winter is due. Cloud forecasters If cumulus clouds are smaller at sunset than at noon, expect fair weather. A round-topped cloud and fl attened base, carries rainfall in its face. When mountains and cliffs in the clouds appear, some sudden and violent showers are near. Mare s tails and mackerel scales, make tall ships carry low sails. Monthly forecasters If Candlemas Day be fair and bright, winter will have another flight. If Candlemas Day be cloud and rain, then winter will not come again. (Candlemas Day 2 February) As it rains in March, so it rains in June. April showers, bring forth May flowers. IMAGES PHOTOS.COM/JUPITERIMAGES/GETTY IMAGES; WORDS SUE JACKSON St Swithin s Day, if thou dost rain, for 40 days it will remain; St Swithin s Day, if thou be fair, for 40 days twill rain nae mair (it will rain no more). (St Swithin s Day 15 July) Rain in October gives wind in December. A cold November, a warm Christmas. A warm November and a bad winter s on its way. Wind in the north west on St Martin s Day, there s a severe winter on the way. Wind in the south west on St Martin s Day, there it will remain till February, and a mild winter will come and play. (St Martin s Day 11 November) PHOTOCOPIABLE 2 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus
To make a weather station a piece of peg board roughly 20cm x 30cm a square of wood roughly 10cm x 10cm a wooden stake at least 50cm long a plastic box roughly 20cm x 10cm, or a cardboard box covered in sticky back plastic to waterproof it (both should have the front removed) a thermometer some metal ties in different sizes a plastic drinks bottle a couple of nails and a hammer a windsock (a fabric cone with a hole at each end) some string a permanent marker pen a piece of fabric or clear plastic. Note: This activity should be supervised. 1. To make a shelter for your thermometer, attach an outdoor thermometer to the inside back of the box using sticky tape, making sure that you can see the scale. Protect the thermometer from the elements by making a curtain from the piece of fabric or plastic for the front of the box. Fasten it in place with sticky tape. 2. Attach the box to the piece of peg board using metal ties. To make sure the thermometer is secure, you could also attach it to the peg board through the box using metal ties. (See diagram for positioning.) 3. To make the rain gauge, remove the lid of the plastic drinks bottle, and cut off the top section. Invert the top of the bottle into the bottle base, to act like a funnel. Use sticky tape to keep the inverted bottle top in place. Starting from the bottom, mark the plastic bottle at 5mm intervals using a permanent marker pen. Attach the rain gauge to the peg board using metal ties. 4. To make the wind vane, mark the square of wood at the mid-point of the sides with N, E, S and W. You could also mark the midpoints between these points: NE, SE, SW and NW. Nail the square of wood to the top of the wooden stake making sure that the nail head sticks out a little at the top. Position the square of wood so the N is on the same end as the thermometer. Attach the windsock to the nail with a length of string. 5. Your weather station is now finished. Position away from buildings and overhanging trees that could affect the readings. Dig a hole, put the stake into the ground, making sure the N on the wind vane points north, then fill the hole with soil and firm the ground. Use a spirit level to make sure the weather station is as level as possible so the rain gauge gives accurate readings. Note: You will need to empty the rain gauge every day to get accurate readings that are not heavily affected by evaporation. PHOTOCOPIABLE 3 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus
To make a hygrometer (humidity) a block of wood roughly 20cm x 30cm two small nails and a hammer three strands of human hair about 20cm long an isosceles triangle cut out of thin but stiff plastic (one side 4cm, two sides 7cm) a 5p coin sticky tape glue. Note: This activity should be supervised. 1. Pierce the plastic triangle with a nail half way along the 4cm side. 2. Using the hammer and nail, attach the triangle to the block of wood towards the bottom making sure that the triangle moves freely on the nail. (See diagram for positioning.) 3. Attach the 5p coin to the pointy end of the triangle using sticky tape. 4. Hammer the other nail into the block of wood about 15cm above the first nail and a little to the right. 5. Glue one end of the three strands of human hair to the higher nail then, making sure the hair is pulled taut and is perpendicular to the pointer, glue the other end of the hair to the plastic pointer as shown in the diagram. Ask a classmate to hold the pointer straight while you glue the hair to the triangle. 6. Make a mark on the block of wood to show the position of the pointer at this point (see diagram). 7. Place the hygrometer in a spot near the weather station. If it s humid, the hair will expand and the pointer will point down, if the air is drying out, the pointer will point up. If you record the humidity patterns over a period of time and compare it to weather records, they will help you to forecast the weather. PHOTOCOPIABLE 4 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus
To make a barometer (air pressure) a glass jar a balloon scissors a straw sticky tape a piece of A4 white paper. Note: This activity should be supervised. 1. First, cut the neck off the balloon. 2. Stretch the body of the balloon over the top of the glass jar to form an air-tight lid. 3. Place one end of the straw in the middle of the balloon lid and stick it in place with sticky tape. Make sure the straw is long enough so the other end extends over the end of the jar. 4. Place the jar in front of a wall, making sure it s away from a busy area. 5. Stick the A4 paper to the wall and mark the starting point of the straw. 6. Monitor the straw over a few days and mark on the paper when it moves. How it works A barometer is used to forecast the weather by measuring changes in air pressure. When air pressure is decreasing, it often indicates the arrival of low pressure that frequently brings clouds and a good chance of rain. Increasing air pressure suggests high pressure is approaching and with it, clearer or finer weather. With this experiment, you will know when the air pressure is high because the balloon lid will be sucked inwards. This will make the straw point up. When the straw points up, it indicates that fine weather is on the way. When the air pressure is low the balloon lid will be pushed outwards making the straw point down. When this happens it indicates that unsettled weather with rain is on the way so you might need your umbrella! PHOTOCOPIABLE 5 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus
five plastic vending cups two straight plastic straws a pin To make an anemometer (wind speed) a hole punch a stapler a sharp pencil with a rubber on the end paint. 1. Take four of the plastic cups and punch a hole 1cm below the rim of each one. Paint one of the cups a different colour. 2. Take the fifth cup and punch four evenly spaced holes 1cm below, and around the rim. Punch another hole in the middle of the base of the cup. This cup will be the one in the centre (see diagram). 3. Take one of the plastic cups with only one hole. Feed the straw through the hole. Bend the end of the straw and staple it to the inside of the cup on the opposite side of the hole (see diagram). 4. Repeat stage three with one of the other cups with one hole. 5. Take one of the cups with the straw attached. Feed the loose end of the straw through two opposite holes in the five-holed cup (see diagram). Attach another one-holed cup to the end of the straw and staple into position. 6. Repeat stage five with the other cup and straw, feeding the straw through the remaining two opposite holes in the central cup and attaching the last cup on the end of this straw. 7. Align all the cups so the open ends face the same way (clockwise or anticlockwise). 8. Push the pin through the drinking straws where they intersect. 9. Push the rubber end of the pencil through the hole in the bottom of the central cup and push the pin into the rubber as far as it will go. 10. The anemometer is ready! Take it outside and hold it up in the wind. To calculate wind speed: Count the number of times the anemometer rotates in exactly one minute. This is the revolutions per minute (RPM). (The coloured cup should make this easy to see. Count each time it passes you.) Convert your answer for RPM to miles per hour (MPH) using this formula: RPM X 0.2142 = MPH. Example: If the anemometer rotates 30 times in one minute, the MPH is: 30 x 0.2142 = 6.426. So, the wind speed is 6.4 miles per hour. PHOTOCOPIABLE 6 Junior Education Plus October 2009 www.scholastic.co.uk/junioredplus