Rainy Day Science

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In Texas, you never know what the weather will bring.  We may start out the day with rain and 50 degrees, and end the day with blistering sun and a temperature at 80 degrees.  This can be a challenge for the outdoor classroom.  Flexibility and an appreciation for emergent curriculum is an advantage.  Much to the chagrin of some of my co-teachers, I try not to let a little rain stop me.  A case in point.....

We donned rain ponchos, grabbed our hand lenses and went exploring.

Some of the leaves collected water drops.  This cabbage leaf looks like a swimming pool for a lady bug.

During the exploration, we discovered that some organisms really like the rainy day.  We looked at different types of fungus.

When the rain stopped, we found a big puddle in the parking lot.  I challenged the children to "think like a scientist" and make observations about the puddle. Several children noticed that the surface of the water acted like a mirror.  They commented that they could see the trees and the building in the water.  One child noticed that the water was moving.  I asked her what was making the water move.  She watched for moment and then answered, "the wind".

Finally, some children noticed that leaves were floating on the surface.  I asked them if they could create an experiment using the puddle.  They gathered items found on the ground and conducted a sink and float experiment.  At one point a pansy was floating.  The wind caught it and moved it forward.  One child picked it up, then placed it back on the water.  But, it was turned upside down.  The children noticed that instead of floating, it partially sank.  After a period of discussion, they decided that it sank because it had water on top of the petals.  And water made it too heavy to float.