An Integrated Unit on Those
Curious Clouds! Nancy VandenBerge
Firstgraadewow.blogspot.com Graphics by djinkers and melonheads
Some books to gather and read for this unit: The Cloud Book by Tomie DePaola It Looked Like Spilt Milk by Charles Shaw Cloudette by Tom Lichtenheld It’s Your Cloud by Joe Troiano
This little unit includes: Information page on clouds Two cloud poems Cloud comparison chart to post Cloud comparison matching activity for kids Cloud watcher template Pics of how to use cloud watcher Cloud watcher recording sheet Three main kinds of clouds interactive chart for journals Cloud watcher reporter It looked Like Spilt Milk activity with written expression Rain cloud in a jar activity Place value mystery picture (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 vapor. When warm air rises, it expands and cools. Cool air can't hold as much water vapor as warm air, so some of the vapor condenses onto 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.
Why do clouds float? A cloud is made up of liquid water droplets. A cloud forms when air is heated by the sun. As it rises, it slowly cools it reaches the
saturation point and water condenses, forming a cloud. As long as the cloud and the air that its made of is warmer than the outside
air around it, it floats!
How do clouds move? Clouds move with the wind. High cirrus clouds are pushed along
by the jet stream, sometimes traveling at more than 100 miles-per-hour. When clouds are part of a thunderstorm they usually travel
at 30 to 40 mph.
Cloud What is fluffy? What is white?
What can you see When skies are bright?
What can float? What brings rain?
What may be higher Than a bird or plane?
Say it out loud : Cloud!
Floating clouds up in the sky,
Changing shapes as you pass by.
Floating by without a sound. Won't you come
and touch the ground? Floating clouds up in the sky,
Changing shapes as you pass by.
Kinds of Clouds
cirrus White,
feathery, highest
stratus Wide blankets of gray, “high
fogs” low
stratocumulus
Gray, low in the sky, lumpy
cumulus Puffy, flat
bottoms, low in the sky
cumulonimbus
Thunderstorm clouds, look like mountains of
very tall cumulus clouds
Kinds of Clouds Cut squares apart. Use for a matching game.
cirrus White,
feathery, highest
stratus Wide blankets of gray, “high
fogs” low
stratocumulus Gray, low in
the sky, lumpy
cumulus Puffy, flat
bottoms, low in the sky
cumulonimbus
Thunderstorm clouds, look like mountains of
very tall cumulus clouds
Cut out
Cloud Watcher
Copy on blue cardstock. Cut on the dotted line above. Cut out the center square on the dotted line as well. Attach a stick (Or use a pencil!) to act as a handle. Kids draw different cloud formations using white/gray crayon. Go outside and observe clouds. Record findings on recording sheet
Firstgradewow.blogspot.com
Name___________________________
Cloud Watcher Scientists take time to observe everything around them. Go
outside and observe the clouds. Draw what you found.
Three Main Types of Clouds cirrus, stratus, cumulus,
Cut on dark black lines Cut on short horizontal lines. Fold flaps on dotted line. Label flaps with type of cloud. Glue into science journal
Cloud Reporter ___________________
Yesterday we saw _____________ clouds Today we see _____________ clouds Tomorrow we will see _____________ clouds
Cloud Reporter ___________________
Yesterday we saw _____________ clouds Today we see _____________ clouds Tomorrow we will see _____________ clouds
Read and enjoy, discuss, predict, etc. It Looked Like Spilt Milk by
Charles Shaw.
Mix equal parts of white glue and shaving cream. Plop a spoonful
onto blue paper. Have kids create a shape from the mixture. Allow to dry overnight. The mixture will stay puffy and soft like a cloud!
Have kids write about what they created using the predictable text
from the book. “Sometimes it looked like a ________, but it wasn’t a _________ .It was
just a cloud in the sky!” See pics on following page.
Firstgradewow.blogspot.com
Rain Clouds in a Jar Materials Shaving cream Water Clear cups or jars Blue food coloring droppers Instructions Fill the jars 3/4 of the way with water and then top with shaving cream. Allow a few minutes for the shaving cream to fully settle on top of the water In a bowl mix several drops of blue food coloring with a little bit of water. Have kids fill a dropper with blue water and squeeze it onto their cloud counting the drops as they fall. Have them squeeze more and more blue water into the cloud. As the cloud fills with water it will begin to “rain”
Firstgradewow.blogspot.com
Name ________ Think Outside the Box This is not a Cloud! What can you create?
c l o u d s k y h i
w a t e r o o o i c
o o s t o r m o g h
l s h a p e o o h a
c i r r u s r a i n
s t r a t u s o o g
o o b l a n k e t e
c u m u l u s n o w clouds sky drops water cirrus
cumulus stratus high shape low blanket change rain snow storm
***Now write about your favorite kind of cloud on the back.
Name ______________ Find the cloud words in the puzzle.
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70
71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80
81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90
91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10
11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20
21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
31 32 33 34 35 36 37 38 39 40
41 42 43 44 45 46 47 48 49 50
51 52 53 54 55 56 57 58 59 60
61 62 63 64 65 66 67 68 69 70
71 72 73 74 75 76 77 78 79 80
81 82 83 84 85 86 87 88 89 90
91 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 100
Name ____ Place Value Mystery Picture
Solve the clues. Color the boxes blue. Line out the clues as you complete them!
1 one, 2 ones, 3 ones, 4 ones, 5 ones, 6 ones, 7 ones, 8 ones, 9 ones, 1 ten, 1 ten and 1 one, 1 ten and 2 ones,1 ten and 4 ones, 1 ten and 8 ones, 1 ten and 9 ones, 2 tens, 2 tens and 1 one, 2 tens and 8 ones, 3 tens, 3 tens and 1 one, 6 tens and 1 one, 7 tens, 7 tens and 1 one, 7 tens and 2 ones, 7 tens and 4 ones, 7 tens and 8 ones, 8 tens, 8 tens and 1 one, 8 tens and 2ones, 8 tens and 3 ones, 8 tens and 4 ones, 8 tens and 7 ones, 8 tens and 8 ones, 8 tens and 9 ones, 9 tens, 9 tens and 1 one, 9 tens and 2 ones, 9 tens and 3 ones, 9 tens and 4 ones, 9 tens and 5 ones, 9 tens and 6 ones, 9 tens and 7 ones, 9 tens and 8 ones, 9 tens and 9 ones, 1 hundred
I made a _________________________