Preparation • Put out some tarpaulins and pipes etc before heavy rain is forecast in preparation. Gather some good equipment for collecting and channelling rain. Make a ‘magic bowl’ to collect the dinosaur’s tears. Hide/ bury some baby dinosaurs in your outdoor area where they won’t be found during experiential collection of the rain.

Session Outline • Obviously you need a rainy day for this activity- the heavier rain the better! • Explain that Mummy dinosaur has lost her babies and the rain is her crying as she’s looking for

them. • Our job is to collect as many dinosaur tears as possible, pour the whole group’s collections into

a magic pot, and make magic to return the dinosaur babies back to their mother. • Give each child a plastic beaker and talk about how it is empty, but we need to make it as full

as possible of tears (rain). Talk about some good places to collect the rain, discussing the materials, angles and methods.

• Allow experiential learning through collecting rain and pouring it into the group’s magic pot. • When time is out or the pot is full, gather the children together and discuss the best/ worst

places to collect the rain and reasons for this. • Make a magic chant and reveal the lost baby dinosaurs. Allow children some free play with the

dinosaurs if time permits before returning them to the magic pot for their mother to find. Differentiation: HA- Can discuss reasons for the best and worst places to collect the rain water. LA- Help with identifying the best places to collect rainwater. Extension: Could the children build their own water collection structures using pipes, bowls,

tarpaulins, etc?

Lesson Objectives Children will experiment with rainwater, learning the best natural places to collect it. Resources Plastic beakers, guttering pipes, bowls, tarpaulins, funnels; ‘Magic Bowl’ (this could just be a small bowl decorated with stars); tiny dinosaur toys. Key Vocabulary Weather, rain, water, clouds, trickle, drip, downwards, collect, capacity, full, empty. Risk Assessments Generic Site RA. Teaching Points This is a fun activity for a very rainy day, but also teaches the children about the water cycle, gravity, capacity, weather, forces and materials through play and experiential learning. It might be worth putting out some tarpaulins and pipes etc before heavy rain

is forecast in preparation.

EYFS Links

PSED: Chooses resources they need for chosen activities. C&L: Responds to what they hear and see with relevant comments or actions. PD: Handles equipment and tools effectively. M: Uses everyday language to talk about capacity. UW: Explains why some things occur. EAD: Represent their own ideas through stories and role play.

Learning Outcomes

LA - Children will collect rainwater in

their outdoor environment.

MA - Children will collect rainwater in

their outdoor environment and talk about the best and

worst places to collect it.

HA - Children will collect rainwater in

their outdoor environment and talk about the best and

worst places to collect it, giving reasons linked

to materials and angles.

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Dinosaur’s Tears

EYFS

TOPICS

EYFSSEASONS &WEATHER

DINOSAURS