Weather
Science SOL: 2.6
Miss Ahrens
Second Grade
What is weather?
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Weather is how hot or cold it is outside.
It can change everyday.
Weather can be sunny or not.
The weather changes because of the
changes in the atmosphere.
The atmosphere is the area around the
Earth, the sky. It is a mixture of gases.
What is the Water Cycle?
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Evaporation-Water from lakes, oceans,
puddles and rivers is dried up by the sun
causing water vapor to rise in the sky.
Condensation-Water vapor condenses
(forms) into clouds (and sometimes fog).
Precipitation-When clouds become too
heavy with water it falls to the ground in the
form of rain, hail, sleet, or snow.
Water and the States of Matter
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Liquid--Water is a liquid. Rain is a liquid.
Solid--When frozen, water is a solid. Ice, snow,
sleet, and hail are solids. Frost is frozen dew.
Gas--Water vapor is a gas that condenses into
clouds. Fog is also made from water vapor
floating in the air. (Like a low cloud). Dew is water
vapor condensed on the ground.
Types of Weather
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Cloudy
Cold
Cool
Hail
Hot
Lightning
Rainy
Sleeting
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Snowy
Stormy
Sunny
Temperature
Thunder
Warm
Windy
Temperature
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Temperature tells us how hot
or cold it is outside.
It is measured by a thermometer.
Thermometers measure the temperature in
degrees.
There are two ways that temperature can
be measured: Fahrenheit and Celsius
degrees.
Precipitation: Rain and Snow
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Water that falls from the sky.
Rain—Drops of water that fall
from the sky.
Snow—Ice Crystals that fall
from the sky.
Hail—Ice that falls from the sky during
thunderstorms or tornadoes.
Sleet—An icy mixture of rain and snow.
Clouds
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Clouds are formed by evaporated water.
Clouds are condensed water vapor.
There are different types of clouds:
Altocumulus, Cirrus, Cirrostratus,
Cirrocumulus, Cumulonimbus, Cumulus,
Nimbostratus, Stratocumulus, and Stratus.
Wind
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Wind is air that is moving.
It is caused by warm air rising and cool air
moving under it.
Wind is caused by hot and cold air pushing
together.
Lightning
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Electric sparks from the sky.
Sparks from a rain cloud to the Earth.
These sparks heat the air up and we see
the flash of heat (lightning).
Lightning happens in thunderstorms.
There are different kinds of lightening: fork
lightning, ribbon lightning, and bead or
chain lightning.
Thunder
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Thunder is caused by lightning.
Lightning heats the air up so hot that it
makes the hot air bump into the cold air.
This bumping sound is thunder.
Types of Extreme Weather
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Blizzard
Drought
Flood
Hurricane
Thunderstorm
Tornado
Blizzard
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Blizzards are bad snow storms.
They have lots of wind.
The wind blows the snow and makes it
hard to see.
Blizzards have very cold temperatures.
There is a lot of snow in a blizzard.
We will miss school in a blizzard.
Drought
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A drought is when there is no rain for a long
time.
All the plants dry up and usually die.
The ground becomes hard and cracked.
Most animals have to go somewhere else
to find water.
Flood
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Floods happen when there is too much rain
for the ground to soak up.
Sometimes rivers and lakes overflow
causing floods.
Sometimes floods happen when there is a
lot of snow that melts.
A flood is where there is a large amount of
water that covers dry land.
Hurricane
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A strong spinning storm.
They begin over the ocean and run into the
land.
Hurricanes have strong winds that destroy
homes.
They have lots of rain and cause flooding.
The rain pushes the ocean water on the
land and causes more flooding.
Thunderstorm
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These storms have lots of lightning.
They have lots of loud thunder.
They have howling winds.
Some thunderstorms have a lot of rain.
Some storms do not have rain.
Thunderstorms have dark clouds.
Tornado
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Tornadoes have powerful winds.
The winds make a spinning funnel cloud.
The funnel clouds destroy homes and
buildings.
Some are strong enough to pick up cars.
They have dark clouds.
There is rain and sometimes hail.
Measuring Weather
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Barometer—Instrument used for measuring
air pressure.
Rain Gauge—Instrument that
tells how much rain has fallen.
Thermometer—Instrument used to
measure temperature.
Weather Vane—Instrument used to tell
which way the wind blows.
Weather Data
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Data means information.
Meteorologist—A person who studies
weather.
Data is very useful for predicting and
determining weather patterns and what the
weather will be.
Data is collected and recorded using
different instruments.