1 Summer and winter
ADULT-LED
Explore the differences between summer and winter weather and clothing.
Planned learning intention
To look closely at differences
Adult:child ratio 1:4
Resources
Summer and winter posters and pictures of people appropriately dressed for each season; fabrics in 'hot' colours (red and orange) and 'cold' colours (blue and silver); blankets; selection of winter clothes and snow gear; summer clothes and sun hats, sandals and sunglasses; cuddly toys and dolls; empty washing-up liquid bottles of the same size; very thick and very thin material, such as felt and muslin
Preparation
* Use the resources to set up summer and winter areas. Drape the winter area with cold-coloured fabrics to give it a chilly feel and the summer area with hot-coloured fabrics.
* Make 'dolls' out of the plastic bottles and cylinders of each cloth that will fit tightly round the bottles.
Activity content
* Discuss with the children the clothes that they wear in summer and winter. Talk about how the right clothes keep us warm.
* Fill the washing-up liquid dolls with hot water and dress some of these dolls with felt and others with cotton. Ask the children to predict what will happen.
* Leave the bottles to one side, and feel them every five minutes or so.
Discuss why the bottles covered in muslin have cooled faster than those wrapped in felt.
Things to say
* What clothes are they wearing now?
* Do you need to put on coats and gloves and scarves to go outside today?
* I wonder whether you would wear this in summer or in winter?
* Can you remember when your hands got really cold? Why was that? What did you do to warm them up?
* Tell me about a time when you were too hot. What did you do to cool down?
* Why do you think this bottle stayed warmer than this one?
Stepping stones
* Children with little experience may dress up, or dress the cuddly toys, in an arbitrary way, disregarding whether the clothes are for summer or winter. They will enjoy feeling and covering the hot bottles, without noticing that the insulated ones stay warmer for longer.
* Children with some experience will be able to talk about winter and summer, and appropriate clothes for each season. They will notice that the bottles with thicker coverings retain their heat for longer, but may not be able to say why.
* Children with more experience will take part in the activity and concentrate for longer periods. They will talk about summer and winter clothes, and will know what each garment is useful for. They will engage with the hot-bottle activity with interest, and will offer possible explanations why some bottles stay warmer for longer.
Extension ideas
* Put appropriate holiday brochures in winter and summer areas, and encourage the children to dress up to go on holiday. Compare the different things you do in hot and cold weather: swim in the sea, or skate on ice; stay in the shade and eat ice creams, or run around in the winter sun and eat warm soup.
* Talk about dressing in layers to keep warm, and then take the layers off as you get too warm. Decide which is the best order to put on your clothes.
* Fill three bottles, one with very warm, one with tepid and one with very cold water. Ask the children to shut their eyes, touch the bottles and to describe how they feel.
* Set up a hat shop selling summer and winter hats. Children buy and sell them according to their function: to protect their heads from the hot sun, to keep their ears warm, and so on.
2 Melting moments
Child-initiated
Explore and melt ice cubes.
Resources
Bowls, little pots, pan; ice cubes in different shapes, with objects such as tiny dinosaurs or sequins frozen inside them or made with coloured water; ice trays; cloths, sponges, to wipe up water and towels for the children to dry their hands; warm water in which the children can warm their hands when they get too cold
Play suggestions
* Talking about what the ice feels like and how it makes their hands feel.
* Putting ice cubes in water and watching how they float.
* Putting some ice cubes in cold and some in warm water and comparing melting times.
* Comparing the cold of the ice on the hands, and the warmth of the bowls of warm water.
* Placing little pots of ice cubes in different areas, such as in the sun, on the radiator, in the fridge, in a dark corner, and comparing melting times.
* Filling ice trays with water, putting them in the freezer (using oven gloves) and checking them from time to time.
* Helping to heat up an ice cube in a small saucepan so it melts, then boils, then evaporates. (Be mindful of health and safety hazards.)
* Sliding ice cubes down a plastic chute or piece of guttering.
Things to say
* How long can you hold the ice cube before your hand gets too cold?
* What do you think will happen if I squeeze this ice cube?
* How can I make my hands warm again?
* Where has all this water come from?
* Why do you think the ice will melt quickly in the pan?
Possible learning outcomes
* Enjoys playing with the ice and getting hands cold.
* Discusses the feel of the ice and the coldness with adults and children.
* Notices and comments on the changes as the ice melts.
* Compares the coldness of the ice and the warmth of the water or the radiator.
* Begins to get a sense of what happens when a cube of ice melts.
3 Wood and metal
CHILD-INITIATED
Feel hot and cold objects.
Resources
Metal objects (which conduct heat well); blocks of wood (which are good insulators); plastic boxes, one containing a block of ice, the other a hot water bottle filled with warm water
Play suggestions
* Touching the pieces of wood and metal objects.
* Comparing how the items heat up and cool down when placed in the boxes.
Things to say
* Do the metal objects feel colder thanthe wood?
* What will happen if we warm the wood and the metal objects on the hot water bottle?
* Do the metal objects cool down very quickly?
* What do you think will happen when we place them on the block of ice?
Possible learning outcomes
* Shows curiosity in exploring the feel of the objects.
* Describes the temperature of the objects in simple terms.
* Shows an awareness of how the temperature changes over time.
* Displays high levels of involvement in activities.
* Takes risks and explores within the environment.
