Dec. 14, 2005: Falling Ice and Snow

The Mini Page is a syndicated, four-page tabloid written for young children found each Wednesday in the Rocky Mountain News. This issue of The Mini Page is available through the eEdition Archive to registered eEdition subscribers. Click here to learn about subscribing to the eEdition at no cost to you (for Colorado teachers).

Activities:

1. Draw a picture of yourself and some friends playing in the snow.

2. Ask family members and friends to tell you about a time they remember in the snow or freezing rain. Do any people have similar memories? If the person you ask has never seen snow or freezing rain, ask what he/she would like to do in the snow.

3. Look at the weather map in your newspaper. Circle the symbols for different kinds of precipitation. Where is any precipitation falling today? What kind of precipitation is it?

4. What type of precipitation forms when (a) rain meets cold air just above the ground, (b) water vapor collects around tiny bits of ice, (c) rain falls through layers of cold air, and (d) frozen rain collects more water as it is pushed up and down through the atmosphere.

5. People in many cold weather locations have celebrations organized around snow and ice. Use resource books and the Internet to learn about one of these special events. Use these questions to guide your research:

• What is the name of the cold weather festival or celebration?
• Where does it take place?
• When does it take place?
• What "precipitation" activities take place at the event?
  
  

This week's standard:

• Students understand changes in the Earth and sky. (Science: Earth and Space Science)
  
  (standards by Dr. Sherrye D. Garrett, Texas A&M University-Corpus Christi)