Weather
Primary 6 · English
Weather
Lesson 2 of 5
45 min
Grandmother Mutesi looks at the dark clouds over the hills and says, “Bring the washing in. It is going to rain.” She is making a prediction: saying what she thinks will happen.
Meteorologists make predictions too, but they use instruments. Today you will read about the tools that measure the weather, and learn how to say how sure you are about the future.
This text is adapted from six Simple English Wikipedia articles: Meteorology, Thermometer, Rain gauge, Anemometer, Weather vane and Barometer.
Meteorology is the science of the air around the Earth. Meteorologists record the temperature, the air pressure, the speed and direction of the wind and the amount of rain. They use this information to understand the weather and to predict it. Farmers, pilots, sailors and many other people depend on their forecasts.
A thermometer measures temperature: how hot or cold something is. Some thermometers are narrow glass tubes with a liquid inside that rises when it gets warmer. Others are digital.
A rain gauge measures how much rain has fallen in a certain time. A funnel collects the rain in a container marked in millimetres. The gauge is placed on open ground.
An anemometer measures the speed of the wind. It is found in most weather stations. Its name comes from the Ancient Greek word for wind.
A weather vane has a pointer, often an arrow, that turns freely to show which direction the wind is blowing from. To work well, it must be at the highest point of a building, as far as possible from anything that could block the wind.
A barometer measures air pressure. Changes in air pressure help meteorologists to predict the weather.
Answer each question in your head or in your exercise book first. Then tap Show answer to check.
Which instrument would tell you how much it rained last night?
A rain gauge.
Why should a rain gauge stand on open ground, not under a tree?
The tree's leaves would catch some of the rain, or drip extra water into it, so the measurement would be wrong.
Which two instruments tell you about the wind? What does each one tell you?
The anemometer tells you the wind's speed. The weather vane tells you its direction.
Name two groups of people who need forecasts, and say why.
Example: farmers, to know when to plant or harvest; fishermen on Lake Kivu, to stay off the water when a storm is coming.
| How sure? | Say | Example |
|---|---|---|
| very sure it will happen | will | Those clouds are black. It will rain soon. |
| fairly sure | will probably | It will probably be windy this afternoon. |
| not sure: it is possible | may / might | It might rain this evening, so take an umbrella. |
| fairly sure it won't happen | probably won't | It probably won't be cold tomorrow. |
| very sure it won't happen | won't | The sky is clear. It won't rain today. |
After will, may and might, use the base verb: it might rain, never it might rains or it might to rain.
When you can see the evidence right now, you can also say be going to: Look at those clouds! It's going to rain.
Sometimes we talk about weather that is not real, or very unlikely, just to imagine it. Then we use the second conditional:
If + past simple, ... would + base verb
The if part uses a past verb, but it is not about the past. The past verb is a signal that says “this is only imagined”. With I, he, she and it, careful writers use were: If I were ...
forecast (a report of what the weather will probably be) · predict · temperature · degrees Celsius (°C) · humidity · air pressure · thermometer, rain gauge, anemometer, weather vane, barometer
Tip
Will = I'm sure. Might = maybe.
When you are dreaming about something that isn't true, take one step back in time: If it snowed ... we would ...
Write your answers in your exercise book, then check.
Which is more certain: It will rain or It might rain?
Answer: It will rain.
Correct the mistake: It might rains tomorrow.
Answer: It might rain tomorrow.
Which instrument measures temperature?
Answer: a thermometer
Complete: If I ___ (be) a meteorologist, I would warn farmers about storms.
Answer: were
Complete: If it snowed in Kigali, we ___ (build) a snowman.
Answer: would build
What you learned today
Sources and credits
This lesson adapts CC BY-SA material and is shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Quick check
Match each instrument to what it measures.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
