Weather
Primary 4 · English
Weather
Lesson 1 of 5
40 min
This morning in Kigali, the sky was blue and the sun was shining. By lunchtime, dark clouds came, and it started to rain! Gatete ran into the classroom, wet from head to toe.
The weather can change very quickly. Today you will learn to talk about the weather and to give a weather report.
This text is adapted from the Simple English Wikipedia article Weather.
Weather is the way the air around us changes from day to day, and even from hour to hour. Weather includes sunshine, wind, rain, storms, lightning and hail.
Heat from the Sun changes the weather, too.
Changes in the weather affect the lives of people, animals and plants. People wear different clothes and do different things in different weather.
Weather stations measure the weather. They measure how hot or cold the air is (the temperature), how fast the wind is blowing, and which way it is blowing. Scientists called meteorologists use these measurements to make weather forecasts. A forecast tells us what the weather will be like in the future.
Name three things that weather includes.
Possible answers: sunshine, wind, rain, storms, lightning, hail.
What is the temperature?
How hot or cold the air is.
Who makes weather forecasts?
Scientists called meteorologists.
Why is a weather forecast useful for a farmer?
Possible answer: it helps the farmer to know when to plant or when to dry the harvest.
Many weather words are made by adding -y to a noun:
| Noun | Describing word | Example |
|---|---|---|
| sun | sunny | It is sunny. |
| cloud | cloudy | It is cloudy. |
| rain | rainy | It is a rainy day. |
| wind | windy | It is windy. |
| fog | foggy | It is foggy in the valley. |
| storm | stormy | It is stormy. |
Look at sun → sunny and fog → foggy: short words double the last letter.
For temperature, say: hot, warm, cool, cold. It is 26 degrees. It is warm.
To talk about the weather right now, use is + -ing:
Keza: What's the weather like today?
Mugisha: It's sunny and hot.
Keza: Is it going to rain?
Mugisha: Maybe. There are some dark clouds over the hill.
Keza: Then I will take my raincoat.
| Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| sunny, 27° | cloudy, 24° | rainy, 20° | windy, 23° | sunny, 26° |
Speak: Be a weather reporter on the radio! Look out of the window and say: “Good morning! Here is the weather for today. It is … and … The temperature is about … degrees. Take your …!”
Write: Start a weather diary. Every day this week, write one sentence about the weather and draw a small picture.
Tip
Add -y to the sky: sun → sunny, cloud → cloudy, wind → windy, rain → rainy.
Right now? Use is + -ing: It is raining.
Write your answers in your exercise book, then check.
Write the weather word made from cloud.
Answer: cloudy
Complete: Take your umbrella! It is ___ (rain) now.
Answer: raining
Look at the chart. What was the weather like on Wednesday?
Answer: It was rainy, and the temperature was 20 degrees.
Which is warmer: 27 degrees or 20 degrees?
Answer: 27 degrees
Answer in a full sentence: What's the weather like today?
Answer: Example: It's cloudy and cool, and the wind is blowing.
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 word to its weather word.
Tap one on the left, then its partner on the right.
