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Weather Words And What They Mean
Introduces basic weather terms and concepts.
Paperback
Published January 1, 1990
About the author
Gail Gibbons
182 books169 followersFrom gailgibbons.com: I was born in Oak Park, Illinois, in 1944. Even as a little child, I was always busy putting books together. Sometimes I would bind them with yarn to hold the pages together. I've always loved drawing and painting. I was also a very curious child. My parents tell me that I was always asking lots and lots of questions.
Later, I went on to the University of Illinois, where I studied graphic design. Then I moved to New York City, where I got a job doing artwork for television shows. Eventually I was asked to do the artwork for a children's show. While doing that show, some of the children asked me if I had ever thought of doing children's books. My mind immediately recalled how much I enjoyed doing that type of thing when I was a child. So I put an idea for a book together and right away a publisher bought it. That book was called Willy and His Wheel Wagon. Since then, over 170 books that I have written and illustrated have been published. The type of books I write are non-fiction books. This is because I love researching so much. I get to ask lots of questions, just like when I was a kid. I also get to travel and meet lots of interesting people. While doing research for my book Nature's Green Umbrella: Tropical Rain Forests, I traveled to two islands where there are tropical rain forests, Saba and Dominica. I also had a great time writing and illustrating the book. I get a lot of pleasure from doing the type of work I do.
Later, I went on to the University of Illinois, where I studied graphic design. Then I moved to New York City, where I got a job doing artwork for television shows. Eventually I was asked to do the artwork for a children's show. While doing that show, some of the children asked me if I had ever thought of doing children's books. My mind immediately recalled how much I enjoyed doing that type of thing when I was a child. So I put an idea for a book together and right away a publisher bought it. That book was called Willy and His Wheel Wagon. Since then, over 170 books that I have written and illustrated have been published. The type of books I write are non-fiction books. This is because I love researching so much. I get to ask lots of questions, just like when I was a kid. I also get to travel and meet lots of interesting people. While doing research for my book Nature's Green Umbrella: Tropical Rain Forests, I traveled to two islands where there are tropical rain forests, Saba and Dominica. I also had a great time writing and illustrating the book. I get a lot of pleasure from doing the type of work I do.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
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April 21, 2020Title: Weather Words and What They Mean
Author: Gail Gibbons
Plot: This book has a chronological plot line opening readers to a variety of new vocabulary words about weather.
Characters: There are no characters in this book, it is an informative nonfiction book about different types of weather that we encounter.
Main Conflict: There is no conflict in this story.
Main Theme: The main theme of this story is explicit. This book is an informative picture book providing information about clouds, rain, the sun, and more.
Authors style: This author makes use of each subject she is talking about. The clouds, flowers, sun, and more all feel they are the main characters in the story since there is a lack of actual characters. Pictures are laid out in a comic book style portraying many different kinds of weather.
Point of View: Third person/omniscient
Design and Layout: I enjoyed how the illustrations were laid out and separated throughout this book. It was easy to distinguish between the pictures and what they were illustrating.
Lessons and Standards: 4-ESS2-1 Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation. This could be introduced with the book and followed by a discussion and experiment. 4-ESS3-2 Generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth processes on humans. This could follow a read aloud of this book with a discussion about ways to reduce impacts, and then students could provide a presentation or paper about their ideas.
Overall Assessment: I enjoyed this book and the variety of information it covers about weather. It has an inviting layout and is filled with accurate information.
Author: Gail Gibbons
Plot: This book has a chronological plot line opening readers to a variety of new vocabulary words about weather.
Characters: There are no characters in this book, it is an informative nonfiction book about different types of weather that we encounter.
Main Conflict: There is no conflict in this story.
Main Theme: The main theme of this story is explicit. This book is an informative picture book providing information about clouds, rain, the sun, and more.
Authors style: This author makes use of each subject she is talking about. The clouds, flowers, sun, and more all feel they are the main characters in the story since there is a lack of actual characters. Pictures are laid out in a comic book style portraying many different kinds of weather.
Point of View: Third person/omniscient
Design and Layout: I enjoyed how the illustrations were laid out and separated throughout this book. It was easy to distinguish between the pictures and what they were illustrating.
Lessons and Standards: 4-ESS2-1 Make observations and/or measurements to provide evidence of the effects of weathering or the rate of erosion by water, ice, wind, or vegetation. This could be introduced with the book and followed by a discussion and experiment. 4-ESS3-2 Generate and compare multiple solutions to reduce the impacts of natural Earth processes on humans. This could follow a read aloud of this book with a discussion about ways to reduce impacts, and then students could provide a presentation or paper about their ideas.
Overall Assessment: I enjoyed this book and the variety of information it covers about weather. It has an inviting layout and is filled with accurate information.
December 5, 2019
Generalizes so much that it's not true. I think it would be obvious even to elementary students.
"The weather is hardly ever the same from day to day. That's why it is so interesting". (Examples are people going swimming at the beach because it's so hot and then people wearing coats because it's so cold. Temperature change that drastic DOES happen, sometimes, but it's relatively rare.) On the very next page it gives examples of a desert in Chile where it hasn't rained in 400 years and Kauai where it rains 350 days a year. Do you think "the weather is hardly ever the same from day to day" in those places? Even in not-as-extreme Oklahoma, it's pretty easy to predict the weather in July -- it'll be hot, sunny, and dry. Day-to-day change at certain times of year is minimal.
The author refers to thunderstorms as scary. I don't think this is an idea you want to plant in kids' minds. Some will find it scary on their own and some won't.
"The position of the sun is what causes temperature change." Um, warm and cold fronts have something to do with it, too.
I feel like each two page spread is trying to be a poster that could be on a classroom wall.
"The weather is hardly ever the same from day to day. That's why it is so interesting". (Examples are people going swimming at the beach because it's so hot and then people wearing coats because it's so cold. Temperature change that drastic DOES happen, sometimes, but it's relatively rare.) On the very next page it gives examples of a desert in Chile where it hasn't rained in 400 years and Kauai where it rains 350 days a year. Do you think "the weather is hardly ever the same from day to day" in those places? Even in not-as-extreme Oklahoma, it's pretty easy to predict the weather in July -- it'll be hot, sunny, and dry. Day-to-day change at certain times of year is minimal.
The author refers to thunderstorms as scary. I don't think this is an idea you want to plant in kids' minds. Some will find it scary on their own and some won't.
"The position of the sun is what causes temperature change." Um, warm and cold fronts have something to do with it, too.
I feel like each two page spread is trying to be a poster that could be on a classroom wall.
April 18, 2023
After reading Weather words and what they mean," the author does an excellent job depicting the words with the illustrations. If your kids love reading comic strips as much as I do, then they will love this book. I love how the images within the book give us some sort of collage to of the different seasons and weather types. by reading this book, young readers will be more familiar with the idea of the weather and the correct use of vocabulary to use based off the weather. When discussing temperature, students will understand that a lot more goes into it than just feeling hot or cold. The air pressure and moisture in the air. We will find that the moisture in the air comes from the ocean, while the air pressure if the air pressing down on the earth. In the book, I love how to provides the seasons and how the sun changes in the sky based on the seasons because of the tilt on the axis of the Earth in comparison to the Sun. As an activity, we will explore the outdoors and identify where the sun is in the sky based on what season it is. If it is raining, we can compare the temperature and wind.
April 16, 2019
Weather Words and What They Mean by Gail Gibbons introduces children to all the different types of weather and the different words that are used to describe the weather. Temperature, air pressure, moisture, and wind are the main categories discussed. Through these different categories comes all the different types of weather that can happen from different combinations of temperature, air pressure, moisture, and wind. Such as hurricanes, blizzards, tornadoes, different clouds, and much more.
I give this book a 4/5 stars. It was very educational, and has just about anything you could ever need to know about the basics of weather. How air pressure works, how weather changes, what to watch for. It was very interesting, even for me to read. I think I even learned a few things about clouds and air pressure and how weather changes.
I give this book a 4/5 stars. It was very educational, and has just about anything you could ever need to know about the basics of weather. How air pressure works, how weather changes, what to watch for. It was very interesting, even for me to read. I think I even learned a few things about clouds and air pressure and how weather changes.
March 25, 2018
Gail Gibbons introduces the basic weather concepts to children in the age range 5 and up. There are some characters in this book but they have no names and are not important. The plot is all of the different weather scenarios and how to be prepared if you must. Gail Gibbons uses strong words throughout the book to get a real idea of the weather. Her illustrations are also very distinctive. I think this is a great book for children to understand weather because it does a great job of explaining each category. I gave this book 5 stars because I think it is great for any young child beginning to read and learn about science.
May 2, 2019
1. Characters, setting, plot, etc.: There are no particular characters in this book. The setting is going around and seeing different weather changes. The plot is to teach children the differences in weather and the weather stages.
2. Literary or artistic elements: I really enjoy the comic style looking of this book. The weather definitions are also very kid friendly.
3. Rating on the book: I gave this book a five out of five because of its content. The content is easy to read and I feel like the students can scan through the images even to learn from it. This is an easy book to connect to standards as well.
2. Literary or artistic elements: I really enjoy the comic style looking of this book. The weather definitions are also very kid friendly.
3. Rating on the book: I gave this book a five out of five because of its content. The content is easy to read and I feel like the students can scan through the images even to learn from it. This is an easy book to connect to standards as well.
April 11, 2023
I liked the idea of this book, and think it will be a wonderful tool for kindergarten to third-grade reading levels to learn about weather words, but was dissapointed in the layout of the pages. It was done in a comic/ manga panel style with multiple illustraitons per page that I think warrents a higher reading level to fully comprehend. I'm sad about this because the verbage used was simple and short, so it would have been lovely to add to a pre-K storytime, but the broken up illustrations would cause for eye strain and boredome from the kiddos.
Still a fantastic learning tool that would be best suited for one-on-one or independent reading.
Still a fantastic learning tool that would be best suited for one-on-one or independent reading.
April 1, 2020
The illustrations of this book make it fun to read along. The book gives short explanations about weather, such as the difference between flurries, sleet, and blizzard. Lots of great vocabulary for younger children. The drawings help children to visualize things that cannot really be seen, such as how a front works.
I disagreed with the book presenting thunderstorms in a negative way. "Thunderstorms are scary!" is not a discussion about weather, but an opinion that I don't want my kids to learn.
We read this book as an e-book during the Covid-19 quarantine.
I disagreed with the book presenting thunderstorms in a negative way. "Thunderstorms are scary!" is not a discussion about weather, but an opinion that I don't want my kids to learn.
We read this book as an e-book during the Covid-19 quarantine.
April 9, 2019
I gave this book a 4 star rating because I feel that the book was information and good for young readers to learn about the weather.
The pictures in this book are very well illustrated and the content is very well described. This would be a very good book for K-4 students when learning about the weather. It is loaded with information where I feel the younger students may feel overwhelmed with reading this by themselves. Overall, it is a great read when learning about the weather.
The pictures in this book are very well illustrated and the content is very well described. This would be a very good book for K-4 students when learning about the weather. It is loaded with information where I feel the younger students may feel overwhelmed with reading this by themselves. Overall, it is a great read when learning about the weather.
June 2, 2022
Genre: Non-fiction
Grade Level: Upper Elementary (2-3)
This was a very informative book about weather words and what they mean. I read this book to my kindergarten class at the beginning of the year, but I think some of the more complex concepts were hard for them to wrap their little heads around. For that reason I think this book would be better for upper elementary students. Overall, I would give this book 3 stars.
Grade Level: Upper Elementary (2-3)
This was a very informative book about weather words and what they mean. I read this book to my kindergarten class at the beginning of the year, but I think some of the more complex concepts were hard for them to wrap their little heads around. For that reason I think this book would be better for upper elementary students. Overall, I would give this book 3 stars.
March 14, 2018
This book is a good book because this book has animation but is still informational. Alot of books that talk about weather are boring and uninteresting to children. This book is perfect for children that have questions about the weather. The vocabulary is also clear for the children to understand whats being read and or being read to them.
September 3, 2020
Weather Words and What They Mean is a great educational book that teaches children about weather with pictures and words. I believe children will enjoy reading this book if they have an interest in learning about the weather. Weather Words and What They Mean can be used when introducing a lesson on weather.
January 29, 2021
This book is an infodump, plain and simple! It is too overwhelming to read it all at once. I'm a beginner at homeschooling, so maybe I need to get savvy about how to use a book like this--maybe just read a few pages each day? I'm not sure how much information my daughter will retain from the rapid-fire definitions.
May 19, 2023
Renton Highlands Easy Nonfiction.
Eh. It was clear and did a fairly good job on explaining the words, but it didn't feel very unified. More throwing out a lot of information. The cloud stuff was a bit weak -- we got all the technical names but not how to identify them.
Maybe it would work as a summary book after you've learned the stuff and it would be a good review.
Eh. It was clear and did a fairly good job on explaining the words, but it didn't feel very unified. More throwing out a lot of information. The cloud stuff was a bit weak -- we got all the technical names but not how to identify them.
Maybe it would work as a summary book after you've learned the stuff and it would be a good review.
June 13, 2018
This book was very thorough on types of clouds and main weather words kids will hear. This was very helpful for our unit study on weather. My children are 4, 7, and 10. All of them enjoyed this book. The animations/illustrations were very helpful and while it’s mainly a book with definitions it wasn’t as dry as some other similar books.
April 13, 2023
This book has great detail about weather and really goes in depth with vocabulary. The book is written simplistically but I think that some of the concepts are a little advanced for younger readers, so I am not really sure what age group this book could be used for.
April 16, 2019
Countdown to Kindergarten: Weather
A nonfiction book about the weather. Over their heads, but I read little bits throughout to give them a better understanding of the concept of weather.
A nonfiction book about the weather. Over their heads, but I read little bits throughout to give them a better understanding of the concept of weather.
April 7, 2020
A thorough guide to many types of weather, with lots of weather vocabulary.
August 20, 2020
Great informational book for little inquisitive minds.
February 17, 2021
Good book to have for a science lesson on weather! It has very good definitions and descriptions of every type of weather occurrence, perfect for any child to understand.
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April 27, 2021This nonfiction book is for ages five and up and has a Lexile level of 580L
May 3, 2021
Nice but wordy.
April 12, 2023
This is a good to teach children about weather
April 16, 2024
Good book to discuss weather and why we have certain weather and what happens to make rain.
November 6, 2017
This is another informative book about weather for early childhood students. Descriptive words are used to identify common weather activity, such as temperature, wind, and air pressure. Definitions as well as pictures are provided to help give children a better understanding of each concept. I like how the pictures directly connect with the text in order to make the book easier to follow. This book can be used to create an in class weekly or monthly weather chart with descriptive words. We can also have a weather/ seasons talent show or show and tell in which each student acts out a type of weather.
June 28, 2012
Weather Words and What They Mean, by Gail Gibbons, is a wonderful, non-fiction text about different types of weather. The book helps young children understand a plethora of weather-related vocabulary and covers everything from clouds to rain to fog to thunder and lightning. This book catalogs the different types of clouds and what they mean and do, as well as different types of rain, such as drizzle and showers.
This story is a terrific resource for young children. This book can also easily be used in the classroom by teachers to teach students about commonly-misunderstood weather words. While some of the book’s vocabulary is more advanced (cirrocumulus clouds), I plan to read this parts of this story to my kindergarteners next year. The cartoon illustrations certainly appeal to early readers and can be used to teach about simple aspects of weather, like partly sunny and cloudy.
Overall, I believe the illustrations are the best part of the book. Each picture is colorful and very clear about the various changes in weather. I also love how this is an expository book, yet uses illustrations rather than photographs. As an elementary teacher, this is definitely a book worthy of having in your classroom library!
This story is a terrific resource for young children. This book can also easily be used in the classroom by teachers to teach students about commonly-misunderstood weather words. While some of the book’s vocabulary is more advanced (cirrocumulus clouds), I plan to read this parts of this story to my kindergarteners next year. The cartoon illustrations certainly appeal to early readers and can be used to teach about simple aspects of weather, like partly sunny and cloudy.
Overall, I believe the illustrations are the best part of the book. Each picture is colorful and very clear about the various changes in weather. I also love how this is an expository book, yet uses illustrations rather than photographs. As an elementary teacher, this is definitely a book worthy of having in your classroom library!
March 8, 2014
Another Gail Gibbons book that I use in my classroom, this one still currently being used, as we still teach weather in second grade. I LOVE this book and how much information it is able to give to my students about the weather, clouds, etc. Again, with this book, I allow two days to complete, as it does have big words (cloud names) to discuss, and is full of information that I don't want any of my kids to miss. On the second day, we usually talk about the first half of the book and different facts we have learned, and then continue reading, to ensure once again that not too much is being taken in at one time.
If you are in need of a book to help discuss weather, I completely recommend this one. A great book, that once again has great illustrations!
If you are in need of a book to help discuss weather, I completely recommend this one. A great book, that once again has great illustrations!
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March 8, 2010Introduces basic weather words and concepts. Defines and explains common terms that are sometimes misunderstood. Illustrations enhance explanations.
I love Gail Gibbons! She has a wonderful way of presenting various concepts to the younger student in a direct,simple way that is easy for them to comprehend. Her illustrations are not only bold and fun, but compliment the text as well providing students with great visuals.
I can picture myself using several of her books throughout a science curriculum and then having students make their own concept books using Gibbons as a model.
I love Gail Gibbons! She has a wonderful way of presenting various concepts to the younger student in a direct,simple way that is easy for them to comprehend. Her illustrations are not only bold and fun, but compliment the text as well providing students with great visuals.
I can picture myself using several of her books throughout a science curriculum and then having students make their own concept books using Gibbons as a model.
April 12, 2012
This book could be used along with The Cloud Book by Tomie de Paola as a top shelf book. First graders would be able to use this book to further learning the types of weather and the characteristics associated with it. Some of the concepts in this book would not fall under a first grade standard. Students could use this book to create a list of observations to be made on the weather. Ultimately, a designated classroom job could be created to show the changes in weather data through the school year and through the seasons.
August 29, 2012
Grade: 4th-5th. Topic: Weather, Climate, Clouds
very informative. useful for teaching a lesson on climate or clouds or an entire unit on weather. you could read sections of the book each day to introduce the learning target and focus for the lesson. children could illustrate their own weather pictures and write a description of what type of weather system, using the weather words discussed from the book. the children could watch the weather over a period of time and talk about changes that they saw.
very informative. useful for teaching a lesson on climate or clouds or an entire unit on weather. you could read sections of the book each day to introduce the learning target and focus for the lesson. children could illustrate their own weather pictures and write a description of what type of weather system, using the weather words discussed from the book. the children could watch the weather over a period of time and talk about changes that they saw.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews