A fun way to explore basic weather concepts
Community Review for Weather by Tinybop
My Take
This app provides a nice introduction to a variety of weather concepts but it seems a little less developed than other Tinybop apps. I found it to be more reactive than interactive, for example students could touch and see/learn about how air molecules react in heat or how hurricane force winds act but they are not able to create and control things as they can in other apps. I wish there were also numbers on the temperature gauge so students could learn at what temperature water freezes and when flowers will wilt. Like with other Tinybop apps, there is a nice handbook that goes with the app to provide prompting questions and added support for the development of weather vocabulary. I hope over time, the developers will add a way for students to do more experiments in the app and maybe document their findings with a built-in journal or lab book.
How I Use It
I think this app would be a great center in a science class or K-2nd grade classroom. Students can explore different types of weather (water, wind, temperature, and clouds). The labels give students a good starting point for further research and exploration and the visualizations provide a good foundation for students to conceptualize abstract concepts like the water cycle and changes in water and air molecules.