The Topic: Clouds Easier - Clouds are large white or gray objects in the sky. Clouds are a collection of very small drops of water or tiny pieces of ice that are held in the air.   Harder - A cloud is a mass of small water droplets or tiny ice crystals that float in the air. Clouds are formed of water that has evaporated from rivers, lakes, oceans, or moist soil and plants. Some clouds are white and fleecy; others are dull gray or black sheets that darken the ground beneath them. Most clouds continually move and change shape. Clouds change as parts evaporate in dryer air or they are moved and reshaped by wind and air currents.   Clouds are an important part of earth's weather. Clouds carry water that falls to the earth's surface as rain and snow to then support all forms of life. Clouds can sometimes bring destruction in the form of hail or tornadoes.   All About Clouds at USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wcloud0.htm At this website, you learn about the different kinds of clouds, their location, where they were formed, and lots more.   Cloud Boutique at the PSC Meteorology Program http://vortex.plymouth.edu/clouds.html Here you can find explanations of and access to detailed pictures of some basic cloud forms.    Clouds http://www-airs.jpl.nasa.gov/html/edu/clouds/Cloud_introduction.html This site explains about clouds and how scientists measure them. There's also information on the water cycle, including evaporation, precipitation, and evapotranspiration.   Cool Clouds for "Kids" of All Ages http://pals.agron.iastate.edu/carlson/main.html Go through the photos sequentially within each group.    Using the websites, complete one or more of these cloud projects:   Create a Cloud Collage. Create a cloud collage using photographs from Cool Clouds for "Kids" of All Ages and other websites. Write about each type of cloud. Or, use the pictures to make a cloud identification game.   Explore the Water Cycle. Go to the All About Clouds, Clouds, and Clouds websites and learn about the role of clouds in the water cycle. Write a story about a water droplet and how it moves in each phase of the water cycle.   Read and Write a Cloud Story. Read the book Sector 7. It's a wordless book about clouds. Create your own wordless book about clouds using the shapes of real clouds. Or, write a story about clouds. Include facts about clouds in your story.   Create a Cloud Chart. Create a cloud chart containing the most popular types of clouds in your area. Keep track of the clouds you see. Use computer software to create a spreadsheet or create a chart. What clouds do you see the most and the least? Why?   Find the Relationship. Keep track of the temperature three time during the day. Also keep track of the clouds. Is there a relationship between the cloud cover and the temperature? If so, can you explain the relationship? Share your findings with another school.   Draw or Paint a Cloud. Look at different types of clouds and study clouds that you can see in the sky. Then create a drawing or painting of your favorite cloud. You might want to use cotton or other materials in your project. What kind of cloud is it? Describe the cloud. Write a story or poem about your cloud.   Use a Cloud Altitude Calculator. What is the purpose of the Cloud Altitude Calculator? How and why does it work?   Make a Cloud Connection. Read the article Soot Eats Clouds, Turns Up Global Thermostat. Go to the 42eXplore Global Warming website. What's the connection between clouds and global warming?   Complete a Cloud Webquest. Follow or adapt the procedures found at the following webQuest sites: 1) Clouds in our Sky (Grades 2-3) by D. Parra http://coe.west.asu.edu/students/dparra/cdquest.htm 2) Cloud Quest (Grade 3) by Lisa Riddle & Kim Shelly http://tess.uis.edu/www/448sp99/cloud.html 3) Cloud Quest (Grade 3) http://www2.lhric.org/kat/wq3rd.htm 4) Cloud Watching (Grade 1) by Kathleen Hasbini http://www.memphis-schools.k12.tn.us/admin/tlapages/clouds.htm 5) Clouds http://www.macomb.k12.mi.us/wq/WebQ97/clouds.htm   More Cloud Websites Bad Clouds http://www.ems.psu.edu/~fraser/Bad/BadClouds.html Learn the truth behind the bad meteorology idea that clouds form when air cools is because cold air cannot hold as much water vapor as warm air. You find this idea repeated on lots of these pages.   Cloud Altitude Calculator http://www.gallaudet.edu/~hdsnyder/cloud.html This calculator is based on the assumption that the air temperature drops 9.84 degrees C per 1000 m of altitude and the dewpoint drops 1.82 degrees C per 1000 meters altitude. Related Website: 2) Estimating Convective Cloud Bases http://home.twcny.rr.com/ghernandez/cld_fc.htm   Cloud Climatology at NASA Goddard Institute for Space Studies http://www.giss.nasa.gov/research/intro/rossow.01/ In order to predict the climate several decades into the future, we need to understand many aspects of the climate system, one being the role of clouds in determining climate sensitivity.   Clouds at Dans Wild Weather Page http://www.whnt19.com/kidwx/clouds.htm Here you can learn what clouds are, how they are formed, view pictures of different kinds of clouds, and more. Similar Website: 2) Clouds http://www.bom.gov.au/info/clouds/   Clouds and the Energy Cycle from NASA http://www.gsfc.nasa.gov/gsfc/service/gallery/fact_sheets/earthsci/clouds.htm The study of clouds, where they occur, and their characteristics, may well be the key to understanding climate change.    Cloud Types http://www.windows.ucar.edu/cgi-bin/tour_def/earth/Atmosphere/clouds/cloud_types.html Clouds are divided into four main groups based on the height of the cloud's base above the earth's surface. This site provides information about each group and the cloud classes associated with them. Similar Websites: 2) Clouds at University of California Berkeley http://www-geography.berkeley.edu/Weather/Clouds/Clouds.html 3) Do You Know Your Clouds! http://www.ffa.com.au/dynamics/clouds.htm#cbc   Soot Eats Clouds, Turns Up Global Thermostat from CNN http://www.cnn.com/2000/NATURE/05/12/sooty.clouds.enn/ This article examines the connection between clouds and global warming.   Websites For Teachers Cloud Case (Grades 5-8) http://weathereye.kgan.com/cadet/cloudless/teachers.html This is an interactive online lesson about how clouds form through the principles of condensation and evaporation. The lesson is written around an experiment that the student can perform, or can watch being performed, that will illustrate the ideas of the lesson.   Cloud in the Bottle (Grades 4-12) by Michael Kneese http://explorer.scrtec.org/explorer/explorer-db/rsrc/783750586-447DED81.1.htm This demonstration activity shows students the direct affects of pressure and temperature on cloud formation. Similar Lesson Websites: 2) Cloud in the Bottle http://www.col-ed.org/cur/sci/sci66.txt 3) Clouds in a Bottle at Bizarre Stuff http://www.freeweb.pdq.net/headstrong/cloudb.htm 4) Home-Made Clouds (Grade 4) by Kyle Yamnitz http://teachers.net/lessons/posts/14.html   Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs by Judi Barrett (Grade 2) http://www.sdcoe.k12.ca.us/score/Cloudy/cloudytg.htm This supplemental unit provides Internet resources for students to learn interesting facts about the weather. They will learn and write about the formation of clouds.   Clouds (Grades K-3) by Wanda M. Keel http://www.outerorbit.com/lplans/lp034k.htm This lesson examines the structure, types, and causes of cloud formations.   Clouds Theme Page at Community Learning Network http://www.cln.org/themes/clouds.html This site contains curricular information and lesson plans for clouds.   Clouds and Solar Radiation (Grade 7-9) from the Oklahoma Climatological Survey http://outreach.ocs.ou.edu/teachers/lessons/cloudssrad.html Most people are aware that clouds impact the amount of solar energy that is received at the ground. This lesson examines qualitative and quantitative aspects of how clouds affect incoming solar radiation. Another Cloud Lesson from the Oklahoma Climatological Survey: 2) How Do Clouds Affect Radiative Energy? (Grade 10-12) http://outreach.ocs.ou.edu/teachers/lessons/cloudeffects.html    cloud altitude fog orographic ice crystal water droplet high cloud middle cloud low cloud air motion front trough low-pressure system multilevel cloud cirrus cirrocumulus cirrostratus altocumulus altostratus cumulus stratocumulus stratus nimbostratus cumulonimbus cap cloud lenticular cloud 'mammatus' cloud K-H cloud tornado 'contrail' cooling global warming billow formation nuclei weather      Created by Annette Lamb and Larry Johnson, 1/99 Updated, 8/01.