Saturday 21 January 2012

Using Thermometers

In Science this week we talked about why meteorologists use instruments to measure weather rather than just relying on their senses. We realized that weather forecasts would be pretty confusing if meteorologists just walked outside and said how the weather felt to them. It might sound something like this:

Meteorologist #1 (who has just moved to Surrey from Nunavut): It's warm today!

Meteorologist #2 (who has just moved to Surrey from Hawaii): It's very cold today!

We wouldn't know whether to wear shorts or parkas! We realized that with instruments, meteorologists can be more accurate, and everyone will give the same information.

The first instrument we talked about was thermometers to measure temperature. First, we learned how to properly read a thermometer:

1) Hold the thermometer at eye level.
2) Hold the thermometer at the top so that your hand does not cover the bulb of the thermometer.   Otherwise, the heat from your hand will heat up the liquid inside the thermometer and make it seem like the temperature is hotter than it really is.
3) Each little line means one degree.
4) If the liquid is below zero than we read these numbers as negative numbers.
(ex. -2 degrees Celsius)

Next, we practiced using thermometers to measure the temperature in different areas inside the school. We found that the temperature varied from one place to another. The coldest place was the gym (about 20 degrees Celsius) and the warmest place was our classroom (about 24 degrees Celsius).



Finally, we went outside to measure the temperature.  Wow, was it cold!  It was about -5 degrees Celsius!  This is very cold for Surrey.  


 


If you are visiting our blog from somewhere far away, what is temperature like in your part of the world?  If you live near Surrey, have you ever been to another place where the temperatures were much hotter or colder than here?

9 comments:

  1. The thermometeres were really cool Ms.Birdsall!!!! Jasmine

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  2. Hi Ms.Birdsall I hope we can do something else with the thermometers Ms.Birdsall and at home I use the thermometer at my home to check out what was the temperature was for Sunday!!!! ~Jasmine~

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  3. I'm glad to hear that you have been practicing with your home thermometer too, Jasmine. Great initiative! What temperature was it at your house today?

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  4. I have lots of fun using the thermometer that day!!! I hope in sicence we can do some more activities about the thmometers. So we can learned some more things about the thmometers. Like why we use thmometers to measure the weather???? Or, what if there is no thmometers in the world. How can we measure the weather without thermometers????????????

    Alexandra

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  5. Wow I love the pictures Ms.Birdsall and I really like how you explained how different people from different places feel differently in the same weather. ~Michelle~

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  6. Hi Ms Birdsall! I have a thermometer at my house too and today I will measure it and I will tell you at school!!


    Pawan

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  7. I like the pictures of us using thermomiters inside and outside.





    from olivia

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  8. Wa! Taiwan is pretty hot now, average temp is 16 ~ 20 C, and right now is the perios od Lunar New Year in Taiwan. Wish you all are best over there!

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  9. Hi Alexandra's dad,

    Happy lunar New Year! It's wonderful that you are visiting our blog all the way from Taiwan.

    It sounds like you are much warmer than we are right now. Today in Metro Vancouver it is 2 degrees Celsius. Brrr! When are the coldest months of the year in Taiwan? How cold does it get then?

    Thanks again for leaving us a comment.

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