What Makes

Clouds and Rain?

First Grade

The Water Cycle

CLOUDS and RAIN

are part of the water cycle

What is a WATER CYCLE?

• In the water cycle, water moves from Earth to the air and back again.

The sun makes water warm. This causes the water to evaporate, or change to water

vapor. Water vapor is water in the air that you

can not see.

Water vapor meets cool air. The cool air causes the water vapor to condense, or change

into tiny water drops. The drops form clouds.

Water drops come together and get bigger and heavier. Then they

fall as rain or snow.

Some rain and snow falls into rivers, lakes,

and oceans. Some flows there from the

land.

1

2

3

4

The cycle continues.5

CloudsClouds Weather

Some clouds look like puffy white cotton. They often mean nice weather

Other clouds are gray, flat, and low in the sky. The may bring rain or snow.

These clouds look like thin, white feathers. They often mean sunny weather.cirrus

stratus

cumulus

TIME TO REVIEW!

• What is a water cycle?

• What causes the water to evaporate?

• What does condense mean?

• What kind of clouds bring rain or snow?