Why Do We Have Seasons?: read-aloud with discussion questions
Read Why Do We Have Seasons? aloud on the projector: 9 pages of big type with each word lit as it is said, 524 words (about 4 minutes), level 9, grade 4, and 5 questions to talk about.
Page 1 of 9
Why do we have seasons? You might guess that in summer, Earth swings close to the Sun, and that in winter it drifts far away. That is why summer is hot and winter is cold, right? It is a good guess, and it sounds right. But it is wrong, and the calendar itself can prove it.
Keys: ← → or Page Up and Page Down turn the page, Space starts and pauses the voice, Home and End jump, F fills the screen. Tapping the right side of a page goes on; the left side goes back.
How to use it
- Press Full screen (F) to put the book on the projector.
- Press Read to me (Space), or read it yourself and turn pages with the arrow keys or a tap. Pick the Pace that suits the class.
- After the last page the questions come up on the screen. The same questions are below, with what to listen for.
About this book
- Level 9, Grade 4
- 9 pages, 524 words, about 4 minutes aloud
- A true book, gentle
Related
About Why Do We Have Seasons?
A 524-word explanation that takes on a very common wrong idea, that summer comes when Earth is closer to the Sun, and uses the calendar to disprove it. It shows how a text can name a misconception and answer it with evidence, and it includes a pencil-and-lamp demonstration and a flashlight demonstration you can do in the room.
It is not because we move closer to the Sun in summer. Earth is closest to the Sun in January! Find out what really makes summer and winter.
Before you read
Ask the class why summer is hot and write their reasons on the board. Then ask them to listen for whether the book agrees with the most common one, that Earth is closer to the Sun.
Words to preview
- axis (AK-sis)
- spinning line
- tilt
- lean
- hemisphere (HEM-ih-sfeer)
- half of Earth
- slant
- at an angle
- equinox (EE-kwih-noks)
- equal day
Questions to talk about
- What is the common guess about the seasons, and how does the book show it is wrong?Listen for: That Earth is closer to the Sun in summer. But Earth is closest to the Sun in January, which is winter in the north, and farthest in July.
- What really causes the seasons?Listen for: Earth's axis is tilted about 23.5 degrees and stays tilted all year. The half of Earth leaning toward the Sun gets more direct light and longer days.
- What does the flashlight show about direct and slanted light?Listen for: Shone straight at a wall, the light makes a small bright circle. Tilted, the same light spreads into a long dim oval, so each patch of ground gets less.
- When it is summer in the north, what season is it in the south, and why?Listen for: Winter, because the Southern Hemisphere is leaning away from the Sun. The seasons are opposite.
- The book ends by asking what season it is where you live when it is summer in Australia. What is the answer?Listen for: For a class in the United States, winter, because the seasons are opposite in the two halves of Earth.
Questions
How long does Why Do We Have Seasons? take to read aloud?
It has 9 pages and 524 words, so about 4 minutes at the Steady pace and a little less at Quick. If you stop to talk on the way, plan for more.
What reading level is Why Do We Have Seasons??
Level 9, Grade 4. The library numbers its levels from 0 to 18 and puts the level of a book on its cover; level 9 sits at grade 4. A level is a guide for choosing, so look at the pages yourself.
Whose voice is it?
Your browser's own. Read to me uses a speaking voice already on the computer, so it sounds like that computer and works without a sign-in. Voices differ: some light each word as it is spoken, and some do not, in which case the highlight follows a steady pace instead. Some browsers use an online voice; if yours does, the browser, not us, sends the words of the page to its speech service. If no voice is installed, turn the pages and read it aloud yourself.
Do students need an account?
No. Nothing is asked of anyone and nothing is sent to us. Project the page, or share the link and let students open it on their own screens.
Where does this book come from?
It was written for Peabody's library as a true book. It is not copied from a textbook or another site.
Nothing you do here is sent to us. The voice is your browser's own. No sign-in, no ads.