Rain gauges as loose parts in your outdoor play area provide kids a chance to bump up against early numeracy skills, learn about rain, gain understanding of cause and effect relationships, and maybe learn about life and death. “Miss Beverly, if it doesn’t rain soon, the rutabagas, radishes, and radicchio we planted in the garden During R week might die! I better get the hose!”

(Note: The made-up quote above is not a tacit recommendation of Letter Of The Week activities or radicchio. Here at Playvolution HQ we are anti Letter Of The Week and lukewarm on radicchio.)

But we’re all amped up and excited about rain gauges. These things are relatively inexpensive, take 5 minutes to install, and can spark interest in STEM-related play, exploration, and inquiry. For example, these things can spark interest in numbers, volume, water, ecology, gardening, weather, and more.

I have a warm place in my heart for rain gauges. I remember childhood visits to my grandparent’s farm in North Dakota and grandpa checking the gauge. It was made of glass and measured to the 100th of an inch.

Sometimes he smiled, sometimes he walked away with a concerned look. We’d go to town, and I’d hear him compare readings with his peers as they chatted by their dusty pickup trucks. Once, I learned a new word said in frustration and anger by a farmer who got no rain at all while the others all reported over an inch.

I doubt kids will be as serious about rain gauges as those farmers, but they can spark a lot of potential learning.

DIY Rain Gauges

Want to make your own gauge? You’ll need a wide-mouth jar with straight sides, a Sharpie, and a ruler. Put the jar on a flat surface, hold the ruler against it, and mark off measurements in the increments of your choice. Done. So simple that a three-year-old could do it.

If that three-year-old can’t wait for rain to see how the gauge works, you can get out the lawn sprinkler. But then again, waiting for rain is a chance to practice patience.

As always, we’d love to read your thoughts in the comments.

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