All About Climate and Seasons

Children are naturally intrigued with the "whys" of the physical world, and All About Climate and Seasons, one of four titles in the Weather for Children series, provides many "becauses" in an easy-to-understand manner. Combining live-action footage and computer graphics, the program looks at weather and climate, along the way exploring climate zones, seasons, and how land features contribute to weather. Vocabulary words are shown onscreen, so students can learn to recognize them (even if it may be a while before they can actually spell them). My only quibble is that when the meteorologist uses an orrery (a model of the solar system) to discuss how the tilted Earth produces the seasons, the computer generated graphics aren't animated, which is unfortunate since their inclusion would have illustrated the other key component (the Earth's orbit around the sun) more effectively than the small model found in many classrooms. But this is a minor flaw, and the tape is still definitely recommended. The other titles in the series are: All About Meteorology, All About Wind & Clouds and All About Rain, Snow, Sleet & Hail. Aud: E, I, P. (R. Reagan)