Rocky Branch Elementary School student Augustus Grahl bundles up in a coat as he reads his projected weather forecast for Birmingham, Ala. during a science class on Monday, Dec. 13, 2010 in Watkinsville, Ga. School officials recently installed a weather station on the roof of the school, giving students a great resource to study the weather. (AP Photo/Athens Banner-Herald, Richard Hamm)BOGART, Ga. - Conditions recently were ripe for an early dusting of snow - daytime temperatures below freezing and low clouds dropping a fine mist of moisture.
The kids at Rocky Branch Elementary in Oconee County saw it coming.
Like professional meteorologists, they can tap into a live weather station to pull up temperature readings and weather forecasts in classrooms throughout the school.
"We wanted to give them a chance to work with live data," said Principal Evelyn Wages. "This way, they can actually look up the weather and pull up real temperatures, instead of going, 'It's hot. It's cold. It's windy.' We wanted them to look at more specific information."
The school, with the help of the parent-teacher organization, bought the $6,400 weather station this year to give students a relevant way to learn about weather, math and geography.
The station and corresponding Web-based program, called WeatherBug, records 27 different weather measurements, like air pressure and wind speed, using a barometer and anemometer (which measures wind direction and speed), as well as other tools.
The weather station is connected to both the school's network and the Internet, so students can access weather information instantly from almost anywhere.
"They seem to be really proud of the fact that there's actually those instruments attached to our school," said fourth-grade teacher Kenneth Linsley. "They seem to take a little more interest in it because it is right here at the school."
More than 8,000 schools across the country have similar weather stations and programs made by WeatherBug, and can pool and share information. In some cases, even local news outlets use weather information collected by the schools.
While Rocky Branch has had the new station since October, students have taken a renewed interest in the gadgets as temperatures plummet to record lows, forcing them to bundle up and cut short their playtime, said fourth-grade teacher Kristy Rogers.
"Weather has been a very interesting subject to (students) right now," Rogers said. "For them, it's been a lot of, 'What does this all mean for me?'"
Recently, outdoor temperatures hovered near freezing with a wind chill even colder, forcing students like fourth-grader Kennon Conner to spend recess cooped up inside.
"If it's below freezing, then we can't go outside," Kennon said.
On the other hand, if temperatures stay low, and there's enough moisture in the air, that could mean snow, said fellow fourth-grader Hayden Bagley.
"I want it to snow this week," Hayden said. "We all hope it might snow, so that we can get out of school."
While WeatherBug mostly is a teaching tool, parents have checked the system to help kids dress or check on severe weather emergencies, Wages said.
"It can really drive a lot of our day-to-day, practical work," Wages said. "We've always been interested in technology and math and science at our school, so it really helps kids to see what real scientists do and learn about meteorology."