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How does rain affect daily life?

Rain is very important and can affect our lives in many different ways.

In this article you can learn:

  • How rain affects our daily lives
  • What causes a flood
  • What causes a drought
  • How people manage extreme weather conditions

This resource is suitable for weather topics for primary school learners.

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Video - How does rain affect daily life?

Watch this video to find out how rain affects our daily lives and the world around us.

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How does rain affect our lives?

  • Rain gives animals and plants the water they need to grow and survive.
  • The water in our taps start off as rain. We drink this water and use it for our showers and baths every day. It's part of our .
  • We have to think about what we're going to wear when it's raining. We should think about wearing waterproof clothing.
  • We have to think about how we are going to travel when it's raining. We might take the bus, car or train instead of walking or cycling.
  • Too much or too little rain can cause events like and .
  • Extreme weather events can affect travel or our ability to grow food.
  • In the UK, we don't often get huge extremes of rain or drought but many places do.
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How does rain affect life slideshow

This slideshow shows real life examples of how rain affects our daily lives and the world around us.

Image gallerySkip image gallerySlide 1 of 4, Red squirrel drinking from a pool of water, Water for plants and animals Rain provides plants and animals, like this red squirrel, with water. Like us, plants and animals need water to grow and survive. (Gary Cook / Alamy Stock Photo)
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Extreme weather

Discover what happens when we get too much or too little rain.

Image gallerySkip image gallerySlide 1 of 4, Flooded country road with a flood road sign , Floods Floods happen when there is a lot of heavy rain and it can't drain away properly. Floods can make travelling difficult. For example, roads and bridges might be closed. (Paul Maguire / Alamy Stock Photo)
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Key words

Key words about rainy weather

  • flood - When there is too much rain and it can't drain away properly.
  • saturated - When something is so full of water that it can't absorb any more liquid. When it rains heavily for a long time, the ground becomes like a sponge that is so full of water that it can't take any more in.
  • drought - When it doesn't rain for a long time and the ground becomes hard and dry. This makes it difficult to grow food.
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Test your knowledge

Quiz

Test your knowledge of rain and how it affects us with this short multiple choice quiz.

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Challenge

Challenge

Write down or draw some examples of how rain has affected your day today.

Here are some ideas to get you started:

  • We use water that comes from the rain to brush our teeth, take baths and clean our dishes.
  • Rain helps crops grow so we have food to eat.
  • If it's raining outside, we have to think about wearing something waterproof and we might change how we travel.
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