Heaps of Puffy Clouds!

Heaps of Puffy Clouds By Cindy Grigg There are different kinds of clouds. When you see a cloud, you are seeing water in the air. Clouds can be big. Clouds can be small. Clouds are blown about by the wind. Sometimes clouds cover the whole sky with a blanket of gray. Some clouds look like puffy heaps of fluffy white cotton. You see these clouds when the weather is fine and the sky is blue. These clouds have funny names! They are cumulus (cue-mew-luss) clouds. "Cumulus" comes from the Latin word for "heap." A heap of something is a rounded pile. These clouds were named for their rounded shapes with flat bottoms. Cumulus clouds, like most clouds, are made of tiny drops of water. (Some clouds are made of ice.) Clouds can help you know what the weather might do. You usually see cumulus clouds when the weather is good. But if they grow into tall towers late in the day, it means that a thunderstorm is on its way!

1. What does the word "heap" mean?

2. Why should we learn about different kinds of clouds?

3. When might you see cumulus clouds?

4. Clouds are made of ______.

5. Are all clouds are the same?

6. Would you would most likely see cumulus clouds when the sky is gray. Why or why not?