Where does rain come from?
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Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water
For grown-ups · read this first
Where does rain come from?
Children make a tiny water cycle in a bag and test which ground drinks water fastest. Then they read the ayah about the rain Allah sends down and where it goes.
- Time
- About 40 minutes
- Sign in creation
- Rain, sent down from the sky and soaking into the earth
- Read together
- Al-Mu'minoon 23:18; also Al-Hijr 15:22, Ar-Rum 30:48, An-Nur 24:43
You will need (things at home)
- A clear zip bag and sticky tape
- Water (and a drop of food colouring, if you have it)
- Three cups or yoghurt pots
- Some soil, some sand and some small stones
- A small cup for pouring
Two levels
Explorer ★ draws, circles, counts and says (often ages 4–7). Investigator ★★ predicts, tests, records and explains (often ages 7–11). Choose by your child, not by age. Siblings can do the same case at different levels.
The science in plain words
The sun warms water so that it rises into the air as invisible vapour. Higher up the air is cooler, the vapour gathers into tiny droplets that make clouds, and the droplets fall as rain. On the ground, rain soaks in or runs off into drains, rivers and reservoirs. How fast it soaks in depends on the ground.
- • Water evaporates, condenses into clouds and falls back as rain: the water cycle. Source: USGS Water Science School, “The Water Cycle”.
- • Water soaks into sandy ground faster than into clay or packed soil. Source: Soil infiltration guides, e.g. USDA Natural Resources Conservation Service. [still being checked]
- • Singapore collects rainwater in reservoirs and catchment areas, one of its Four National Taps. Source: PUB, Singapore's National Water Agency.
We share creation as signs to ponder, not as proof. If your child asks something about the religion that you are unsure of, ask a recognised asatizah together.
Listen for
- “The water went up!”: they have noticed evaporation.
- Drops on the top and sides of the bag: condensation, like a cloud.
- Each cup behaves differently: some let water rush through, some hold it.
- Questions about where city rain goes: drains, canals and reservoirs.
Another day
- Make a rain gauge: a clear jar outside with a ruler taped to it. Check it every day for a week.
- Visit a reservoir or an ABC Waters park and look for where the rain collects.
- Same verse, new me: come back to this case on a rainy day next month and ask a new question.
Keep going in the IqraSaurus tools
Tadabbur
Go deeper into 23:18 as a family
Quran Investigators
Classes and booklets for your child
Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water
Quran Investigators · Signs Lab
Case 01
Where does rain come from?
Colour me in
Clues to look out for
Rain
Cloud
Water drop
Investigator ★★: ____________________
Case opened on: ________________
Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water · Investigator ★★
- 1 Inspire
- 2 Investigate
- 3 Integrate
- 4 Impart
Name: ____________________
Date: ____________________
Where does rain come from?
Try this first
Wow, why?
Breathe slowly onto a cold spoon or a mirror. Look closely: tiny drops of water appear! Where did that water come from? It was hiding in your breath, too small to see.
☐ We tried it!
Read it together · Surah Al-Mu'minoon 23:18
وَأَنزَلْنَا مِنَ ٱلسَّمَآءِ مَآءًۢ بِقَدَرٍۢ فَأَسْكَنَّٰهُ فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ ۖ وَإِنَّا عَلَىٰ ذَهَابٍۭ بِهِۦ لَقَٰدِرُونَ
And We send down water from the sky according to (due) measure, and We cause it to soak in the soil; and We certainly are able to drain it off (with ease). (23:18)
English: Abdullah Yusuf Ali
Read the ayah together. Listen for two things that happen to the rain.
My wonder question
Draw it
Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water · Investigator ★★
- 1 Inspire
- 2 Investigate
- 3 Integrate
- 4 Impart
Name: ____________________
Date: ____________________
Investigate
What do I notice? How do I know?
ObserveA water cycle in a bag
- Pour a little water into the zip bag and seal it.
- Tape it to a sunny window.
- Look at it in the morning, at lunch and before bed.
⚠ Grown-up help: Keep the bag sealed and wipe up spills so no one slips.
Look three times today. Where do drops form? Where does the water collect? Write the time and what you see.
| Time | What I see |
|---|---|
CompareRain or a watering can?
Compare the rain with a watering can.
| Rain | Watering can | |
|---|---|---|
| Who fills it? | ||
| How much land does it water? | ||
| What if it stopped? |
Sketch what you noticed
Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water · Investigator ★★
- 1 Inspire
- 2 Investigate
- 3 Integrate
- 4 Impart
Name: ____________________
Date: ____________________
Investigate
What do I notice? How do I know?
TestWhich ground drinks fastest?
- Fill one cup with soil, one with sand and one with small stones.
- Pour the same small cup of water slowly onto each.
- Watch where the water goes.
⚠ Grown-up help: Do this outside or on a tray, and wash hands after touching soil.
Predict first. Then count the seconds until no water is left on top.
| Cup | Seconds to soak in | What I noticed |
|---|---|---|
| Soil | ||
| Sand | ||
| Stones |
Draw your test
What I found
Signs Lab · Case 01 · Water · Investigator ★★
- 1 Inspire
- 2 Investigate
- 3 Integrate
- 4 Impart
Name: ____________________
Date: ____________________
Integrate
What does this show me about Allah? What should I do?
Which name of Allah does this remind you of? Circle one.
The ayah talks about rain coming down and going into the earth. Where did the water go in your test?
Draw it too, if you like
My plan
When? ____________________ Where? ____________________
Impart
Who can I tell or show?
Teach someone the soak test. Ask them to predict first, then show them.
I told:
They signed:
Case closed! Same verse, new me: come back to this case one day and see what you notice now.