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Dry Season Facts & Worksheets

The dry season is defined by a period of low rainfall that occurs yearly in the tropics.

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The dry season is defined by a period of low rainfall that occurs yearly in the tropics. The tropical rain belt, which moves from the northern to southern tropics and back throughout the year, determines the weather in the tropics. Using the Köppen climate classification, a dry month season is determined when the average precipitation is below 60 millimeters. Places with distinct wet and dry season are typically found near the equator, such as Africa, Brazil, and India. 

See the fact file below for more information on the Dry Season, or you can download our 30-page Dry Season worksheet pack to utilize within the classroom or home environment.

Key Facts & Information

CHARACTERISTICS OF A DRY SEASON

  • The tropical rain belt oscillates from the northern to southern tropics. It is found in the southern hemisphere from October to March. When this happens, the northern tropics experience a dry season with little to no precipitation and days that are typically sunny all day. When the rain belt is in the northern hemisphere, the southern tropics experience a dry season from April to September.
  • Fun fact: Antarctica is the driest continent, while Australia is the driest inhabited continent in the world. 

SEASONS

  • A season is defined as a period of the year that is characterized by particular weather conditions, temperatures, and length of day. 
  • The intensity of the sun’s rays over a given area is one of the most important factors determining the seasons. 
  • As the Earth revolves around the sun, this changes. When the Northern Hemisphere is tilted towards the sun, and the sun is directly perpendicular to the Earth’s surface, thus, the Southern Hemisphere experiences winter.
  • Generally, the Earth has four seasons – spring, summer, fall, and winter. Each has a distinct pattern that repeats yearly. These four seasons are only experienced in the mid-latitude, which runs along the Tropic of Cancer to the Arctic Circle and the Tropic of Capricorn to the Antarctic Circle. 
  • The farther North you go, the more you’ll experience the differences in season. However, places near the equator where solar heating is intense and temperature is high throughout the year can only experience two seasons – the wet and dry.

EFFECTS OF DRY SEASON

  • The dry season, which lasts from October to March, is characterized by high temperatures, low humidity, which causes watering holes and rivers to dry up, and low and unpredictable precipitation, resulting in little to no rainfall.
  • This causes drought, bushfires, livelihood disruption, especially in the agricultural sector, and increased cases of measles. 
  • The rise in the cases of measles might be attributed to the higher concentration of people during the dry season, as agricultural operations are nearly impossible without irrigation.
  • Another effect of the dry season is drought, some animals like elephant, giraffe, zebra, water buffalo and kangaroo are forced to migrate to more fertile lands as the grasslands turn brown and rivers and waterholes are drying up. Also, because of the lack of water, bushfires (wildfires) are fairly common. 
  • Plants also suffer from the dry season or drought in a variety of ways, including brown lawns, crispy leaves, smaller flowers, and fewer fruits. Prolonged drought has other effects, such as the weakening of plants, making them more vulnerable to insect and disease attacks.

CLIMATE CHANGE AND DROUGHT

  • Climate change is defined as a shift in the average conditions of temperature and weather patterns worldwide over an extended period of time. This may be due to natural processes such as variations in solar radiation, volcanic eruption, and variation in the Earth’s orbit and rotation or due to human influences such burning of fossil fuels, increased carbon footprint, and reflectivity or absorption of the Sun’s energy.
  • Increasing global temperature, melting sea ice, and rising sea levels are all linked to the effects of climate change. Drought conditions are also expected to worsen in many parts of the world as a result of climate change. Moreover, climate change will cause more dry days and longer dry spells. As warmer temperatures induce evaporation and reduce surface water, this leads to negative impacts on crop yields and food security as water stress restricts crop growth.

THREATS POSED BY DROUGHT

  • During the dry season, when water availability is limited, some countries like Ethiopia, Sudan, Eritrea, Afghanistan, and Somalia, to name a few, are susceptible to drought.
  • Drought ranks third as the most common environmental phenomenon. 

SEVERE DROUGHT CAN AFFECT:

  • Water supply: During droughts, communities may have limited access to water for domestic use such as drinking, cooking, cleaning, and watering plants. Droughts may also result in a higher cost of water for crop or forage irrigation and watering livestock and drying up of water sources such as wells and dams. 
  • Agriculture: Drought affects livestock and crops resulting in pasture losses and crop failure. Wheat, soybean, corn, sugarcane, tobacco, cattle, and hay are more vulnerable to drought. As a result, they are at higher risk of economic loss if crop water demand exceeds crop water supply.
  • Energy: Drought is accompanied by extreme heat, raising concerns about the reliability of electricity generation from plants that require cooling water to operate safely. Electricity demand can increase when heat waves coincide with droughts.
  • Public health: During drought, there is an increased risk of bushfires and dust storms. Particulate matter that are suspended in the air can irritate the lungs which increase the risk for respiratory infections like bronchitis and pneumonia. Water-related diseases such as E. coli and Cholera, nutrient-related effects such as malnutrition, micronutrient malnutrition, and anti-nutrient consumption, and diseases transmitted by insects such as West Nile virus and Malaria are all linked with drought.

RITUALS FOR RAINMAKING

A lot of people perform rainmaking rituals to invoke rain, especially during drought or dry season as the low water supply affects their way of living and livelihood. 

  • In Africa, where water is their immediate concern, they need rain to sustain their livelihood (i.e agriculture and poultry). The African kings are often credited with the ability to make rain, failure to do so could lead to death. A famous rainmaking monarch was Queen Modjadji, also known as the Rain Queen who was believed to possess special powers such as the ability to control the clouds and rainfall. 
  • Tribal rain dances are also performed to ensure rainfalls. Rain dances have been performed by tribes in the Sahara Desert and Ethiopia.
  • In China, during times of drought, Wu Shamans performed sacrificial rain dance ceremonies to simulate rain. Wu Shamans were once believed to be intermediaries between nature spirits who were thought to control rainfall and flooding.
  • Europe: In times of drought, the Roman religion had a ceremony called aquaelicium (Latin for “calling the waters”) that attempts to produce rain.

FUN ACTIVITIES

During the dry season when the sun is high, there are a lot of fun things to do under the sun! It is the time to enjoy the outdoors. Just don’t forget to put on sunscreen to avoid getting sunburnt.

  • Visit the beach. To beat the heat, you can visit the beach for a little swim or surf and soak up the sun while enjoying getting your tan. If you love water sports, you can try wakeboarding or kayaking/canoeing for a little thrill. You can also play beach volleyball with your friends.
  • Make homemade ice cream. Everybody loves ice cream! When the sun is scorching hot, it is the perfect time to enjoy making and eating ice cream in the comfort of your home to combat the heat. 
  • Go on a picnic. Prepare delicious sandwiches and drinks then bring a blanket to enjoy eating outdoors, also a nice way to enjoy the sun.
  • BBQ grill. There is nothing like an outdoor BBQ party where everybody can enjoy the food and outdoor scenery. It’s also the best time to catch up with friends.
  • Attend festivals. If you want to visit Southeast Asian countries, you can start with the Philippines. Aside from its beautiful beaches and breathtaking sights, the Philippines also boasts a number of festival that takes place across the country all year round making it the Capital of the World’s Festivities.

Dry Season Worksheets

This is a fantastic bundle that includes everything you need to know about the Dry Season across 30 in-depth pages. These are ready-to-use worksheets that are perfect for teaching kids about the Dry Season, a period of low rainfall that occurs yearly in the tropics.

Complete List of Included Worksheets

Below is a list of all the worksheets included in this document.

  1. Dry Season Facts
  2. Dry Season Word Hunt
  3. Seasons in the Tropics 
  4. True or False 
  5. Label Me 
  6. Effects of Dry Season 
  7. Tour the World 
  8. Crossword Dry Season 
  9. Which Letter? 
  10. Dry Season, What Am I? 
  11. Matching Type

Frequently Asked Questions

How do plants survive the dry season?

During the dry season, plants’ strategies to manage the lack of water rely on “efficiency in resource use”. For the plant to survive, it must continue to do photosynthesis and grow, but without wasting the little water available. Plants in arid climates employ techniques such as slowing their development, producing thicker leaves and reducing transpiration to reduce water loss.

How long do dry seasons last?

Depending on which portion of the world you’re talking about, the dry season can begin at any time of year and might last up to eight months.

What are some characteristics of the dry season?

Arid and semi-arid areas experience little rainfall during dry seasons, high evaporation rates that exceed rainfalls, and large temperature changes both daily and depending on the season.

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Link will appear as Dry Season Facts & Worksheets: https://kidskonnect.com - KidsKonnect, September 14, 2022

Use With Any Curriculum

These worksheets have been specifically designed for use with any international curriculum. You can use these worksheets as-is, or edit them using Google Slides to make them more specific to your own student ability levels and curriculum standards.

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