Five Things you Need to Know Today is a Patch column that provides readers with essential, daily information at a glance.

Today is Thursday, January 31. Here are five things you need to know.

1. Morning rain: The National Weather Service is forecasting rain, and possibly a thunderstorm, before 10 a.m. today. Wind gusts will also get as high as 55 mph this morning.

2. STEM night: The Milton Public Schools will host an information night for the new STEM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics) program tonight from 6 to 7:30 at Collicot/Cunningham.

3. Monthly breakfast: The Milton Council on Aging will host Tom O’Neill, real estate broker and owner of Success! Real Estate, for today’s monthly breakfast at 9:30.

4. College Planning Night: College Planning Night for eleventh graders at Fontbonne Academy will be held tonight at 7.

5. Happy Birthday, Author: This afternoon is the monthly "Happy Birthday, Author" program at the Milton Public Library. Max and Ruby author Rosemary Wells will be the honoree. Registration for this event is closed.