Grade Levels:  Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth

Subjects:  Language Arts, Science, Technology

Learner Outcomes:
          The students will:

• locate facts and information pertaining to weather on various CD-ROM or online reference databases such as Encarta Concise Encyclopedia , The Weather Channel , and The Storm Encyclopedia.
• compare and contrast the kinds of weather associated with tornadoes, hurricanes, thunderstorms, and blizzards and the effects on man and land forms.
• use descriptive adjectives to write a poem about a storm
• track and chart data for the most severe weather conditions, such as hurricanes, tornadoes, and blizzards.
• summarize an article on latent heat and its affect on severe weather.
• use the scale on a map to determine distance.
• predict the possible path of a tropical storm.
• describe tropical storm preparedness and safety.
• identify land forms and the effect weather has on them.
• create a class newspaper utilizing information learned about weather.
• write and illustrate a poem about weather.

Materials:  Various textbooks and/or reference books dealing with weather conditions, weather maps, graph paper, drawing paper, crayons, markers, thermometers, barometers, rulers (centimeters and/or inches), maps, one package of unflavored gelatin, one clear 12 ounce glass juice bottle with lid, pictures of various weather conditions, world map

Technology Tools/Courseware: Encarta Research Organizer, Computer and Internet access, printer, CD-ROM encyclopedia (Encarta Encyclopedia or equivalent), Microsoft Publisher, word processor, large screen, data projector, Camcorder

Teacher Notes:

• Continue with charts started at the beginning of the unit.
• The tropical storm activity can be done when there is a tropical storm or hurricane in the Atlantic, Caribbean, or Gulf of Mexico.
• Most tornadoes occur over the central part of the United States.  They usually occur in the spring on a hot, humid day in the afternoon or early evening.  Thunder clouds appear in the sky and thunder begins to rumble.  A whirling, spinning wind soon forms a funnel cloud.
• Hurricanes begin over the ocean, near the equator, where the air is very hot, wet, and still.  The winds near the center of a hurricane blow at speeds of 75 miles per hour or more.
• Lightning is caused by electricity from rain clouds.  Each drop of water and ice in a cloud becomes electrically charged.  When the drops get rid of their electrical charge, there is a spark that travels through the air.  It may travel from one cloud to another or from the cloud to the ground.  A bolt of lightning has an incredible amount of electricity so it makes the air around it very hot.  When the hot air expands outward and meets the cooler air, we hear a boom.  That's called thunder.
• Print out the activity for problem based learning (see procedure # 7).  Register at KGAN Weather (ndeklotz@kgan.com ) to have access to the answer key.

1.  Read aloud Storm in the Night by Pat Cummings.  Have students list the words from the book that help describe the storm and the rain, such as drenched, splashed, and boomed, and use them to write a paragraph describing a storm they remember.  They can describe, using descriptive adjectives, how the storm looked, sounded, and smelled.  If they wish, students may illustrate their story.  Add weather words to Weather Forecast Clues chart.

2.  Read the poem, " Storm in the Night ," and ask students what weather words are used in the poem.  Ask, "Is the poem describing weather or something else?"  Read aloud another poem, " Storm Clouds ."  Have students write and illustrate a poem about weather.

3.  Show pictures of various types of weather conditions, such as hurricanes, cyclones ,
blizzards, tornadoes , monsoons , thunderstorms , and floods .  Have students identify and explain what they already know about these conditions.   Write the names of these conditions on the concept map posted in the classroom.   Using crayons, markers, and drawing paper, have students sketch some of the weather conditions listed above.

4.  Divide the class into six groups:  The Hurricanes , Tornadoes , Cyclones, Blizzards , Monsoons, and Floods .  Direct each group to do individual reading and research about the storm for which they are named and report on the characteristics and conditions of weather,  how the sun causes weather to change, and the effect these conditions have on the lives of people.  As the students gather information, they can store and manage it on note cards in Encarta Research Organizer, then export their information to a word processor to finish their research.  Students can consult the following sources:

Thunderstorms
Floods
Encarta Concise Encyclopedia
Storms
The Storm Encyclopedia
Storm Watch

5.  After the reports have been read and students have an idea of what hurricanes and tornadoes are, access the National Weather Service , I nteractive Weather Information Network,    Weathernet: Tropical WeatherProducts, or Storm Watch daily to track and chart data for the most severe weather conditions of the last two weeks or so and to obtain coordinates for a tropical storm.  Determine the path and approximate speed of the storm and estimate the distance and time traveled using the scale on the map.   Make a chart listing vital statistics, such as the wind speed of the storm and the rate at which the storm moves.  If the storm is near land, decide where you would issue storm watches and warnings.  Students can check their predictions against the actual path by accessing the National Weather Service and checking their watches and warnings against the ones they issue.

6.  Project " How a Hurricane Develops " on a large screen.  Students can take notes on the definition of a hurricane and describe the life cycle.

7.  Complete the problem based activity, Handle the Hurricane.

8.  Pass out a printed copy of "Understanding Tornadoes"   to each student.  Read and discuss what a tornado is, the conditions that cause them, and where they strike the most.  Ask, "Do we have tornadoes and hurricanes in our area?"  Have them write a hypothesis in their science journal and list sources where they can find out about the conditions that might or might not cause a tornado or a hurricane in their area.

9.  Read the article, "Latent Heat Provides Fuel for Storms" and write a summary explaining how latent heat warms or cools air and why it is a major source of energy for thunderstorms and hurricanes.  Students can draw the diagram in their science journal

10.  Using reference books, Encarta Encyclopedia, and the following Internet sites, have students identity various land forms and the effect weather conditions have on them.

    Glacial Processes and Land forms
    Eolian land forms of the Central Andes

11.  Make a Twister.  Students can draw a scene with a house, trees, etc. on transparency film and attach it to the bottom of a clear 12 ounce glass juice bottle with a tight fitting lid using transparent tape.  Fill the bottle with cold water to a level an inch or so below the mouth of the bottle.  Add a pinch of gelatin crystals to the water in the bottle.  Swirl the water in the bottle until the twister forms.

12.  Begin a class newspaper, using Microsoft Publisher, and add the daily weather on a weekly basis.

Modifications:

• Important vocabulary words can be written on flash cards and practiced throughout the lesson.
• Parent volunteers may help with researching the topics on the Internet.

• Download current weather satellite images from the National Weather Service and locate the storms in the images.  Compare any current hurricanes to images of Hurricane Hugo .
• Create a brochure, using desktop publishing, that informs the public concerning tropical storm preparedness and safety.
• During the year, use a world map and label locations of tornadoes and hurricanes.
• Record, with a video camcorder, a time lapse video of a storm.
• Students can select an area of the globe and discover how weather patterns have affected the ways of life of the area (housing design, sports, recreation, agriculture).
• Write and videotape a weather report for an area for which a hurricane warning has just been raised.  As part of the report, tell the viewers how to prepare for the impending hurricane in order to protect themselves and their property.

• Defend or criticize this statement:  "A hurricane is worse than an earthquake."
• Define clearly the difference between weather and climate.
• Explain how various weather conditions are formed and how they affect the lives of people.
• Identify various land forms and explain how these land forms are affected by various weather conditions.
• Ask, "What is a cyclone, tornado, and hurricane?  How are they formed?  Can they be controlled?  Are certain areas likely to experience these than others?
• Use the grading suggestions in Handle the Hurricane (see procedure # 7).

West Virginia Instructional Goals and Objectives:

Language Arts:

Listening/Speaking:  4.10, 4.11, 4.16, 5.5, 6.14
Reading Comprehension:  4.29, 4.35, 4.39, 4.40, 4.42, 5.16, 5.23, 5.31, 5.33, 6.16, 6.27, 6.34
Writing:  4.50, 4.53, 5.56, 6.54, 6.66
Study Skills:  5.173, 6.143, 6.147, 6.148
Computer/Technology:  4.95, 4.98, 4.101, 5.186, 6.160, 6.162

Science:

Nature of Science:  4.3,  4.16, 5.3, 5.7, 5.8, 6.7
Scientific Attitudes/Habits of Mind:  4.11, 4.13, 4.15, 5.10, 6.10, 6.11
Scientific Processes/Thinking Skills:  4.21, 4.25, 5.17, 5.19, 6.16, 6.17
Science Themes and Subject Matter:  4.30, 4.32, 4.58, 4.68, 5.26, 5.49, 5.54, 6.26, 6.63, 6.66, 6.68, 6.70, 6.71
Science, Technology, and Society:  5.60, 5.64, 6.78, 6.79
Computer Technology:  4.80, 4.81, 5.71, 5.74, 5.75, 5.79, 6.90, 6.91, 6.93, 6.98

References:

resources cited

Weather Eye   http://www.weathereye.kgan.com/expert/tstorms/index.html
Storm Watch  http://www.earthwatch.com/STORMWATCH/stormwatch.html

student resources
Weather Glossary   http://www.glacier.rice.edu/misc/glossary.html

additional resources

Storm Encyclopedia http://www.weather.com/education/student/index.html
Williams, Jack.  The Weather Book: USA TODAY, Vintage Books, New York, 1992.

Internet links
National Hurricane Center - Latest forecast warnings
All About Hurricanes
Miami Museum of Science:  Hurricanes
Storm Spotters Guide
Storms
Hurricanes
http://www.tornadoproject.com/
Earth Watch
The Weather Underground
The University of Michigan offers a wide variety of current and forecasted weather information, with links to sites across North America, a java-based weather map, and a storm watch.
WeatherPost
This commercial site offers weather reports for cities  the world, historical weather information, radar and satellite images, a weather glossary, Jave-based weather calculators, and meteorologists to answer weather-related questions

Authors:

Carol Mathis	cmathis@access.k12.wv.us	Lakewood Elementary
Donna Hebb	dhebb@access.k12.wv.us	2089 Lakewood Dr.
Yvonne Martin	ymartin@access.k12.wv.us	St. Albans, WV 25177

 

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