Weather...or...Weather Not?


Weatherton Elementary School 
Weatherville, USA 11122
 

Dear Fourth Grade Students: 

Each Friday morning, the students and teachers of Weatherton Elementary produce a morning show that is broadcast over television at our school. This show includes announcements, acknowledgments, and other tidbits worth sharing. This show is the way we begin our morning and has become a huge success. However, there is one part missing. Take a moment, and think about what is one of the first things you see when you look at the news. You guessed it - the weather! The weather is an important part of our lives and an accurate forecast helps us to plan activities.

I have a task for my fantastic fourth graders. I would like for you to develop a weather segment for our Friday morning show. It will be totally up to you to decide what you want to include in the segment. You will have a blast. You will get to use weather tools, work with computers to produce the segment, work with cameras, and interact with real meteorologists. Not only will you have a ball, but you will also be learning skills from our standards. What better way for you to learn about weather than becoming an actual meteorologist? You can also use the knowledge that you have gained to create a severe weather plan for your family.  Thank you for helping us with this project.  I am looking forward to your broadcasts. 

Sincerely, 

Mr. Goodfellow
Principal

 

Before You Begin:

Complete the following activities before you begin your work to give you a feel for meteorology.

    Look at the news.  What do you notice about the weather forecast?
   USA Today-http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wworks0.htm
             Look at this web page to become familiar with weather terminology.
   Look at the weather portion  of the newspaper.  What does a cold front look like?  A warm front? 
             What are the high and low temperatures for your city?

Project Teams:

With the guidance of your teacher your class will be divided into four teams:  The Local Meteorologists, The Online Meteorologists, The Storm Team, and The Production Team.  You will serve on each team for one week.  By the end of the project, you will have participated on each of the four teams.
 

The Weather Project
Home Page

Rubrics

Weekly Science Journal


 

Production Team


 

Storm Team

Online Meteorogists

Local Meterologists



Credits:
Graphics from: http://www.expressit.com

Created for the Fermilab LInC program sponsored by Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory Education Office and Friends of Fermilab, and funded by United States Department of Energy, Illinois State Board of Education, North Central Regional Technology in Education Consortium which is operated by North Central Regional Educational Laboratory (NCREL), and the National Science Foundation.

Author(s): Wanda McMichael, Linda Payne, Emmie Thirlwell
School: Sheridan Elementary, Orangeburg Consolidated School District #5, Bamberg-Calhoun-Orangeburg Math/Science Hub
Created: March 4, 2001 - Updated: April 18, 2001
URL: /lincon/w01/projects/weather/studstart.html