Weather Fronts (student-led lesson)

Subject: Earth and Space Sciences 6^th grade

State standard: Standard 6.ESS2.6 “Explain how relationships between the movement and interactions of air masses, high and low pressure systems, and frontal boundaries result in weather conditions and severe storms” (Tennessee Department of Education, 2016).

Learning Objectives:

•          Analyze different types of weather fronts and explain what type of weather is typically associated with each front.
•          Evaluate current weather fronts and air masses and predict local weather conditions.

Essential Questions:

•           Why would it be important to be able to predict weather patterns and conditions?
•           Where do air masses form and how does that impact weather?
•           How do large air masses and weather fronts affect weather?

Materials:

•           Computers with internet access
•          Materials for experiment: 10-gallon aquarium, appropriately sized piece of cardboard, spoon, cold water with blue food coloring, hot water with red food coloring
•         Weather maps and symbols explained
•         Graphic organizer worksheet for the explore activity
•         Guided questions worksheet for the elaborate activity

Essential vocabulary: weather, weather fronts, air pressure, pressure systems, air masses

Previous knowledge:

•           Students will have previous knowledge of basic weather map symbols
•          Students will have a general understanding of the basic factors that affect weather

Learning Experience:

-          Engage

o   In order to engage the students, the teacher will perform an experiment simulating weather fronts.

§  Base the experiment off of: when air masses collide

§  Before the experiment, have students hypothesize about what they expect would happen to the warm front and the cold front.

§  After the experiment, have students discuss their observations about what happened when the two “air masses” came together.

§  The teacher will pose the first essential question and elicit feedback.

§  The teacher will then pose the other two essential questions to lead into the explore activity.

-          Explore

o   The students will individually explore a weather front animation and collect information about different weather fronts.

§  weather fronts

§  weather forecasting

o   They will fill out a graphic organizer with the front name, its corresponding symbol, observation of what the two air masses do, and weather associated with the front (Chapel Hill Carrboro City School, 2019).

-          Explain

o   Once students have completed the explore activity, the teacher will ask the students to share their understanding of the different types of fronts and corresponding weather patterns.

o   The teacher will clarify any misunderstandings and introduce additional information by showing several short video clips on air masses and weather fronts to help students visualize the terms being discussed and the interactions that happen between air masses and fronts.

§  Air masses (4:49 minutes)

§  Air masses and fronts (2:22minutes)

§  Meteorologist Ryan Davidson explains weather maps: (3:49 minutes)

-          Elaborate

o   The teacher will then provide regional weather maps, forecast maps, and radar maps for assigned groups of students to analyze. The students will look for patterns and discuss their observations with each other. 

§  Daily weather maps

§  NOAA weather forecast maps

§  NOAA radar maps

o   The teacher will provide guiding questions in a worksheet format to help students analyze and compare the forecast and radar maps. (Students can use their graphic organizer to help them understand the maps).

§  Locate a warm front. In which direction is the warm front moving?

§  Locate a cold front. In which direction is the cold front moving?

§  Locate one area that may be experiencing severe storms. What type of front do you notice there? What pressure system is present?

§  Locate one area that is experiencing rain. What type of front do you notice there? What pressure system is present?

§  Locate one area that will likely experience rain for several days. How can you tell?

§  Locate one state that is experiencing clear weather. What type of pressure system is present? Are there any weather fronts in that area?

§  Find your location on the map. What type of front is moving in that direction? What type of weather could you expect when that front moves in? (Boyden, n.d.).

-          Evaluate

o   Students will perform self-evaluations by going to the NOAA weather service page at weather.gov to check the accuracy of their forecasts. They will do this by typing in their chosen city in the “local forecast” box at the top left of the page. 

o   The teacher will evaluate student understanding throughout the lesson by listening to student responses and providing feedback.

Differentiation strategies:

-          English Language Learners

o   The teacher will provide a sheet/website with simple definitions of each weather symbol.

o   For the explore project, the teacher will provide links with text that is matched to the reading level of the student

-          Advanced students

o   The teacher will encourage advanced students to make a 3-day prediction of future weather for a city of their choice based on their analysis of the weather maps.

 (I created this lesson as part of one of my classes)

Plant and Animal Cells (teacher-directed lesson)

Subject: Life Science (7^th grade)

Common Core State Standard: Standard 7.LS1.3 “Evaluate evidence that cells have structural similarities and differences in organisms across kingdoms” (Tennessee Department of Education, 2016).

Objective:

-          Explain the key similarities and differences between plant and animal cells

-          Apply understanding of cell parts to create a model of a plant or animal cell using materials provided

-          Differentiate between pictures of plant and animal cells

Key vocabulary:

-          Cell wall, cell membrane, nucleus, endoplasmic reticulum, vacuole, cytoplasm, chloroplasts, ribosome, organelles, mitochondria, Golgi apparatus, lysosome

Materials:

-          PowerPoint presentation of cell organelles with various pictures of each and different cell types

-          Cell worksheet for taking notes 

-          Materials for cell models (with suggested uses): square or circular cardboard, pipe cleaners (endoplasmic reticulum), kidney beans (mitochondria), green split peas (chloroplast), pearl couscous (ribosomes), small Styrofoam ball (nucleus), bottle cap (vacuole), wide rubber bands (Golgi apparatus), buttons (lysosomes), yarn, glue, toothpicks with labels attached

Presentation:

Teacher will

Student will

-          Open the class by stating the learning objectives for the day -          Review what cells are and their basic function -          Hand out cell parts worksheet/note-taking sheet -          Present new material: discuss the unique structure of plant and animal cells. Show representation of plant and animal cells. Highlight the similarities of plant and animal cells and explain what each organelles’ function is (Padilla, Cyr, Miaoulis, & Padilla, 2008). Provide a variety of pictures of each organelle as it is discussed and compare it’s structure to a familiar object. o   Cell membrane – police officer o   Nucleus – city hall o   Cytoplasm - atmosphere o   Vacuole – warehouse o   Mitochondria – power plant o   Golgi apparatus – post office o   Ribosomes – food-production factories o   Endoplasmic reticulum – road system (Serwatka, n.d.) -          Present the 3 main differences between plant and animal cells o   Cell wall – city wall o   Chloroplast – solar energy plant o   Lysosomes – garbage disposal -          Think-Pair-Share – give an example of how an organelle is similar to a city structure then have student pairs spend 2-4 minutes thinking about an assigned organelle’s functions and how those may be similar to the way a city functions. Call on each group of students for each organelle and write on board the different answers. -          Clarify any misunderstandings about organelle functions

-          On their worksheet, they will label the parts of the animal and plant cells as they are discussed during the presentation (the organelles function will be written below the corresponding box) During Think-Pair-Share -          Think about how an organelle is similar to parts of a city -          Share with a classmate their thoughts on similarities -          2-3 students will share with the class what they came up with

Guided practice:

Teacher will	Students will
-          Separate the students into groups of 2-3 (depending on the size of the class) -          Provide items that can be used to construct a model plant or animal cell (Drayton, n.d.) -          Assign some groups to create animal cells and some groups to create plant cells -          Walk around the room during activity to ensure understanding and give feedback on models	-          Work together in groups of 2-3 to build a model of either a plant or animal cell and label the parts -          Students can use their worksheet to guide them

Independent practice:

-          Homework assignment (which will be discussed at the beginning of next class): Reflect and compose a paragraph on why animal and plant cells are different and how those differences help the cells.

Assessment and Evaluation:

-          Show different types of plant and animal cells on the PowerPoint presentation and have students as a class call out whether it is an animal or plant cell and how they can tell

Monitoring and Feedback:

-          Monitor for understanding and appropriate connections during the Think-Pair-Share activity

-          During the guided practice, check that students are creating a model that closely represents the designated cell and that students are labeling the parts correctly

-          Offer feedback through guided questions

-          Offer positive feedback through genuine praise or acknowledgment of accurate answers

-          During the assessment and evaluation, ensure that students have at least an 80% accurate ability to distinguish between the cell types

-          Positive reinforcement/incentive: If students finish their projects, they have been assessed for accuracy, and there is still time, the teacher will allow the students to play the cell explorer game  

 (I created this lesson as part of one of my classes)

Bird Basics and Your Backyard

Bird Unit Study - week 1

(This unit study is meant to be a general guide with ideas for grades K-5. I have left it up to you to decide how much to do and how to organize the various activities.)

Indigo Bunting and male Cardinal

Learning objectives:

• Be able to identify what distinguishes a bird from other animals
• Understand and explain the history of the Audubon society
• Use the scientific method to analyze, compare, collect data and determine favorite food choices of backyard birds
• Design and create a bird feeder
• Design and create a birdhouse using math principles 

Bible:

• Learn a hymn this week that talks about birds: "His Eye is On the Sparrow"
• Day 1- Review the days of creation and focus on day 5 (Creation of birds) and what does  "according to its kind" mean.
• Genesis 1:20-21 "Then God said, 'Let the waters abound with an abundance of living creatures, and let birds fly above the earth across the face of the firmament of the heavens.' So God created... every winged bird according to its kind." (NKJV)

• Day 2 - Read object lesson "Bird" from Nature Corner vol. 2 A-23  (MyBibleFirst)
• Day 3 - Bible verse for study is Job 12:7 "But now ask the beasts, and they will teach you; and the birds of the air and they will tell you." Discuss what it is that birds can teach us. Have each kid come up with an object lesson.
• Day 4 - Read object lesson "Bird" from Nature corner vol. 2 A-19

 Language Arts:

• Book options: (many of these can be found at your local library)
• Burgess Bird Book for Children  (preK-7)
• Are You My Mother? by P.D. Eastman (K-2)
• About Birds: A guide for children by Cathryn Sill (K-3)
• Robin at Hickory Street (Smithsonian's Backyard) by Dana Meachen Rau (K-3)
• The Boy Who Drew Birds by Jacqueline Davies and Melissa Sweet (K-5)
• Into the Woods: John James Audubon Lives His Dream by Robert Burleigh (1-8)
• Aubudon: Painter of Birds in the Wild Frontier by Jennifer Armstrong (2-5)
• John Audubon: Young Naturalist by Miriam Mason (3-7)
• What Makes a Bird a Bird by May Garelick (3-6)
• Look up! Bird Watching in your own Backyard by Annette LeBlanc Cate (3-7)
• Animal Records: Amazing Book of Bird Records by Samuel Woods (3+)
• Backyard Birds Field Guide 

• Start a nature journal (draw pictures, write down things learned, write down observations)
• Do research on one common backyard bird (ex. American Robin). Each day of the week learn something new and write it in the nature journal.
• All about Robins - learn about the Robin
• Day 1 - draw a picture of a chosen bird/find a picture in a magazine/color a printout. Label the identifying marks. Write down it's dimensions (how long/tall/wingspan). Listen to its song.
• Day 2 - find out what its favorite food is. Where does it like to live (habitat)? Draw its favorite habitat
• Day 3 - What kind of nest does it build (how high from the ground, what materials does it prefer to use, what tree/bush does it prefer, how big is the nest usually). How many eggs does it lay? How long does it take before they hatch? How long before the babies can fly away? 
• Day 4 - How does it typically behave (is it shy, nocturnal, loud...). What does it like to do? Does it migrate? find out some interesting facts and/or document your observations

• Check out these 13 Bird themed worksheets: bird worksheets

Vocabulary/Spelling/Handwriting:

•  Look up 5-10 words from the books currently being read for which the meaning is uncertain or unclear. Copy the words and write their definition. These can also become spelling words.
• Spelling options for older kids: do a short dictation at the beginning of the week. Any misspelled words become the spelling words for the week. 
• Copy the memory verse for the day in cursive handwriting
• Extensions: look up any words that are not understood. Write down any thoughts on the passage. Put the quote into your own words.

• Write down the following quote. Then, have the child rephrase it using their own words, write their thoughts about what is said. Do they agree or disagree? How does it make them feel? What do they think it means? 
• "Don't count your chickens before they are hatched."
• "A chattering bird builds no nest"
• "A bird in the hand is worth two in the bush"

• Special notebook paper for handwriting practice

Science:

• What makes an animal a bird: discuss bird characteristics (ex. feathers, wings, hollow bones, lay eggs, warm-blooded)
• what makes a bird a bird lesson plan  (3-7th grade)
• For the Birds (teaching unit for grades K-2) 
• Amazing Birds (elementary lesson plans) 
• Study bird opposites: 
• biggest wingspan is the albatross (12 ft) 
• heaviest bird is the Ostrich (300lbs)
• Smallest bird is the male bee hummingbird (2.75inches)
• fastest bird is the Peregrine falcon (242 mph)
• Slowest bird is the American Woodcock (5 mph)
• Fastest swimming bird is the Gentoo Penguin (40 km/hour)
• Longest bill is of the Austrian Pelican (13-18 inches long)
• Use the scientific method to design and carry out experiments to explore the food preferences of birds that visit your backyard. (Wild about birds activity)
• For discussion: do all birds eat the same thing? Have kids describe their own observations and experiences. Record their answers on a board or paper without labeling them as right or wrong. Explain that they are going to conduct an experiment to determine whether birds prefer some foods over others.
• One or more bird feeders are needed.
• Several types of bird food should be put out: black sunflower seeds, gray striped sunflower seeds, white millet, thistle seed, mixed wild bird food, cracked corn, fresh or dried fruit...
• Field guides and other resources for identifying birds
• journal to keep track
• Extension/variation: find out if certain birds prefer one feeder design over another; find out whether birds choose foods based on color (use nontoxic food coloring to color seeds you know birds will eat); find out whether birds eat more at different times of day.

History:

•  Learn about the history of the Audubon society (a society whose goal is to save birds and their habitats)
• read the book John Audubon: Young Naturalist by Miriam Mason 

Math:

• Counting is for the Birds by Frank Mazzola (counting up to 20 and rhymes)
• When doing the scientific study of what birds will eat, measure/weigh what is put at each feeding station. After 10/20/30 minute intervals (or at the end of the day as desired), weigh/measure each amount again and calculate the difference. For example: in the morning you set out 1 cup of sunflower seeds, at noon only 1/3 cup was left, how much did the birds eat? What percentage of the food was eaten/left? (you can do this by weight as well). Which bird food had the biggest difference? (ex. The birds ate 10% of the millet, 50% of the thistle seed and 70% of the sunflower seeds). What does that tell you about their food preferences? 
• this can be a lesson on subtraction, percentages, comparisons, greater/lesser

• Build a birdhouse (out of wood for the older kids; out of cardboard for the younger)
• Birdhouse activity
• Math (angles, finding perimeter, calculating area, surface area, faces/edges/volume) - math project
• Check out over 50 free bird house and bird feeder plans

 Art:

• Make a bird feeder:  homemade bird feeders
• Make a bird (materials: feathers of all colors and sizes, glue, paper, googly eyes, popsicle sticks). Stick bird craft
• Draw a bird step-by-step: how to draw birds
• Coloring book of birds: Birds of America Coloring book
• Color practice for toddlers: coloring activity

Cooking:

• Make bird food recipes:  winter bird food recipes
• Make pinecone bird feeders (need pinecones, yarn, peanut butter and birdseeds)

Miscellaneous activities:

• Set up a backyard bird feeding station. Discuss what attracts birds (food, different types of feeders, water, shelter)
• Join the Big Backyard Bird Count or Project Feeder Watch
• Watch some of the following movies
• Fishing for a Living
• The Insatiable Appetite 
• Secret Life of Birds DVD set (watch an excerpt)

Week 2 unit study - Bird Identification

Exploring a Creek ... and learning about classification

The other day I took a group of kids down to the creek to explore. With bug nets and plastic containers in hand, we excitedly made our way down the hill to the meandering creek. The goal of the outing was to find as many different critters as possible in or along the creek, so the anticipation was high. For a while, each child explored the creek in their own way, one excitedly running up the creek and hollering about finding fish, one slowly walking along looking intently into the water, whereas some found it more exhilarating to actually get in the water to explore. While several of the kids spent time trying to catch the elusive fish, others soon got discouraged about not being able to find any creatures. So came the teaching opportunity.

Crane fly larva

I had been exploring in my own way and had already found a crayfish and crane fly larva, which was really exciting. Seeing that I was having success in finding critters, the kids started gathering and asking how they too could find critters. I showed them how to look for differences in the creek bed (rocks covered with algae vs. rocks completely clean of algae all neatly piled up... sign of some creature's home entrance). I explained that many of the critters like to hide under the rocks and showed them how to carefully lift a rock to peer underneath. They learned that some creatures prefer the calmer waters and some prefer hiding in the vegetation along the creek.

Not sure which kind, but I believe it's a young salamander

The previously hurried and random explorations all of a sudden changed to purposeful explorations and they started finding various creatures. Now, when someone started stepping into the water, one of the other kids would say, "careful, you may be stepping on someone's home because there's animals living here." I was thrilled.


Once we had found about 7-8 different critters and insects, I gathered the kids around and talked about classification. First I had them try to explain what classification means, then I asked them to give me examples. With some guidance, we discussed how animals can be classified by their common characteristics such as feathers or fur; 4 legs or 2 legs; live births or hatching from eggs; warm-blooded or cold-blooded, etc. Once I felt like they had a general grasp of the concept, I asked them to come up with their own way of classifying the various critters we had just found. This forced them to observe the critters a little more closely. Finally, I pulled out a key to macro invertebrate life in the river that I had printed off and had them identify two of the creatures.

crayfish

An hour flew by and before they knew it, it was time to head home. We carefully put the creatures back in their various homes, made sure we didn't leave anything behind and slowly trekked back up the hill.The kids were wet and muddy, but thrilled by their discoveries.

 "The art of teaching is the art of assisting discovery."

 ~Mark Van Doren