Your City Climate
Phenomenon:
Your city has weather conditions that are typical at each time during the year.
Student Task:
Argue from evidence to define the climate of the city you live in.
Model
N/A
Investigate
Students simulate a rainstorm, using a rain gauage to collect water representing each month of the past year. Students use the precipitation data to determine the climate of their city.
Analyze Data
Students graph and analyze weather data from the past year then compare it to a climate graph showing average precipitation over 30 years to understand the difference between weather and climate.
Obtain Information
Students read to obtain information about major climate zones of the world.
Explanation:
The majority of Utah has a desert climate. However, Salt Lake City is not a desert because we receive more than 10 inches of rain per year. This variation in regional climate is due to our close proximity to the Wasatch Mountain Range.
NGSS Standard:
Grade 3-ESS2-2 Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
Grade 5-ESS2-1 Develop a model using an example to describe ways the geosphere, biosphere, hydrosphere, and/or atmosphere interact.
MS-ESS2-6 Develop and use a model to describe how unequal heating and rotation of the Earth cause patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates. (Systems)
Utah SEEd Standard:
Standard 6.3.3 Develop and use a model to show how unequal heating of the Earth’s systems causes patterns of atmospheric and oceanic circulation that determine regional climates.
Recommended Teaching Sequence:
Day 1: Students simulate a rainstorm, using a rain gauge to collect water representing each month of the past year. Students use the precipitation data to generate claims about the climate of their city. Students graph the weather data from the past year.
Day 2: Students compare weather data from the past year to a climate graph showing average temperature and precipitation over 30 years and discuss the difference between weather and climate. Students read to obtain information about major climate zones of the world. Students develop a written argument based on evidence to define the climate of the city they live in.
Formative Assessment:
Use what students have written in their science notebooks as a formative assessment, including
Do students understand that
Lesson Contributor:
April Mitchell, Science Specialist, Salt Lake City School District