Cel IT™

ELE - Contexts

Weather Patterns

Extension Activities:

Your Mission:

Investigative the relationship between climate and agriculture. Students will pretend that they have just purchased farms in specific parts of Australia (and the world)

Research that region's weather and climate in order to maximize the chances that their farms will succeed and be sustainable.

Consider how farmers might be affected by global warming. What might happen to farming in Australia and other parts of the world as the climate becomes warmer?

Who would benefit, and who would suffer?

Resources

Check out these links to help

Research trends and predictions in the world climate at the following Web sites:
National Climatic Data Center
Spotlight: Climate Change
Warnings from the Ice
National Geographic
Convenient Lie?

Weather Patterns - changing weather few crops? Do you agree?

'Urban Heat alters Weather Patterns' - Has urban growth has transformed the environment, creating a uniquely altered arena of weather. Can urban areas generate and trap heat which can produce increased rainfall and thunderstorms? What do you think?

What is the importance of our Weather Patterns?

Weather is the short-lived condition of the air. Its patterns can also affect humans positively or negatively in large scale, catastrophic or economic ways. [To forecast what the weather will do, we need to know how it works. Spotting patterns in the weather is very useful for forecasting.]

Some weather conditions continue for several days, weeks or months. In other areas of the world it could be years before a significant change in the weather is observed. [Climate is not the same as weather, but rather, it is the average pattern of weather for a particular region. Weather describes the short-term state of the atmosphere.]

What is the Weather? “the weather changes some from day to day.” Look for patterns and A Matter of a Pattern. [The study of the weather is important because it can help students understand that some events in nature have a repeating pattern.]

Outcome:

To understand weather patterns and 'climate change' should be seen as the norm rather than an exception.

Project Question:

What defines weather patterns?

Develop your own area of interest and formulate questions that you want answered and relate to your understanding of 'natural resources'. For example

1. How will the weather change over the next week? or

2. How well can I predict the weather for the next four days? or

3. Discuss how the location of Australia (or any other country in the world) (latitude), air currents, ocean currents, variations in elevation, and mountains affect rainfall patterns.

Outcome:

To explore and understand the difference between the movement of air and the movement of weather patterns - the weather changes from hour to hour and day to day. Reseach throughout history indicates a pattern - a 'change' over time.

Project Question:

Using data collected from a variety of sources, to discuss the nature of climate change for the 21st century. Are natural events and human activities believed to be contributing to an increase in average global temperatures? Is climate change one of the greatest threats facing the planet? Or is it a hoax driven by government and industry?

Overview:

Tracking Weather Patterns. Students develop their own understanding of weather patterns by focusing on

identifying three different locations and tracking the different weather patterns.
A research structure is provided for students to use to complete the concept map

This unit focuses on the difference between climate and weather?

How is climate influenced by geography, or location on the globe?
How is climate influenced by landforms?
What influence does climate have on plant and animal life?
What influences does climate have on the lives of human beings?
What can satellite images tell us about the weather?

Weather and Climate - students focus on understanding that some aspects of the weather are related and their change can be predicted:

Weather (here and now) and

Climate (averages over time)

Climate is the average weather usually taken over a 30-year time period for a particular region and time period. Climate is not the same as weather, but rather, it is the average pattern of weather for a particular region. Weather describes the short-term state of the atmosphere.

References