Weather vs. Climate

Weather vs. Climate

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Presented by Mr. Steve Anthony Maravillo​

Today's Learning Objectives

​Today I will: Learn about Weather and Climate

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So I can: Tell how they are similar and different from one another

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I will know I have learned it when: I have answered the essential question and applied the content material to real world problems.

Next Generation Science Standards​

​Science and Engineering Practices:

• 3-ESS2-1: Analyzing and Interpreting Data - Represent data in tables and various graphical displays to reveal patterns that indicate relationships.

Disciplinary Core Ideas:

​ ESS2.D: Weather and Climate

• 3-ESS2-2​: Climate describes a range of an area’s typical weather conditions and the extent to which those conditions vary over years.

Crosscutting​ Concepts:

• 3-ESS2-1, 3-ESS2-2: Patterns - Patterns of change can be used to make predictions

​Essential Question: How are weather and climate both similar and different from each other?

​Before we proceed to learning, let's start by picking your brains and activating prior knowledge!

Open Ended

Question: What comes to mind when you hear the terms "weather" and "climate"? Be creative and intuitive. :)

Introduction to Weather and Climate: Vocabulary

Vocabulary

​Climate is the variation of weather conditions across specific areas or regions over a long period of time.

Climate

​Weather is the minute-to-minute variation of the atmosphere’s condition locally.

Weather

Contextualizing Weather

Let's review a term that is very important in effectively understanding the concept of weather - Atmosphere.

Atmosphere: The Earth's atmosphere is a jacket or cluster of gases that surround our planet.

• Why is the atmosphere important for weather?

  • The gases that make up the atmosphere give us oxygen to breathe, keep us warm and is where weather happens.

  • Weather is a term used to describe the state or condition of the atmosphere.

Open Ended

Check for Understanding: In a few words to a sentence, describe the connection between the Earth's atmosphere and weather.

Weather In-Depth

​Although there is only one atmosphere on Earth, there is not simply one form of weather across the world.

• There are many different factors that can change the condition of the atmosphere in specific areas, and that determines what the weather is like from one minute and one place to another.​

​To elaborate, those different factors come in the forms of the following, but not limited to:

• Temperature

• Humidity

• Wind Speed and Direction​

​Now that we're familiar with weather, what does any of it have to do with climate?

​Contextualizing Climate through Weather

The various factors of weather (e.g. temperature and humidity) that occur frequently make up a weather pattern, and when that weather pattern is specific to a certain region of the world, this phenomenon is described as climate.

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While weather can change by the minute, a region's climate changes by the series of hundreds, thousands, and (specifically relevant to now) tens of years.

Open Ended

Question: Now that we've learned about weather and climate, what importance does any of the information we've learned have in day-to-day human life?

Weather and Climate in the Real World

Why is it important to know about weather?

• Let's say you're ready to leave home for work and look outdoors and see it's very sunny, so you put on some shorts and a tank top, but...

  • ...suddenly it's pouring rain an hour later and you're soaking wet and drenched for the day.

  • Knowledge of the weather would have prevented the "unexpected" (yet very expected) rainstorm.

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Weather and Climate in the Real World

Now that we know why weather is important, how about climate?

• Knowing a region's climate helps us plan where to plant crops to grow food to maintain ​the human species and all living things on Earth.

• Being familiar with climate also helps to know where to plan your next vacation or what kinds of clothes to buy when moving to a new region!

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Poll

Check for Understanding of the Learning Objective and Essential Question: I can describe how weather and climate are similar and different from each other and can apply the two terms to real world problems.

• I can accurately and excellently answer the essential question and understand the learning objective.

• I can satisfactorily answer the essential question and understand the learning objective.

• I somewhat struggle to answer the essential question and understand the learning objective.

• I am struggling to answer the essential question and understand the learning objective.

Open Ended

Activity: Now it's time to apply the information we've just learned! I've distributed an activity to be worked on in pairs of two! I'll be circling around to answer any questions regarding the activity. You will have five minutes to complete the activity. Have some fun with it, you might recognize a few things in it!