Lesson 7 - Understanding Wind and Humidity Factors - Teacher's Guide

Targeted Instructional Objective: Understanding the influences of science underlying every aspect of everyday living

Content Focus: Connecting the collection of wind and humidity measurements to the product of usable information

Wind speed and humidity can intensify the effects of extreme weather conditions, in some cases creating health risks for the uninformed.

General Instructional Goal:

Students analyze the impacts of wind chill and humidity on the "apparent" temperature. (Relative humidity is discussed in more detail during a later section.)

Specific Outcomes:

Upon completion of the lesson, students will be able to:

1) Explain why wind chill affects only people and animals

2) Use the wind chill index to compute the "feel" of temperature

3) Use the heat/humidity chart to compute apparent temperatures and identify danger ranges

 

Lesson Content

Instruction Processes
  • Set

Topic Introduction: (Teacher defined)

Suggested preview approaches:

Quickwrite: The coldest/hottest day in my life
  • Purpose
 Identifying the influence of wind on temperature

Recognizing the role of humidity on warm temperatures

Identifying health risks of extremes
  • Guided Practice
 Teacher may wish to read along with the students, pausing for questions.
  • Practice/Application
 Individual or small groups will use the index and chart provided to complete the worksheet. The teacher may wish to make color transparencies of these and demonstrate.
  • Summary
 Synopsis of material covered

Optional Strategies:

1) Whole group spot check of data answers

2) Discussion of weather factors and social mores:

a) Why is it "cool" to be cold? (Shorts and tank tops worn to school in November, etc.)

b) How would a region's humidity impact the types of activities that might be considered popular?

Following that line of reasoning, how could humidity play a role in the economic development of a region?

  • Evaluation
 Recommended score of at least 85% on worksheet to ensure student readiness for subsequent lessons

Necessary Materials:

Student worksheet

Supplemental/Cross Curricular Activities and Ideas

Weather for One Hundred: Jeopardy Game Review

Small Group Activity reenacts the popular game show as students pick catagories, and answer "in the form of a question" to respond to vocabulary ("This word, originally from the Latin, means half a ball or globe....") and assorted facts about the covered weather topics ("This 'chicken plucking' storm likes to stay on dry land, but will go 'up the spout' when necessary...") The teacher acts as emcee, score keeper, and judge on "iffy" responses.\

Exploring the North Pole: Preparing for a modern day expedition

Individual or Small Group project send students to the icy cold of any rough frozen terrain as they research the types of equipment they'll need for their "crew" to survive the extremes of snowy lands.

Creative Geniuses at Work: Applying the science of weather to health and safety factors

Individual, small group, or whole class generation and illustration of a health and safety booklet for first grade readers reinforces students' knowledge of the topics covered in class. Students design the format and layout of the booklet, write the text, and create "first-grader friendly" pictures.

IEMP Workbook Home       Chapter 7

 

 

 

Necessary