Wisconsin Department of Public Instruction
Kindergarten ScienceWeather and Climate & Interdependent Relationships in Ecosystems: Animals, Plants, and Their EnvironmentOverviewStudents explore the weather and climate in their geographical area throughout the year. They also observe and explore the interactions and effects it has on the animals, plants, and humans in the environment system. Ideally students will have multiple opportunities during different seasons to engage in this learning. Interdisciplinary StandardsScience Standards - Practices: Analyze and interpret dataAsking questions based on observationsCrosscutting concepts: PatternsCause and effect (e.g., it’s warmer so this, it’s colder so that) Disciplinary Core Ideas:LS1.C: All animals need food in order to live and grow. They obtain their food from plants or from other animals. Plants need water and light to live and grow. ESS3.A: Living things need water, air,and resources from the land, and they live in places that have the things they need. Humans use natural resources for everything they do. ESS3.B: Some kinds of severe weather are more likely than others in a given region. Weather scientists forecast severe weather so that communities can prepare for and respond to these events.PS3.B: Sunlight warms Earth’s surface.ESS2.D - Weather and Climate - Weather is the combination of sunlight, wind, snow or rain and temperature in a particular region at a particular time. People measure these conditions to describe and record the weather and to notice patterns over time.ESS2.E - Plants and animals can change their environmentESS3.C - Things that people do to live comfortably can affect the world around them. But they can make choices that reduce their impacts on the land, water, and other living things.Kindergarten Performance Expectations:K-ESS2-1. Use and share observations of local weather conditions to describe patterns over time.K-ESS3-2. Ask questions to obtain information about the purpose of weather forecasting to prepare for, and respond to, severe weather.K-PS3-1. Make observations to determine the effect of sunlight on Earth’s surface.K-LS1-1. Use observations to describe patterns of what plants and animals (including humans) need to survive.K-ESS2-2. Construct an argument supported by evidence for how plants and animals (including humans) can change the environment to meet their SS ELA Standards - - Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about kindergarten topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups. - With prompting and support… Ask and answer questions about key details in a text. Identify the main topic and retell key details of a text. Describe the connection between two individuals, events, ideas, or pieces of information in a text. - Use a combination of drawing, dictating, and writing to compose informative/explanatory texts in which they name what they are writing about and supply some information about the SS Math Standards - - Directly compare two objects with a measurable attribute in common, to see which object has "more of"/"less of" the attribute, and describe the difference. For example, directly compare the heights of two children and describe one child as taller/shorter. - Identify whether the number of objects in one group is greater than, less than, or equal to the number of objects in another group (e.g., by using matching and counting strategies).MPS 2 - Reason abstractly and quantitatively. Background KnowledgeWeather and Climate:How the Sun lights Earth is foundational to the study of weather because the Sun is the primary source of energy for all weather. The amount of sunlight a region receives is a major factor in the climate of a region. The Sun-Earth system determines the seasonal patterns that occur around Earth. There are many seasonal patterns due to Earth’s position in relationship to the Sun and its motion of orbiting the Sun. There are seasonal patterns in day length, in solar flux (the density of sunlight a location receives), in solar paths, in sunrise and sunset locations, in shadow lengths, and in solar glare. The main reason Earth is warm enough for life is because of sunlight. Sunlight is a kind of electromagnetic radiation and has light energy associated with it. When sunlight is absorbed by a material, its light energy is also absorbed. During this process, light energy is transferred into thermal energy, increasing the material’s temperature. Earth’s air is heated by conduction as air molecules collide with Earth’s sun-warmed surface. Earth’s air is also warmed by absorbing long infrared wavelengths. The Sun doesn’t emit infrared light, but Earth’s sun-warmed surface does. Air readily absorbs these infrared wavelengths, and as a result, it warms up.Weather is the condition of the atmosphere above a specific place at a specific time. It’s literally what’s going on physically in the air above Earth’s surface. It is what direction and speed the air is moving, how much pressure the air has, what its temperature and humidity are, and if there are clouds, precipitation, or clear skies. Meteorologists analyze current atmospheric data to predict weather for the next few days. If you spend any time watching TV weather forecasts, it’s clear how hard it is to predict weather. The accuracy and precision of weather forecasts have greatly increased in recent years, but they are still not always correct. Meteorologists are able to make better predictions of the weather because they have satellites and weather stations around the world collecting data and computers to help them crunch the numbers. Most importantly, meteorologists now better understand the geophysics of what happens with air and water in the atmosphere. Climate is the average weather a region experiences year after year. Climate is about patterns. Knowing a region’s climate allows us to estimate a region’s weather based on historical data. A region’s climate does not dictate it’s daily weather, it only summarizes it’s usual weather. Climatologists study patterns in weather data over long periods of time.The type of weather or climate that a region experiences affects the types of plants and animals that are able to meet their needs, grow, and survive in that area. It also affects the people who live there — how they live, dress, and meet their needs.Use the links below to access additional information as you prepare to implement the unit.Phenology: Forecasting: (Gh)/guides/mtr/fcst/mth/oth.rxmlSystems & Systems Thinking - a crosscutting concept: interact with things outside of themselves. They can’t control what happens around them, so they have to do things to better survive and be comfortable (like wear a coat or use an umbrella). Procedure: Description of What the Class DoesEngage: Have students take a fall walk outdoors and make observations. They might talk about what they see, how they feel, and why they’re dressed like they are. You can ask guiding questions such as:What’s the weather like today?What was it like yesterday?How can you find out what the weather will be like ahead of time?Do you know what it will be like tomorrow?Does the weather ever affect what you can do (e.g., you can’t play outside if it’s raining)?Their interaction with the weather in their environment is the phenomenon. They move from noticings to wonderings which might include questions such as:Does it always feel like this outside? Do we always wear these clothes? What might we notice at a different time of the year? Explore: Have students do some short-term data collection about weather conditions (temperatures, sky conditions (sunny, cloudy), precipitation, etc)Look for patterns in the data (teacher-provided and/or class-created).Discuss patterns in temperatures (note weather and temperature relationships - like it’s warmer in the sun and cooler in the shade) and in other weather conditions for which data was collected.. Repeat taking a walk and collecting data again in winter and spring. Observe animals and plants at each time of year - notice how they look and behave (e.g., notice birds flying south in the fall). Consider using pictures of animals (and/or plants) to look for patterns during different weather/seasons. Look for images or short videos online. Notice similarities and differences in what plants and animals need to survive - Does it change in different seasons? Focus on a particular plant or animal. How are its needs met during different times of the year? Discuss how the weather changes throughout the year - Does the way in which plants and animals get their food change? Does what we wear change so we stay warm/cool? Does the way you meet your needs change? Have a place on school grounds where pictures are taken about monthly for a year - to line up and see how it changes over time. Consider using phenology calendars to examine and record data for different times of the year. Go to this link to learn more about the resource Wheels of Time and Place: : Partners engage in weather reporting (weekly, monthly, daily) including information on temperature and other weather conditions. Students can read books about weather, seasons, and climate (see list of resources). You can ask guiding questions such as:Why do we track patterns in the weather? Why do people watch the weather report on TV or read about it in the newspaper? What do you think the weather will be like tomorrow? In the next few days? Explain why you think that.If partner forecasts differ, ask students which one they believe is correct and have them explain why they think that.Ask students to explain a phenomenon using prompts such as:Can you explain how the weather changes during the year? How do you know that? What evidence do you have? (Have them use their observations and data.)Can you explain how the weather affects animals, plants, and/or people? (Have them use their observations and data.)Brainstorm a list of student-generated phenomena that are weather-related. Have them use their observations and data to explain one that they are interested in thinking more about. Have students make a model about a phenomena they are interested in thinking more about. Elaborate: Have students take their learning even further to deepen their science understanding by exploring other weather-related phenomena. Students can explore what they notice when they stand in the sun or in the shade, You can ask guiding questions such as:How do you feel when you stand in the sun? How do you feel when you stand in the shade?Why does it feel different?What types of severe weather do we sometimes have in Wisconsin? You can ask guiding questions such as:What kind of weather do we sometimes have in Wisconsin that is different from the usual patterns we see?How can you be prepared if there is a tornado or blizzard at school? How would animals or plants survive during a tornado (or a blizzard)?Is there something we could design to help plants or animals in our community survive a tornado (or a blizzard)? How is what we do similar to what plants and animals have to do? (Read a book about animals/plants in different seasons.) Look into other topics that students are interested in thinking more about such as human impacts on the environment and how sunlight warms Earth’s surface. Evaluate: There are many opportunities throughout the lessons/unit to collect information about student learning and understanding. Use things such as:Student chartingStudent discussionsStudent observationsStudents’ use of patterns and evidence sharingStudents’ explainingStudents’ modelingResourcesBooks (* = vetted resource)* - Winter is the Warmest Season - A book about how we stay warm in winter and do “warm” things like drink hot chocolate. * - How Mama Brought the Spring - Story of a little girl who doesn’t want to get out of her warm bed.* - And Then It’s Spring - A story about a boy planting seeds and waiting a loooong time for them to grow and the world to turn green.* - Blizzard - A story about a blizzard in the Northeast and a boy who straps tennis shoes to his feet and pulls a sled to go buy food for his family and food for neighbor’s cat.* - Best in Snow - Features beautiful photos of snow and ice, not a lot of text, more on the simple process of it snowing — things look different and freeze, it melts, it snows again (links to patterns). - Handsprings - Poems and pictures about waking up from winter. - Calendar - Young girl goes through lively descriptions of seasons — great illustrations. - Froggy Gets Dressed - A frog wants to go out and play in winter but keeps forgetting particular clothing items - (video) - Next Time You See a Pill Bug - Non-fiction book asking questions and sharing details about pill bugs. - How to Survive in Antarctica - A nonfiction book that gives survival ideas. - Living Sunlight: How Plants Bring the Earth to Life - This book takes on the topic of the importance of sunlight (would connect to idea of sun warming things up). - Squirrel Round and Round A Bilingual Book of Seasons - This is a book about a squirrel living through the seasons (in English and Mandarin). - Boot Weather - This book is about a girl in various real and imagined situations and what is she wearing? - What Will the Weather Be LIke Today? Birds and animals speculate about the day's weather, while the visual images depict each of the possible conditions. A wide range of climates and locales are featured. NSTA online interactive standards for K and related activities (scroll down): ................
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