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Charting the Weather
How did you modify this unit for use in your own classroom?: 1. Since many of the students are ELL learners, we created a Weather Word Wall that the students can refer to throughout the unit. We added new words each time we came to an unfamiliar word.
2.The class was divided up into two groups. Group A studied Los Angeles, CA and Group B studied New York City, NY. The students were placed in pairs, each pair having one member from Group A and Group B. They shared their findings at the end of the week. As a pair, they discussed the differences between their two cities and recorded their reponses on a Venn Diagram.
3. After learning about the differences in weather conditions, students reflected on which city they would rather live in. This gave them an opportunity to make a connection with the data they have collected and use the vocabulary they have been learning.
List your primary instructional objectives for your students.
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Learn about about the difference in weather conditions from place to place. |
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Collect and record data for analysis |
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Understand how information can be found on the Internet |
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Listen, speak, read, and write for information and understanding |
What role did technology play in this curriculum unit?: The students used www.weather.com to obtain weather information and the temperature in different places.
How did you assess and evaluate student performance?: Students will be evaluated based on their ability to accurately record and analyze data. This information can be found on their recording worksheets provided throughout the unit.
Please tell us briefly about your background & teaching experience: Andrea Young has been teaching in the NYC Public Schools for 4 years. She has
taught Pre-K, kindergarten, and first grade. Ms. Yound has an undergraduate degree in Early Chilldhood Education from SUNY Geneseo and a
graduate degree in Teaching English as a Second Language from Fordham University
What are your recommendations for other teachers interested in adapting this unit?: 1. Have students work in pairs and small groups to encourage independence, peer accountability, and accountable talk.
2. If you don't have a computer for every student to use at one time, consider having them do research in teams.
3. Provide a word wall for new weather vocabulary words they find along the way. For ESL students, draw the pictures next to the words for visual support.
Samples of Student Projects
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