Inquiry Project
INQUIRY/PBL PROJECT
Team member
Name: Alyssa Kayes
Name: E’layasia Smith
Topic: Seasonal Weather Patterns across regions of the US
Part 1: Driving question:
What are your three initial driving questions?
What is the difference between weather and climate?
Explore the weather/seasonal differences between in the Southwest, Midwest, Northeast, and Southeast regions of the US and how it impacts people that live there.
What is appropriate clothing for different regions of the US at certain times of year?
What is your one, final driving question?
Explore the weather/seasonal differences between in the Southwest, Midwest, Northeast, and Southeast regions of the US and how it impacts people that live there.
Background information of this driving question:
What grade level are you working?
We are planning on working with 3rd grade students for this project.
Which standard are you targeting?
We are targeting a science standard for 3rd graders
2016 Indiana Science Standards
3.ESS.1
Obtain and combine information to determine seasonal weather patterns across the different regions of the United States.
Provide any background information the reader should know about this project, such as time span, schedule and so on. Provide a brief introduction to your question as well and an overview to what you envision your lesson looking like.
This lesson will take 1 hour of class for 3 days for a total of 3 hours at school and a little work at home. We want students to learn about the seasonal patterns throughout the US. We will begin by watching a video or exploring regions online to learn about their seasons, if they have seasons. After learning as a class, students will get divided into groups and each group will be assigned a region of the US to research. Groups will then go into discussions about weather patterns of different areas of the US. They will compare and contrast them. They will be prompted with questions that make them think about the weather and practicality. For example- what would be appropriate to pack to wear in Florida for vacation? Do the trees in California look like the ones in Indiana in the Fall? Why not? What problems do people in Minnesota face in the winter- or in Texas if it snows?
Why do you think this is a good driving question?
Try to answer these 4 questions. (But you should not answer them with yes or no, instead explain the details and convince me that you’ve met these criteria)
Does the DQ warrant in-depth study?
Yes. Students have to look passed just whether the state is warm or cold, they will explore whether regions have seasons or not, and how people live and prepare for the weather in different regions.
Is the DQ an authentic and relevant issue/problem for my students?
Yes, students will travel or live in different places in their lives. They will need to be aware that not every area of the US experiences seasons the way we do in Indiana. They will need to know how to prepare for if they go to another region. They also will explore how people prepare for snow and problems that can arise from weather.
Is there more than one plausible solution to the DQ?
Yes, there is a variety of answers that could be thought of. Students could focus on issues of snow in some regions, while other students focus on tornados and hurricanes.
Does the DQ provide opportunities for students to evaluate, analyze, present, and defend their solutions?
Yes. Students will evaluate and analyze the weather patterns in other regions. They will have to think of problems that could arise from extreme weather conditions, and how people fix them. They will then have to defend their proposed solutions to the weather related issues.
Part2: Grabber
Interesting snowstorm video/weather video
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=moSFlvxnbgk
http://abcnews.go.com/WNT/video/massive-snowstorm-shuts-east-coast-36479972
Introductory Grabber:
The teacher first shows the blizzard scene from “Frozen” where Elsa sings let it go. This grabs students attention because they’ll get excited about a popular Disney movie. They’ll see the blizzard and after the video we discuss what the blizzard meant for Arendelle. (Example: people couldn’t travel, lake froze over, hurt Kristoff’s ice business)
After getting the students’ attention, the teacher will show a real life video clip from ABC news. This is a real blizzard that hit the East coast. After watching the video, we will discuss what problems people ran into because of the blizzard. We will discuss specific scenes, like cars being stuck and roads getting shut down.
Introduce the Central Question:
After we watch the videos, we will talk about the weather. The teacher will ask students about memorable experiences with weather, and what they did about it. This will get students thinking about the different weather patterns and seasons. Then the teacher will ask questions like: does anyone have family in Florida? Do they ever have big snow storms? Why do they not have snow storms but Indiana does? (Answer would be: Florida is in a different region and does not experience the same seasons as Indiana. Discuss how Indiana gets 4 seasons, but not all states get the same seasons as we do. Some are warm all year round. Some are colder, some states have warm days during the summer but cold nights.
Why do you think this grabber is beneficial and how it align with your driving question?
Try to answer these questions. (But you should not answer them with yes or no, instead explain the details and convince me that you’ve met these criteria)
Does the story, article, video, announcement, role play, or other resource hook the learner into asking more questions about the topic? Yes, the combination of the two videos will make students wonder more about weather and what actually causes it. Kids love Frozen so that will capture their attention and make them want to know more.
Does the grabber capitalize on novelty and / or high emotion situations?
Yes, the scene from Frozen is an emotional scene because Elsa is becoming her own person and using snow and weather to express herself. The second video capitalizes on real life fear of snowstorms and what can happen- people getting stuck in cars.
Does the grabber establish authenticity & relevance?
This grabber does establish authenticity and relevance. It is directly related to regional weather patterns and how people handle them in those areas.
Make sure to explain in detail how this grabber would be used.
The Frozen video will be shown followed by the news video. Then we will discuss the two videos. They will be used to introduce the topic of weather and how it affects different people in different regions.
Culminating activities: List all your activities here:
Weather Report
Discuss and reflect on the weather of places they’ve been for vacation or where he/she lives.
1) Table Discussion
In our first activity will we have the students to talk amongst their tables to discuss and reflect over the weather places of they’ve been for vacation or the weather in the area he/she lives in. This will take place after the grabber discussion. Each student at the table will have the opportunity to share their experiences and answer the questions given. We will first ask the students to think about and discuss a region/state where he/she has been for vacation with their tables buddies. We will then ask the students to answer the following questions during their discussion: What season did you visit in? What was the weather condition? Was the temperature high/low? Was there any type of weather storms that your family had to watch for or actually occurred? If so, how did your family prepare and take action for the storm? What kind of clothes did you have to pack? We will give the students at least 10-15 minutes to discuss and answer the questions in their small groups. After the table discussions, we will then lead a whole class ending discussion. This is the time for each table to share and discuss their vacation regions/states with the whole class, which will allow for the students to begin learning a little about the weather conditions in different regions of the U.S.
2) Weather Report Activity
In our final activity the students will present a weather report to the class. Each table will be assigned to one region of the U.S (Midwest, Southwest, Northwest and Southeast). Working as a group, the students will research the region’s weather, seasons, climate and conditions. With the information found the students will collectively decide on advice to give when visiting or living in that region. Finally the students will take the role as weathercasters and present the information found about their assigned region.
Preparation for Report: This will take place on the second day. The students are given about hour and thirty minutes in class to do their research and prepare for their final presentation of the weather report. Each group will be provided iPads, markers/color pencils, and paper. The students will have the opportunity to choose what type visual aid they’d like to use for the final report. This could be a powerpoint, a poster, or props. We will send a letter home to the parents which will inform them about project. The letter will also asked the parents to allow their child to dress professional for this project.
Day of Report: This will take place on the third and final day. I will give the students a last 10 minutes to do their final touches before presenting. I will give a handout to the students, which would be used to take brief notes about the region being presented. The handout will have three sections asking the same questions. (What is the name of the region? What is the weather like in this region? What is some advice I should take before visiting this region?) The presentations will begin. Each group will be given 5-7 minutes to present their report. After each report, I will give the students one minute to ask questions about the region. Once each group has presented we will discuss our answers from the handout.
Why do you think this is a good activity for PBL?
Try to answer these 4 questions. (But you should not answer them with yes or no, instead explain the details and convince me that you’ve met these criteria)
How is the activity authentic? This activity is authentic because it applies to the students’ real lives. They will need to know the weather and seasons in the regions of the US and how the weather can affect people. They need to know that they have to adapt to it, and watch the news for advice.
Does the activity provide students with the opportunity to present and defend problem solution? Yes, the activity provides the students with the opportunity to present the problem of weather in certain areas. They then have to defend their solution of how to prepare and handle different weather situations.
Does the activity require student collaboration? Yes, the students will work in groups to create their weather reports. They will talk and build off of each other’s ideas to have a good report.
How will I judge what students have learned from the activity?
I will judge what students have learned from this activity by using the rubric I made below. I will be able to tell by how much they contribute to their presentation. If they address all parts of the rubric I will see that they learned all of the expected components such as regional weather and how to adapt to it.
Assessment Rubric is Below:
