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Lesson Plan Example
Unit topic/theme: Science- weather

Grade: 5

Lesson topic/theme: Weather patterns

Lesson objectives:
Students will be able to correctly complete 2/3rds of the interactive activities.
Students will be able to determine wind speed by reading a barometer.
Students will be able to calculate the distance traveled by weather fronts.

Instructional techniques:
Class discussion
Computer based activity
Lecture
Worksheets

Instructional materials:
What’s up with the weather? Day 1! handout
What’s up with the weather? Day 2! handout
Homework handout
Score sheet handout
Edheads report score card (Report level 1, report level 2, report level 3, predict level 1, predict level 2, and predict level 3)
What’s up with the weather? Day 1! and What’s up with the weather? Day 2! answer key
Computer (online activity- http://edheads.org/activities/weather/frame_loader.htm)
Printer
Video (http://www.weather.com/storms/winter/video/below-freezing-temperatures-in-the-northeast-and-midwest)

Theoretical perspective: It’s important for students to understand that we live in a world where the weather changes on a day to day basis. By understanding the factors that determine the weather, they will be understand why the weather is different each day. Being able to understand weather instruments and calculations will help students to predict weather for future days and plan events accordingly to co-inside with the weather.

Procedure: The activity will take place over two days.
Day 1
Warm-up(10 minutes): Watch the following video while answering the questions provided on the What’s up with the weather? Day 1! handout. The video will show a three day period of weather which will introduce the idea that weather travels from west to east and in order to determine the following day’s weather, meteorologists must examine the weather west of their current location or the location they’re predicting for. http://www.weather.com/storms/winter/video/below-freezing-temperatures-in-the-northeast-and-midwest
Main activity(30 minutes): The What’s up with the weather? Day 1! handout used for the warm-up contains the questions for the main activity. Students are directed to go to http://edheads.org/activities/weather/frame_loader.htm. They will then select the “report the weather option” and begin level 1. While doing the activity, the handout provides questions for the students to answer in chronological order with what the online activity provides. After completion of level 1, they are directed to print their score sheet and move on to level 2. The same steps used for level 1 are followed for levels 2 and 3 (all guided by the worksheet). Completion of level 3 concludes the main activity for the day.
Conclusion(5 minutes): A class discussion on what ideas/items from the interactive activity were needed in order to make the warm-up video. Ex. Students learn through the activity that the weather on Wednesday in St. Louis, Missouri will help to determine the weather in Columbus, Ohio on Thursday because the fronts that create the weather travel from west to east. The warm-up video shows the cold temperatures in Chicago, Illinois on Friday and how that will affect the temperature in Boston, Massachusetts on Saturday.
The three levels for the activity are timed. If I know a child is a slower reader, ADD/ADHD, or has trouble quickly processing information, I would eliminate the time component from their final score. The worksheet is set up to guide the students without causing them to have to use much of their time during the timed activity to complete it so other non-handicapped students would not have a problem with the time. There is also the option to have the activity speak the word bubbles that appear on the screen. Slow readers or dyslexic students would be allowed to use headphones to listen to what words are being shown on screen and would be allowed to have me or an assistant teacher read the worksheet questions aloud for them. Students with ADD/ADHD would be allowed to take a short break (use the restroom, go for a short walk) between each level (up to three times). Non-handicapped students will only be offered this option once during the entire activity.
Homework: None for today

Day 2
Warm-up(10 minutes): Discussion on today’s weather. Ask the students to predict tomorrow’s weather for Westfield, Massachusetts by showing them what the weather in Columbus, Ohio is on that day. Ask how they came to that conclusion and review what was taught during yesterday’s activity.
Main activity(30 minutes): Present students with the handout What’s up with the weather? Day 2! as today’s activity is a completion of what was started yesterday. This second part of the online activity goes more in depth into the weather topics and instruments/calculations introduced yesterday. Students will have to do more critical thinking in order to make predictions about future weather given information about weather on a particular day. A few new weather instruments are introduced and the handout guides the students through understanding these instruments. Students are directed to go to http://edheads.org/activities/weather/frame_loader.htm. They will then select the “predict the weather option” and begin level 1. While doing the activity, the handout provides questions for the students to answer in chronological order with what the online activity provides. After completion of level 1, they are directed to print their score sheet and move on to level 2. The same steps used for level 1 are followed for levels 2 and 3 (all guided by the worksheet). Completion of level 3 concludes the main activity for the day.
Conclusion(5 minutes): A class discussion on what challenges students faced with the activity that they didn’t the day before. Allow students to describe their struggles and how they overcame them. Ask if there are any questions on the topics covered and answer those questions. Pass out homework handout.
The three levels for the activity are not timed therefore it is not a component to worry about accommodating as it was yesterday. There is also the option to have the activity speak the word bubbles that appear on the screen. Slow readers or dyslexic students would be allowed to use headphones to listen to what words are being shown on screen and would be allowed to have me or an assistant teacher read the worksheet questions aloud for them. Students with ADD/ADHD would be allowed to take a short break (use the restroom, go for a short walk) between each level (up to three times). Non-handicapped students will only be offered this option once during the entire activity.
Homework: Five questions on a worksheet. The first two questions will be included in the overall grade received for the project. The other three questions will be used for myself, as the teacher, to determine where the students are succeeding and struggling and feedback on the effectiveness of the activity.

Evaluation:
Evaluation of Student work:
The grade for the project will be determined out of 100 points (see attached sheet).
The project will be based on accuracy/correctness of the What’s up with the weather? Day 1! and What’s up with the weather? Day 2! worksheet questions, completion of homework handout, and scores from the six Edheads report score cards of the interactive activity.
1 point will be given for each correct answer on the What’s up with the weather? Day 1! and What’s up with the weather? Day 2! work sheets, 2 points for homework handout, and 5 points per Edheads report score cards of the interactive activity.
The Edheads report score cards report two scores for part one (score for accuracy/correctness and a score for time used) and one part for part two (score for accuracy/correctness). For part one (non-handicapped students) the two scores for each section will be added together and a grade will be calculated out of 1800 (max score). For example, a child that gets a 1650 would have a 92. To determine how many of the five points they receive, I would do 5 times .92 = 4.9 which is their percentage earned out of 5 points. When adding all the totals up in the end, the final whole number grade will be rounded up (if .5 or greater) or down (if .49 or less). Handicapped students will only have their accuracy/correctness without time scores used to determine their points out of five for both sections versus non-handicapped students who will only have accuracy/correctness determine their score without time for part one.
Evaluation of Student knowledge
Using the Edheads report score cards, I would divide the lessons into three sections: temperature, precipitation/cloud coverage, and mathematical calculations. The score sheets allow me to see which of these areas the students struggled in by showing me if it took them more than one attempt to answer the question or what their answer was compared to the correct answer.
This will allow me to determine which areas are mastered, still developing, and not mastered. It would give me information on what material needs to be reviewed, re-taught, or reinforced.

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