Basic Productivity Tools (BPT)

Lesson Idea Name: Weather People in Training

Content Area: Earth and Space Science
Grade Level(s): 1st grade
Content Standard Addressed:
Plan and carry out investigations on current weather conditions by observing, measuring with simple
weather instruments (thermometer, wind vane, rain gauge), and recording weather data
(temperature, precipitation, sky conditions, and weather events) in a periodic journal, on a calendar,
and graphically.
Technology Standard Addressed: Level 4 Innovative Designer

Selected Technology Tool: Microsoft PowerPoint

URL(s) to support the lesson (if applicable):

Bloom’s Taxonomy Level(s):

☒ Remembering ☒ Understanding ☒ Applying ☒ Analyzing ☐ Evaluating ☐ Creating

Levels of Technology Integration (LoTi Level):

☐ Level 1: Awareness ☐ Level 2: Exploration ☐ Level 3: Infusion ☐ Level 4: Integration
☒ Level 5: Expansion ☐ Level 6: Refinement

Universal Design for Learning (UDL):

This lesson can help students categorized as English Language Learners because the students are recording
their voices and playing them back multiple times. This can help the students hear how their English is
progressing. PowerPoint also has a translating option, so the students can check their understanding by
flipping back and forth from Spanish to English. This lesson can also help students who are visually impaired
since the project is being red allowed to the class. This lesson also gives the opportunity for Action and
Expression because this project gives the opportunity for the students to express what they know in a
creative way.

Lesson idea implementation:

One of the Georgia standard’s for first grade is to plan and carry investigations on the current weather
conditions by using simple weather instruments and recording the data. I would introduce this topic by
showing my students the different weather tools that we were going to be using along with the definitions of
all the types of weather they would be seeing using our interactive whiteboard. I would partner all the
students up into groups of two and each group would have an IPad. On the IPad, the students would record
the conditions they were observing during science class in a weather journal they created in the Notes app.
The students would be allowed to go to different designated areas to observe the weather in different areas
of the school. The students would observe the weather conditions for a week in order to give them enough
data to create a project.

After that week the students have to observe, they would use the data they collected to create an e-book
using Microsoft PowerPoint. Before having the students create their own e-book, I would show them the
example that I had created on classifying the types of precipitation. I would give the students two days in our
science class to create the PowerPoint as well as, record their voices to create the e-book. After the students
were given their class time to create the project, the next class the groups would present their e-books to the
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 Basic Productivity Tools (BPT)
class. After all the students presented, I would save a copy of each group’s project and then post it on our
class blog. This way their projects are able to reach a wider audience and can share with their family
members.

Reflective Practice:
I think this project can really help students visualize the concepts we learn about in class and to actually be
able to observe the concepts of weather. I think this was a great opportunity for students to do their own
scientific observations. I think to elevate it even more would be to give the students the option to pick a
different city in the United States and compare the weather from the other cities to what they observed at
school. I could also research a forum that students can post their projects in, so my students could compare
their works to students from other parts of the country.

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