Weather Unit Lesson Plan 4

Teacher Candidate: Mariah Luring

Date: 3/2 Group Size: 18 Allotted Time: 8:45-9:20 (35 min) Grade Level: 1st
Subject or Topic: Weather Unit
Common Core/PA Standard(s):
● 3.3.1.A5: Become familiar with weather instruments. Collect, describe, and record
basic information about weather over time.
● S.K-2.D.2.1.2 Identify how weather conditions affect daily life.
● S.K-2.D.2.1.1 Identify weather variables (i.e., temperature, wind speed, wind direction,
and precipitation).

Learning Targets/Objectives:
● The first grade students will be able to identify weather tools meteorologists use to
measure weather by matching the name, picture, and definition of a wind vane,
anemometer, rain gauge and thermometer.
Assessment Approaches: Evidence:
1. Weather tool matching 1. Checklist

Assessment Scale:
Scored out of 8 points
The student correctly matched the name, picture, and definition of weather vane (2 pts)
The student correctly matched the name, picture, and definition of anemometer (2 pts)
The student correctly matched the name, picture, and definition of thermometer (2 pts)
The student correctly matched the name, picture, and definition of rain gauge (2 pts)

Subject Matter/Content: Observing and measuring weather

Prerequisites:
● Basic understanding of weather (sunny, rainy, cloudy, ect.)
● Understanding of change
● Making predictions
● Understanding of the different types of precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, hail)
Key Vocabulary:
● Rain Gauge: measures the amount of rain that has fallen over a specific time period.
● Wind vane: determines the direction the wind is blowing.
● Thermometer: measures the temperature
● Anemometer: measures wind speed
Content/Facts:
● Meteorologists are able to predict the changes in weather patterns by using several
different tools. They use these tools to measure atmospheric conditions that occurred in
the past and present, and they apply this information to create educated guesses about
the future weather.
Anticipatory Set
● The teacher will say, “Good morning friends! Yesterday you learned all about the
different types of precipitation and clouds. Can anyone raise their hands and remind me
of the 4 different types of precipitation (rain, snow, sleet, hail) we learned about?”
○ The teacher will call on a few students.
● The teacher will say, “We know that meteorologists observe, study, and predict the
weather! In order to do this, they need to use certain tools that help them to measure the
weather. Today we are going to be learning all about the different tools that
meteorologists use to measure weather.”
● The teacher will display the anchor chart on the board.
● The teacher will read over the 4 different measuring tools that meteorologists use: wind
vane, rain gauge, anemometer, and thermometer.
● The teacher will play the video on the smart board:
Measuring Weather with Weather Tools
● The teacher will say “Today, we are going to be using these different tools to help us
measure weather.”
● If weather permits, the students will take their weather journals and the teacher will
take the weather tools outside. If weather is not permitting, the students will each get a
chance to use the tools inside the classroom.
● The students will first observe the weather and fill in their weather journals for
Thursday. The teacher will say, “Remember, you were meteorologists and made a
prediction about what the weather would be like today. Let’s observe the weather and
see if the prediction you made yesterday was accurate or not!”
○ The students will be able to go outside (weather permitting) to observe the
weather. If the weather does not permit (rain, snow) the students can observe
the weather from the window.
○ If the weather is cooperating, the teacher will take the students outside either to
observe the weather from the playground, or the courtyard. The students will
take their weather journals outside with a pencil and a clipboard. The teacher
will bring the students outside for a few minutes (about 5), just for them to feel
the temperature and observe the sky (clouds, clear, ect).
○ The students will observe the weather and fill in the Thursday page in their
journal.

Development/Teaching Approaches
● (If students are outside) The teacher will set up the different tools (wind vane,
anemometer, rain gauge, and thermometer) outside. The teacher will demonstrate each
tool and explain what each tool’s purpose is:
○ “A rain gauge is what meteorologists use to measure the amount of rain that has
fallen overtime. Rain Gauges can look a little different (the teacher will show
both rain gauges: small glass one, and plastic bottle one). What do you notice
is similar and different about these two rain gauges?”
■ The teacher will set up the rain gauge outside. The next time that it
rains, the teacher and students will go outside and measure the amount
of rainfall.
 ○ “There are two ways that we can measure wind. A wind vane determines the
direction the wind is blowing, where an anemometer measures the wind speed.
How are the anemometer and wind vane similar and different?”
○ “Thermometers are very important. A thermometer measures the temperature,
which tells us how hot or cold something is. Meteorologists use thermometers
to measure the weather. Do you know of any other times that you might use a
thermometer to tell how hot or cold something is?” (example: taking your
temperature when you're sick)
● (If students are inside) The teacher will call the students over to the rectangle table.
The teacher will set up each tool (rain gauge, wind vane, anemometer, and
thermometer) on the table. The teacher will go through each tool demonstrating its use
and explaining its purpose.

Closure/Summarizing Strategies:
● The teacher will pass out the weather tools matching worksheet. The teacher will go
over the directions.
● The teacher will say, “Today you learned all about the different tools that
meteorologists use to measure the weather. I want you to talk at your tables about one
thing that you learned about a weather tool.”
○ The teacher will allow students time to talk.
○ The teacher will ask if any students would like to share what they learned.
● The teacher will say, “Now, you are going to complete a weather tool matching sheet.
There are three different rows: ‘what it's called, what it looks like, and what it
measures. Down at the bottom, you will need to cut out the words and paste them in the
row they belong in. “
○ The teacher will read over the words to the students.
● The students will work on cutting out the words and pasting them in their correct row.
● The teacher will collect the paper at the end of the lesson.

Accommodations/Differentiation:
● Students may need help with reading the tools at the bottom of the matching
worksheet. The teacher can read each word to the student and then assist them with
matching it to the correct picture.

Materials/Resources:
● Student weather journals
● Rain gauge
● Anemometer
● Wind vane
● Thermometer
 ● Anchor chart example:

Reflective Response:
Report of Student Learning Target/Objectives Proficiency Levels
 ● For the weather tool matching sheet, the students did a great job with matching the
correct name and definition to the picture. 13 out of 16 students got an 8/8. 2 students
scored a 6/8, switching thermometer and temperature in the wrong column. 1 student
scored a 5/8. Overall the students did a very good job and were able to match the picture
of the weather tool with the name and what it measures.
● Remediation Plan (if applicable)
● For the student who scored 5/8 I would work with him individually and have him
once again match the tools to their correct picture, name, and definition. We
would talk about how you can tell each tool apart and how they each measure
something different.

Personal Reflection Questions

● Were the students engaged?
○ Overall the students were very engaged in the lesson. Yesterday they saw me
getting out the weather tools and were asking me what they were. I told them that
we would learn about them tomorrow. This morning they asked me if we were
going to use the tools and I said yes! I could tell that they were already interested
in the tools even before the lesson started which was awesome. They were very
engaged when we went outside and I was explaining to them how to use the tools.
We passed each tool around and the students really enjoyed looking at the
thermometer and spinning the anemometer.
● Did the students meet the objective?
○ The students did meet my objective of the students being able to identify weather
tools meteorologists use to measure weather by matching the name, picture, and
definition of a wind vane, anemometer, rain gauge and thermometer. They did a
great job on the matching sheet with only 3 students not getting 100%. The
common mistake of these students was that they switched the thermometer and
temperature, which is understandable since the two words look very similar.
During my conclusion, I asked the students to tell me the different weather tools
we learned about. They were able to name a tool and also tell me what it
measured.
● How could I improve?
○ I feel as though one way that I can improve is giving directions. I sometimes give
the students too many directions at once and then they forget what to do next on
their paper or during an activity. When they were working on the matching, I
realized that I should probably go through the paper step by step with them. I
slowed down and had the students go down the column and we went through each
tool one by one. I feel like they were not as confused as we were going through it
together when I just gave them the directions.

Additional reflection/thoughts
● I am very happy that the weather cooperated and I was able to take the students outside to
the courtyard to observe the weather and show them the weather tools. It was not very
windy, so the anemometer and wind vane did not move much, but the students were able
to blow on them or spin them to see how they moved. We also talked about the
thermometer and how one side means fahrenheit and the other means celsius. We set up
the rain gauge and left it out in the courtyard to go back and look at it another day after it
rains. The students were very interested in the different tools and enjoyed going outside
to observe the weather.