Weather Pen Pals

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Weather Pen Pals
A Lesson designed by Mark Madsen
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Standards And Objectives
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Process
You will need
Tips

• Students should be assigned a Weather Pen Pal
  from another school in their state.
• Students can be broken into small groups for
  classroom purposes but each student should have
  his/her own Pen Pal.
• Make sure your students all know how to create a
  spreadsheet and graphs.

• To set up Pen Pals ahead of time with another
  school.
• At least one computer hooked up to the internet.
• A computer that has spreadsheet capabilities.
• A thermometer installed outside in a specific
  location at your school.
• A small notebook used for recording data for each
  student or group of students

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Process(cont.)

• Depending on your desires, this project could
  last any where from one week to a whole year.
• Allow your students to get to know their weather
  pals through standard letters, or by sending
  URLs of sights that show more about your school
  or community
• Make sure that the weather measurements are taken
  each day at a precise time.

• Have your students record their daily readings in
  a notebook and then transpose those readings to
  their spreadsheet.
• After they record their measurements they must
  e-mail their findings to their Weather Pen Pal.
• Record their pals information
• And finally create a graph that compares the two
  different sets of data
• If someone else's work is used make sure your
  students give proper credit

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Resources Needed To Complete This Project

• Internet Access
• Word processor
• Spreadsheet
• Weather measuring tools ie thermometer, wind
  gauges. The only absolutely necessary toll is a
  thermometer.

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Articulation Module

• Students will be required to apply their
  knowledge of how to use specific software, to
  create charts and graphs that represent their
  findings and
• Then exhibit those findings in various places
  throughout the district and
• Throughout his particular school

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Evaluation

• Students will be evaluated in three ways
• Their daily notebook
• Their completed spreadsheet and graphs
• Copies of their Pen Pal Letters graded on grammar
  and punctuation
• Final projects may be posted on school bulletin
  Boards, and e-mailed to partner schools with
  digital photos attached.

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Extension

• Depending on student age and abilities and
  access, maps, pictures, and other materials could
  be added to the daily charts.
• A school weather broadcast could be added.
• Video data could be sent between partner schools.
• Use your imagination!

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Weather Websites

• Automated Weather Source
• The Weather Channel
• AccuWeather