University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Ucar: Make a Tornado
Students explore factors that influence why certain areas in the United States have more tornadoes than others and observe a model to visualize what is happening during a tornado.
NOAA
Noaa: National Severe Storms Laboratory: Tornadoes
Find out how tornadoes occur, how they are predicted, the smallest size, the largest size, and how they are detected.
American Museum of Natural History
American Museum of Natural History: Tornadoes O Logy Card
Flip this interactive card to start learning about tornadoes, nature's most powerful storms. Answer multiple-choice and fact-or-fiction questions and review some fast facts about tornadoes.
Bill Nye
Bill Nye: Twistin' Tornado
This experiment with Bill Nye explains how to make a tornado in a bottle.
Dan Satterfield
Dan's Wild Weather: Tornado Weather
What do you want to know about tornadoes? This site highlights the different aspects of tornadoes. Don't miss out on learning more about these wild storm patterns.
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: A Tornado in My State?
Students will analyze data of tornadoes throughout the United States. They will create a bar graph of the number of tornadoes for the top ten states in the country and then calculate the median and the mode of the data.
NOAA
Noaa: Tornado in a Bottle [Pdf]
Find facts about tornadoes and see an actual vortex after making a tornado in a bottle with some common materials.
Bill Nye
Bill Nye: Twistin' Tornado
Try this at-home science experiment to learn how to make a tornado in a bottle.
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Ucar: Make a Tornado
This site is provided for by the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research. Make a tornado or a twister in a jar. The step by step directions give a clear description of how to make these items.
Alabama Learning Exchange
Alex: Forecasting Severe Weather
This instructional activity increases student knowledge of severe weather and weather forecasting. It emphasizes the importance of student questioning to obtain information. After the introduction to severe weather is made, students will...
TeachEngineering
Teach Engineering: Natural Disasters
Students are introduced to our planet's structure and its dynamic system of natural forces through an examination of the natural hazards of earthquakes, volcanoes, landslides, tsunamis, floods and tornados, as well as avalanches, fires,...
Ready
Ready
Explore the Ready website for an overview of how families and businesses can prepare for emergencies, threats, and disasters by building kits, making plans, and staying informed. Find safety information about biological threats,...
Other
Pocket of Preschool: Emergency Drills Visual Routine Posters & Supports
Emergency drills (fire drills especially) can be terrifying for preschoolers. It's loud, interruptive, and there can be kids everywhere! This site includes examples of read-aloud books and drill routine posters you can adapt to your...
Teachers.net
Teachers.net Lesson: Weather
Here are several great lesson ideas for a weather unit. The lessons cover topics in math and science including making clouds, recreating the water cycle, and making a tornado. There is also a list of weather resources for more information.
Ready
Ready: Kids: Disaster Master
Make the right decisions about being prepared for natural disasters to become a Disaster Master!
Scholastic
Scholastic: Study Jams! Science: Weather & Climate: Severe Storms
A slideshow and a short multiple-choice quiz on the topic of severe storms, some types, and the damage that they cause.
PBS
Pbs Learning Media: Environmental Public Health: Natural Hazards
In this lesson plan, students are introduced to a variety of natural hazards and explore how understanding these threats make us better able to avoid or reduce their potential harmful impact.
Read Works
Read Works: Passages: "Spinning Storms"
[Free Registration/Login Required] An informational text about tornados written on the 2nd grade reading level. The text is followed by ten comprehension questions in multiple choice or extended response format. A link to answers is...
Extreme Science
Extreme Science
Explore the science behind the "extremes" in our world. Organized into sections on earth science, the animal kingdom, technology, and space science, this site opens your eyes to giant creatures, amazing technological advances, vast...
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Ucar: Web Weather for Kids: Thunderstorms & Tornadoes Make Convection Currents
Demonstrate convection currents using a clear box, red food coloring, ice cubes, colored pencils and index cards. Get all the directions you need for this simple lab.
University Corporation for Atmospheric Research
Ucar: National Center for Atmospheric Research: Severe Weather Storms [Pdf]
Teachers and/or students are given four scientific experiments related to severe weather. Included are making clouds, homemade lightening, tornado in a bottle, and dissecting hailstones. Dramatic photos of severe weather conditions are...