Lesson Plan

The Parched Plains: Weather And Climate

Curated and Reviewed by Lesson Planet

How do meteorologists differentiate between droughts and dry spells? Introduce the concepts of weather forecasting and prediction with an insightful research-based lesson from the K20 series. Partners synthesize individual research from past drought events to make claims about weather and climate.

6 Views 7 Downloads NGSS: Designed
Additional Tags
Instructional Ideas
  • Show a Dust Bowl documentary to add a historical element to the lesson
  • Ask groups to come up with a list of all of the things that could be affected by a drought prior to beginning the lesson, then reflect on it afterward
Classroom Considerations
  • As the resources focus on Oklahoma's history of droughts, you may want to include information about local or regional drought periods
  • Review the effects of high and low atmospheric pressure systems if students have not used this information recently
Pros
  •  The lesson contains excellent methods for researching data and communicating it effectively
  • The PSA assessment is a fun way to wrap up the lesson
Cons
  • None
NGSS