Weather Extremes Webquest

Introduction

Weather is all around us.  It influences everything from what to wear to our daily activities.  Without weather we wouldn’t have crops or green grass.  For the most part weather is very helpful an important factor in our daily lives.  Sometimes weather can be very harmful and destructive.  Think about all of the damage associated with Hurricane Katrina. We are going to take a look at hurricanes as well as other weather extremes.

Task

Your job is to take on the role of a hurricane, tornado, blizzard, or thunderstorm.  You will create a PowerPoint outlining your life history.  Your history will include how you were created, where did you travel, interesting statistics, pictures and your demise. 

Your slide show has to have a minimum of 8 slides listed below; you can branch out and include other information as well.

All presentations will begin with your birth and end with your death.  The other slides will contain the following:

• Important events that have taken place during this stage

• Location (longitude and latitude)

• Wind speed (in miles per hour)

• Pictures at each stage of life, or sketches 

• Damage created

• Human safety precautions

Information Sources

You are welcome to use any books from the library, encyclopedias, and your Sciencesaurus textbook.  Use only the websites listed below, DO NOT create your own searches.  These websites should be your primary sources.

Tornado

Scholastic  http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/wwatch/tornadoes/index.htm

Weather Whiz Kids http://www.weatherwizkids.com/tornado.htm

USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/weather/tornado/wtwist0.htm

Vortex  http://www.nssl.noaa.gov/noaastory/book.html

Sky Diary  http://skydiary.com/kids/tornadoes.html

National Weather Service  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/severeweather/index.shtml

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/kids/tornado.htm

Weather Channel  http://www.weather.com/encyclopedia/

Powerful Storms  http://www.learner.org/exhibits/weather/storms.html

Birth and Death of Tornado  http://dsc.discovery.com/convergence/tornado/slideshow/slideshow.html

Thunderstorm                                   

Weather Whiz Kids  http://www.weatherwizkids.com/lightning1.htm

USA Today http://www.usatoday.com/weather/resources/basics/thunderstorms.htm

National Weather Service  http://www.nws.noaa.gov/om/severeweather/index.shtml

Sky Diary  http://skydiary.com/kids/lightning.html

Weather Eye http://weathereye.kgan.com/cadet/lightning/bigspark.html

FEMA http://www.fema.gov/kids/thunder.htm

Australian Severe Weather  http://www.australiasevereweather.com/index.html

Weather Channel  http://www.weather.com/encyclopedia/

In the Clouds  http://www.inclouds.com/index.html

Powerful Storms http://www.learner.org/exhibits/weather/storms.html

Blizzard                                                            

Weather Whiz Kids  http://www.weatherwizkids.com/winter_storms.htm

Scholastic (includes Blizzard timeline) http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/wwatch/winter_storms/index.htm

USA Today  http://www.usatoday.com/weather/wwinter0.htm

Rocky Mountain Research Station http://www-wwrc.uwyo.edu/wrds/rmfres/index.html

FEMA  http://www.fema.gov/kids/wntstrm.htm

Weather Channel  http://www.weather.com/encyclopedia/

Ice and Snow  http://www.learner.org/exhibits/weather/iceandsnow.html

Hurricane

Scholastic  http://teacher.scholastic.com/activities/wwatch/hurricanes/index.htm

Weather Whiz Kids  http://www.weatherwizkids.com/hurricane1.htm

USA Today  http://www.usatoday.com/weather/hurricane/hurricane-resources.htm

Sky Diary  http://skydiary.com/kids/hurricanes.html

FEMA  http://www.fema.gov/kids/hurr.htm

Tropical Twister  http://kids.earth.nasa.gov/archive/hurricane/damage.html

Horrific Hurricanes  http://whyfiles.org/073hurricane/index.html

Weather Channel  http://www.weather.com/encyclopedia/

Miami Hurricane  http://www.miamisci.org/hurricane/

                   Process

Stage 1:  Knowledge Acquisition

1. Define your weather extreme.
2. What conditions are needed for your weather to occur?
3. How do they form?
4. Where do they form?
5. How are they measured?
6. Why do they lose power?
7. What precautions/safety measures should humans take?

Stage 2:  Creating PowerPoint

All presentations will begin with your birth and end with your death.  The other slides will contain the following:

•  Important changes that have taken place during your life

• Your location (areas of the country)

• Your measurement

• Pictures showing you in action

• Damage created (pictures)

•  Human safety precautions

Evaluation

Exceeding Expectations

• More than 8 slides

• 8 or more graphics or sketches

• 8 or more interesting facts

Meeting Expectations

•  8 Slides

•  5 - 7 graphics or sketches

• 5 - 7 more interesting facts

Acceptable Expectations (Progressing)

• 6 Slides

• 3 - 4 graphic or sketches

• 3 - 4 interesting facts

Novice Expectations (Needs Improvement)

• 4 Slides

•  2 or less graphic or sketches

• 2 or less interesting facts

Conclusion

            In discovering your life and times have you learned the conditions favorable for your existence?  Do you know the damage you can and have caused?  Do you know how you are measured?  Have you learned what precautions humans must take to prevent loss of life and/or property?  If you can answer yes to these questions, CONGRATULATIONS, you are now a bona fide “storm tracker”.