Feburary 2... the day the ground hog awakes to help us determine if spring has arrived or if there will be 6 more weeks of winter! Your students will enjoy predicting the end of winter or the beginning of spring-like weather and then collecting information to see if the ground hog was right!
What is a winter day like?
What is a spring day like?
Was the ground hog right this year- how do you know?
Where in the United States will winter most likely last until March? Why?
The student will collect and analyze weather data to determine if the ground hog was correct or incorrect in predicting the end of winter or the arrival of spring this year.
Thermometer
The students will need to check the temperature in the morning and in the afternoon.
Weather Spreadsheet
The students will fill in this spreadsheet daily. You may want to keep the spreadsheet on your computer or print it out so that everyone in the class can see the data as it is filled in.
After your class has recorded outside temperatures for six weeks, the following information should be recorded.
All students should make their predictions on the following sheet, which the teacher will print out for the class to use. Under the chosen prediction, the student may write a short comment of WHY he/she is making this prediction.
Automated Weather Source
This is the largest network of weather stations in the world, owned and operated by AWS Convergence Technologies, Inc. It provides real-time data from thousands of locations around the country.
The Weather Channel
People can go to this site and type in their zip code to find their city's weather information.
Predict if your town will have six more weeks of winter or if spring will come. Record your prediction of the Predictions Rubric. (The teacher will print this out and each student will make his or her prediction and write it on the rubric checklist. In a few weeks the students will see how many were correct.)
Each weekday morning and afternoon, record the temperature and decide if it is a winter or spring-like day. The class should record the temperature for 6 weeks - from the first week in February to the middle of March. (The teacher will print out the spreadsheet for recording the temperature.)
After the class has finished collecting weather data for 6 weeks, they should answer the questions on the data form, so their ground hog data can be shared with students in other communities.
Answer the Engaging Questions found in the Teacher's Guide.
My second graders printed out the ground hog spreadsheet and prediction sheet to make a display in the hallway. We also hang a printout of all of the predictions Punxsatawney Phil (the ground hog) has made! I have 2-3 students each morning check the weather using www.aws.com- but you only need a thermometer that is outside. They also are responsible for checking the temperature at 12:30. This helps them decide if it is a spring-like day or winter day. My students always enjoy this activity and are excited to gather the weather information. For the culminating activity, I place my students in groups of 2 to analyze the data and create graphs of their findings.
This lesson will take approximately 3 minutes each day for six weeks. The culminating activity will take approximately 45 minutes to analyze the data.
Happy Ground Hog Day! Did Punxsatawney Phil or any other groundhog see his shadow this morning? Will we have six more weeks of winter? The second graders made predictions of whether we will have six more weeks of winter or if spring will come immediately! Each day, we are recording the temperature, cloud types, and precipitation to see if the ground hog was correct! After 6 weeks, we will let you know our results! Please ask your child about this activity.
Please enter a Registration Key to continue.