This resource accompanies our Rethink 5th Grade Science course. It includes ideas for use, ways to support exceptional children, ways to extend learning, digital resources and tools, tips for supporting English Language Learners and students with visual and hearing impairments. There are also ideas for offline learning. 

Students investigate conditions that affect extreme weather on Earth. They will use brainstorming, discussion, and resources such as images and video to gather information about weather, and then record their information on a provided worksheet.

Students will begin to analyze the weather data collected from Lesson 1. Students will be able to identify cold and warm fronts and low and high air pressure systems. This lesson was developed by Manda Stiegel as part of their completion of the North Carolina Global Educator Digital Badge program. This lesson plan has been vetted at the local and state level for standards alignment, Global Education focus, and content accuracy.

In this lesson, students will investigate how convection happens in the atmosphere and how this affects weather on Earth.

This lesson is the first of a two-part series on the science of hurricanes and the kinds of technology being used to identify and track them. In this activity students examine different scientific aspects of hurricanes, all in an effort to begin to understand the nature of motion?particularly how changes in speed or direction of motion are caused by forces.

By using this interactive, students will experience an introduction to the jet stream and its effect on weather. Students will click through the interactive and read selections paired with explanatory graphics. Unfamiliar word definitions are provided when the student clicks on the word in question.

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 5th Grade Science. 

This course was created by the Rethink Education Content Development Team. This course is aligned to the NC Standards for 5th Grade Science.

In this video, students learn that weather conditions are influenced by global weather patterns. When the Earth's air masses run into each other, the place where they meet is called a front. Fronts are responsible for all kinds of weather like snow.

In this video, students learn that changes in air pressure causes wind. The Earth's rotation also helps. Students explore how wind direction and speed affect global patterns and influence weather.

In this video, students learn weather conditions are influenced by water currents. They also learn that a wave carries energy on the ocean's surface. Waves can be big like tsunamis, or small. A current is the constant movement of the water in the ocean, and there are different kinds of currents, defined by their characteristics and location.

In this virtual resource, students will explore how convection drives global weather patterns such as the ENSO.

The wakelet site features videos demonstrating hands-on activities for students to complete at school in small, socially-distanced settings. Activities may also be adapted for at-home learning. Some activities incorporate an outdoor component, acknowledging the need to balance screen time with green time to support mental health. Tips for taking your students outside can be found here: https://education.eol.org/cnc_materials/TipsForTeachingOutside.pdf

In this hands-on science unit, students conduct investigations on local and world weather and climate. There are five core lessons and additional supplemental and enrichment activities. The included Teacher Guide consists of detailed, printable lesson plans and curriculum standards covered. Included is a Student Gallery where teachers and students can view student work and upload their own student work. An Ask the Expert section is also included for any questions students may have.

This article highlights children's literature about weather and climate, the polar regions, and climate change for use in the elementary classroom.

This lesson teaches students about heat transfer and introduces them to the three types of heat transfer - convection, radiation, and conduction. Students will then apply their understanding to weather.

After reading this interactive online article, students will be prepared to answer the question, "What is a jet stream?" Students will read to learn what a jet stream is, what causes a jet stream, and how meteorologists use it to predict the weather. The affect that the jet stream has on wind, temperature, and precipitation is included. Students can click on unfamiliar words to get their definitions and take a word challenge quiz.

In this activity, students use art supplies to create a chart to show the various forms precipitation can have in the winter and how they change depending on changes in air temperature.

This resource includes video footage of Hurricane Wilma and an article about hurricane formation and how to prepare for hurricane storms.