Winter Storms and Climate Change

• This lesson teaches students about albedo, feedback loops, the difference between weather and climate, the polar vortex, and the jet stream.
  
• It outlines eight different activities designed to be used with the TILclimate podcast episode about winter storms and includes demonstrations, an experiment, animations, a video, readings, graphs, and maps.
  

Positives

• Through these activities, students are able to practice collecting data, reading scientific texts, and interpreting maps and graphs.
• Each activity from the guide can be used independently, so teachers can pick and choose which activities best fit their classroom and curriculum requirements.

Additional Prerequisites

• Students should already know about greenhouse gas emissions and the greenhouse effect.
  
• Some activities require devices with Internet access. However, if this is not available, the teacher guide provides possible modifications.
• Some activities require specific materials or conditions, such as infrared thermometers or sunshine.
  

Differentiation

• All activities can be done independently, with a partner, or in small groups.
• The activities lend themselves well to a station rotation or jigsaw format. Teachers can be creative in how they structure the activities based on the time available and the needs of their students.
• Teachers can use the discussion questions in the guide at the end of the lesson to ensure students understand the connections between the topics covered in each activity.
• These activities can be helpful additions to Earth science lessons covering various topics, such as albedo, weather vs. climate, air masses, rising global temperatures, sea ice melt, and extreme weather.
• Cross-curricular connections can be made with social studies classes by discussing how extreme winter weather impacts communities.
• The guide includes links to additional resources that can provide background for teachers or be used to further student exploration.