Subject: Science
Standard 2, Objective 1: Observe, measure, and record the basic elements of weather.
Website: http://www.uen.org/Lessonplan/preview.cgi?LPid=11087
Students will learn about wind. They will create an instrument to measure wind, an anemometer.
Materials that are needed:
Five 3 ounce paper Dixie cups
Two straight plastic soda straws
Pin
Scissors
Paper punch
Small stapler
Sharp pencil with an eraser
*Additional Resources- Students can bring in weather reports from newspapers, or weather websites can be looked up in the classroom to check weather locally or all over the world.
1. Explain to students that wind is an important element of weather, and that the speed of wind can help to predict the weather. Define wind speed to students, and explain that knowing wind speed and air pressure helps meteorologists forecast when an approaching storm will arrive or how long the weather in an area will remain.
2. Explain to students what an anemometer is, and that they are going to make their own!
HOW TO MAKE AN ANEMOMETER (This comes directly from website)
1. Using the paper punch, punch one hole in each of four Dixie cups, about a half inch below the rim.
2. Take the fifth cup. Punch four equally spaced holes about a quarter inch below the rim. Then punch a hole in the center of the bottom of the cup.
3. Push a soda straw through the hole of one cup. Fold the end of the straw, and staple it to the side of the cup across from the hole. Repeat this procedure for another one-hole cup and the second straw.
4. Now slide one cup and straw assembly through two opposite holes in the cup with four holes. 5 Push another one-hole cup onto the end of the straw just pushed through the four-hole cup. Bend the straw and staple it to the one-hole cup, making certain that the cup faces in the opposite direction from the first cup. Repeat this procedure using the other cup and straw assembly and the remaining one-hole cup.
5. Align the four cups so that their open ends face in the same direction (clockwise or counterclockwise) around the center cup. Push the straight pin through the two straws where they intersect. Push the eraser end of the pencil through the bottom hole in the center cup. Push the pin into the end of the pencil eraser as far as it will go. Mark one of the four cups with an “X” so you can count how many times it goes around in one minute.
Because we live in Utah, and the weather is kind of crazy, if there is no wind outside to do the activity, feel free to use a fan. It has the same effect. Have students take notes on what they learned and how many times their anemometer rotates in one minute.
Compare daily readings of how fast the wind is going, and discuss in class what the differences in wind speed means.
No comments:
Post a Comment