The Weather Today

Activity card

Graphic Organizer: Cause and effect Name/s:

WorldWise

™

Effect

Lesson Plan

Content-based Learning

Xx

Level N (30)

Xxxxxxxxx

The Weather Today defines what weather is and explains where it comes from. Wind and rain are explained and explored through simple experiments. The book looks at weather on a global scale, defines extreme weather, and features an interview with a meteorologist.

Informational text types: Report/Explanation/Procedure/Recount

Effect

WorldWise

Content-based Learning

Cause

Next Generation Science Curriculum links

• ESS2.D Weather and climate • ESS3.B Natural hazards Key concepts

Effect

• Knowledge of the weather and daily weather patterns is useful for our everyday activities. However, in the case of extreme weather, people need to be informed so that they keep safe

Content vocabulary atmosphere, barograph, barometer, blizzard, condensation, drizzle, evaporation, fog, frost, hail, humid, hurricanes, hygrometer, lightning, meteorologist, meteorology, mist, orbit, overcast, precipitation, sandstorm, satellites, shower, sleet, thermometer, thunder, tornado, vapor

Text features

• Diagrams, maps, tables, sidebars, text boxes, illustrations, captions, glossary

Effect

Reading strategy

• Identifying cause and effect

Correlations with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills WorldWise Lesson Plan The Weather Today © 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd. © 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd. This work is protected by copyright law, and under international copyright conventions, applicable in the jurisdictions in which it is published.

The trademark “Flying Start to Literacy” and Star device is a registered trademark of EC Licensing Pty Ltd in the US. The trademark “WorldWise Content-based Learning” and Star device is owned by EC Licensing Pty Ltd. In addition to certain rights under applicable copyright law to copy parts of this work, the purchaser may make copies of those sections of this work displaying the footnote: “© 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd”, provided that: (a) the number of copies made does not exceed the number reasonably required by the purchaser for its teaching purposes; (b) those copies are only made by means of photocopying and are not further copied or stored or transmitted by any means; (c) those copies are not sold, hired, lent or offered for sale, hire or loan; and (d) every copy made clearly shows the footnote copyright notice.

All other rights reserved.

Developed by Eleanor Curtain Publishing

okapi educational publishing

Text: Kerrie Shanahan, Jenny Feely Consultants: Linda Hoyt, Lyn Reggett Designed by Derek Schneider Printed in China through Colorcraft Ltd, Hong Kong Distributed in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing Inc. Phone: 866-652-7436 Fax: 800-481-5499 Email: info@myokapi.com www.myokapi.com www.worldwise-reading.com

Reading 3(6) (E) Make connections to personal experiences, ideas in other texts, and society.

3(6) (F) Make inferences and use evidence to support understanding.

3(9) (D) (ii) Recognize characteristics and structures of informational text, including features such as sections, tables, graphs, timelines, bullets, numbers, and bold and italicized font to support understanding.

Writing 3(12) (B) Compose informational texts, including brief compositions that convey information about a topic, using a clear central idea and genre characteristics and craft.

Speaking and Listening 3(1) (C) Speak coherently about the topic under discussion, employing eye contact, speaking rate, volume, enunciation, and the conventions of language to communicate ideas effectively.

First reading session

Second reading session

Final reading session

Writing

Getting started

Building understanding

Bringing it all together

Introducing the book

Reading with teacher support

Support the students in activating their prior knowledge.

Ask: What do you know about today’s weather? What is it like? What causes us to have the weather we are having today? What effect is this weather having on you today? Give each student a copy of the book The Weather Today. Direct them to pay attention to the cover, and the title and contents pages. Have the students browse through the book. Say: As you browse through the book, think about what you know about this topic. What connections are you making?

Have the students discuss their thinking with the group.

Say: Get yourself ready to read by thinking about what you have already read about weather and what causes it. Have the students read chapter 2 to themselves. Have the students complete a second Graphic Organizer, this time focused on the effects on everyday life of different weather events. Invite the students to ask questions about what they have read.

Have students talk about the whole book. Use a range of questions to promote discussion and higher-level thinking.

Where appropriate, have the students lead the discussion.

Have the students write a report using the prompt: Why today’s weather is _________. Provide the students with a template detailing how to plan and write a report.

Say: Read chapter 3 to yourself. When you have finished, discuss your thinking with your partner. Ask: How do different kinds of weather affect your life? How do storms affect your life?

What do you think would be the most dangerous form of weather?

Why? Why do people need to know about what the weather will be like in advance? (Synthesizing)

Exploring vocabulary

Say: Talk with your partner about how sentences within a paragraph can be connected to tell you there is a cause and effect relationship being explained. For example, “Wind is moving air. Air moves up when it is warmed by the sun.”

Why do you think the author included the activity sections? What do they add to your knowledge and the text? (Critical)

Independent and partner work

Going beyond the book

Ask: What words or phrases would you expect to see in a book about weather? Have the students work with a partner and record their words on sticky notes. Say: When you are finished, stick these words on a chart grouped in ways that seem most useful to you.

Give each group of words a heading. If some words or phrases are not known to all in the group, have the student who recorded the word explain what it means.

Introducing the reading strategy focus Say: Recognizing cause and effect relationships is important for understanding what you read. Sometimes a big event will cause a big effect; other times a lot of small causes can lead to a really big effect.

Ask: Can you give me an example of one thing causing something else to happen? Allow time for students to share their ideas. Turn to pages 4 and 5. Read the first paragraph together. Talk about how each kind of weather would affect the students.

Reading with teacher support Say: Read chapter 1 to yourself. As you read, think about the cause and effect relationships you are reading about. Think about what causes weather. What role does the sun play in this? When you have finished reading, be ready to discuss your thinking with your partner.

Monitor the students as they read and support them where necessary. Have students share their thinking with the group.

Ask: What causes our weather? What role does the atmosphere play in this?

Guide the students in filling out their Graphic Organizer. Say: This Graphic Organizer will help you with your thinking. First, write “the sun” in the cause box. Then, as you read, write down any effects that the sun’s heat has. Look for linking words that tell you that there is a cause and effect relationship e.g. “During the day … this creates …”

Have the students read the rest of the book without your support.

Say: When you have finished reading, talk about your thinking with your partner, and then share your Graphic Organizers. On completion, have the students reread the whole book in preparation for the final reading session. Say: Be ready to talk about your thinking and to discuss your questions and wonderings with the group.

Reflecting on the reading strategy Encourage the students to talk about what they did to help themselves as readers. Ask: Can you find an example of cause and effect in the book? How did identifying cause and effect help you understand what you were reading?

How does the sun cause weather on the earth? What role does the atmosphere have in creating weather? (Literal) What would happen to our weather if the sun became cooler? What are the effects of wild weather on people’s lives? (Inferential)

Invite students to ask their own questions.

Have students demonstrate their understandings by choosing one or more of the following tasks. The tasks can be completed independently, in pairs, or in a small group.

Speaking and listening Have students look at the weather outside the classroom window. Ask them to think about the words they could use to describe the weather. Have them pretend to be a weather reporter and present a weather report to a partner or the group.

Vocabulary

Download the template at www.worldwise-reading.com/teacherresources

Have students view or listen to weather reports on the Internet, television news, and radio. Have them list weather words found in these resources to compile a word bank of weather words.

Say: Remember to show what causes the weather and what the effects of the weather are likely to be. Think about the linking words that indicate there is a cause and effect relationship.

Visual literacy

Encourage the students to talk about their ideas with a partner. Use the template to remind the students about the structure of a report. Say: You will need to introduce the topic and then provide supporting information.

Have students return to the diagram of the wind cycle on page 8. Discuss how this diagram works. Ask: What is happening in box 1? What is the effect of the land warming more quickly than the sea? What is the cause and effect relationship being explained here? Discuss the other diagrams in the book in a similar way.

Activity card

Graphic Organizer: Cause and effect Name/s:

WorldWise

™

Effect

Lesson Plan

Content-based Learning

Xx

Level N (30)

Xxxxxxxxx

The Weather Today defines what weather is and explains where it comes from. Wind and rain are explained and explored through simple experiments. The book looks at weather on a global scale, defines extreme weather, and features an interview with a meteorologist.

Informational text types: Report/Explanation/Procedure/Recount

Effect

WorldWise

Content-based Learning

Cause

Next Generation Science Curriculum links

• ESS2.D Weather and climate • ESS3.B Natural hazards Key concepts

Effect

• Knowledge of the weather and daily weather patterns is useful for our everyday activities. However, in the case of extreme weather, people need to be informed so that they keep safe

Content vocabulary atmosphere, barograph, barometer, blizzard, condensation, drizzle, evaporation, fog, frost, hail, humid, hurricanes, hygrometer, lightning, meteorologist, meteorology, mist, orbit, overcast, precipitation, sandstorm, satellites, shower, sleet, thermometer, thunder, tornado, vapor

Text features

• Diagrams, maps, tables, sidebars, text boxes, illustrations, captions, glossary

Effect

Reading strategy

• Identifying cause and effect

Correlations with Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills WorldWise Lesson Plan The Weather Today © 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd. © 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd. This work is protected by copyright law, and under international copyright conventions, applicable in the jurisdictions in which it is published.

The trademark “Flying Start to Literacy” and Star device is a registered trademark of EC Licensing Pty Ltd in the US. The trademark “WorldWise Content-based Learning” and Star device is owned by EC Licensing Pty Ltd. In addition to certain rights under applicable copyright law to copy parts of this work, the purchaser may make copies of those sections of this work displaying the footnote: “© 2019 EC Licensing Pty Ltd”, provided that: (a) the number of copies made does not exceed the number reasonably required by the purchaser for its teaching purposes; (b) those copies are only made by means of photocopying and are not further copied or stored or transmitted by any means; (c) those copies are not sold, hired, lent or offered for sale, hire or loan; and (d) every copy made clearly shows the footnote copyright notice.

All other rights reserved.

Developed by Eleanor Curtain Publishing

okapi educational publishing

Text: Kerrie Shanahan, Jenny Feely Consultants: Linda Hoyt, Lyn Reggett Designed by Derek Schneider Printed in China through Colorcraft Ltd, Hong Kong Distributed in the USA by Okapi Educational Publishing Inc. Phone: 866-652-7436 Fax: 800-481-5499 Email: info@myokapi.com www.myokapi.com www.worldwise-reading.com

Reading 3(6) (E) Make connections to personal experiences, ideas in other texts, and society.

3(6) (F) Make inferences and use evidence to support understanding.

3(9) (D) (ii) Recognize characteristics and structures of informational text, including features such as sections, tables, graphs, timelines, bullets, numbers, and bold and italicized font to support understanding.

Writing 3(12) (B) Compose informational texts, including brief compositions that convey information about a topic, using a clear central idea and genre characteristics and craft.

Speaking and Listening 3(1) (C) Speak coherently about the topic under discussion, employing eye contact, speaking rate, volume, enunciation, and the conventions of language to communicate ideas effectively.