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Tornadoes

Lesson Plan One: What do you know about Tornadoes?

Overview: In this lesson, students identify what they already know about tornadoes, what they would like to know, and what they have learned about tornadoes using primary sources and reference materials.

Estimated Time: 60 minutes, plus a 10 minute follow-up next day

Materials:
Worksheet 1: KWL (Know, Want to learn, Learned)
Worksheet 2: Vocabulary List
Worksheet 3: Lesson Assessment

Learning Objectives: After completing the lesson, students will be able to:

  1. Explain what a tornado is
  2. Describe basic conditions required for tornadoes to form
  3. Identify where tornadoes are most likely to occur
  4. State how tornado force is described (Fujita Scale) and the types of damage associated with various strengths of tornado

Vocabulary:

Beaver’s Tail, Condensation Funnel, Enhanced Fujita Scale, Doppler Radar, Fujita Scale, Funnel Cloud, Rare Flank Downdraft, Supercell, Tornado Alley, Tornado, Vortex, Wall Cloud

GIS Tools and Functions: N/A

Additional Resources:

Identify a series of resources available on the internet that deal with tornadoes and that are accessible to students in your class. Here are some examples:

Opening the lesson:

  1. “Indicate to students that tornadoes are one of the most violent natural hazardsGEOGRAPHY/SCIENCE: Ask the class to list other natural hazards they know. Examples include hurricanes, earthquakes, landslides, floods, etc1. After this list is produced, ask students to create a definition of what is a natural hazard. The definition should include “severe and extreme weather and climate events that occur naturally in all parts of world2.”1 Droughts, tropical cyclones, air pollution, desert locusts, avalanche, dust storms/sandstorms, forest or wildland fire2 World Meteorological Organization definition. https://www.wmo.int/pages/themes/hazards/index_en.html commonly found in the United States. Tornadoes occur in all fifty states and throughout the year. Some of us may have experienced one or know someone who has. Some of us may have just seen what is on the news or in movies. So let’s start by thinking about what we already know about tornadoes.”
  2. Pass out the KWL ChartA KWL chart is a good pedagogical approach to understand what students already Know about a topic, what they Want to learn, and what they Learned at the end of the lesson. KWL’s can be used across disciplines and can help address students’ prior misunderstanding. to students.
  3. Ask students to take 5 minutes to individually record in the K column what they already know about tornadoes.
  4. Have students form groups of four or five and share what they reported in column KAs an alternative, students can share what they reported with the whole class. The teacher should also create their own KWL chart on the board and fill it in as students work on theirs..

Developing the Lesson:

  1. Hand out the Vocabulary List of terms associated with tornadoes for students to refer to throughout the development of the lesson as students conduct research on tornadoes.
  2. Next, based on what they shared, ask students to develop questions on what they want to learn about tornadoes and record these questions in column W.
  3. Set up work stationsCreating work stations is a great way to use class time to get students out of their seats and working together. It encourages students to read primary sources for information and then report back to the class about what they learned. with hard copies of materials and video resourcesIf there is a computer available in the classroom, have it set up with an informational video on tornadoes for students to watch, such as Nat Geo Tornadoes 101 about tornadoes for students to read and view. Allow students 10 minutes at each station, using what they have recorded in column W as a starting point to gather information about tornadoes.

Concluding the Lesson:

  1. For homework, ask students to record what they learned in column L of their KWL sheet.
  2. In class the next day, allow 10 minutes to ask students to share what they have learned with the class.
  1. To conclude the lesson, distribute the Lesson Assessment handout to each student. Have students complete the assessment and hand them in for grading.

Lesson Plan Two: Finding Tornado Alley