Jessica Chalupa

Date: November 11, 2014

Grade: 4th
Time: 11:30 a.m. 12:40p.m
Cooperating Teacher: Mrs. Van Zandt
Science
Weather on Earth and in our Solar System
Lesson Essential Question(s): What causes hurricanes? What weather systems are on other
planets in our solar system?
Standards: MS-ESS2-5
Learning Objectives and Assessments:
Learning Objective
Students will be able to identify the different
weather systems in the Earths atmosphere.

Assessments
Students will look at what they see in the
starlab and given the pointer to show where
certain objects are.

Students will be able to compare and contrast

different weather on other planets.

Students will illustrate their knowledge of new

planets and be given an additional lesson on
what they have learned through a map scale
and different planet weather.

Materials: Startlab, pointer, weather cylinder, solar system cylinder, projector, & fan.
Prior Knowledge: The students have experienced Hurricane Sandy.
Hook: The students will finally go into the starlab.
Instructional Plan:
Once they arrive at the starlab, students will be following these rules:
-

No eating or drinking of any kind is allowed in the starlab

No shoes are allowed in the starlab
No sharp objects are allowed in the starlab
If there is any continuous acts of silliness from students, the students will have to wait in
the office for the remainder of time
Students will sit around the dome. The dome can up to 35 people and can have two
circles if necessary around the center of the dome

Emergency Evacuation Rules and Procedure

Upon entering, the students would be seated around the dome. If there were such thing as
an emergency, students would quickly stand up to the middle, and then the teachers
would lift the dome in the front where students can quickly exit.

The teacher will have the projector already set up and the students will be given
opportunity to point out the different continents
The students will locate what the following symbols represent
o Longitude
o Latitude
o High pressure
o Low pressure
o Hurricane
o Polar Front
o Jet Streams
o Wind Currents
The teacher will discuss a little more at length hurricanes because they have completed a
previous lesson on it
The teacher will then switch cylinders to the solar system where the teacher will discuss
the weather on the following planets
o Mercury
o Venus
o Earth
o Mars
o Jupiter
o Saturn
o Uranus
o Neptune
Once the teacher has completed the lesson about other planets, the students will be asked
if they have any additional questions.
The students will exit the starlab and proceed back to class

Differentiation: If the student is disabled, the teacher will take the student into the starlab
earlier through the emergency exit. The students will be given prior knowledge about the planets
ahead of time to better prepare them. If the student is extremely afraid of the dark, the teacher
will allow them have a small flashlight that they can hold onto.
Questions: What symbols represent the high pressure? What symbol represents hurricanes?
What planet holds the fastest wind in the solar system? What storm has been raging on for over
400 years?
Classroom Management: If at any time, the students are not able to cooperate and listen, one of
the teachers will take the student to the office where they will wait. If for some reason the
student cannot be in the starlab for claustrophobia or darkness, the student will be taken out and
allowed to sit with a teacher outside.

Transition: The teacher will begin with all of the continents on the dome and then will ask the
students to identify what the symbols are on the dome. The teacher will go through the weather
cylinder first and then to the solar system cylinder next.
Closure: The teacher will take the students back to the classroom where the students will fill out
an exit ticket asking something they just learned and something they have a question on.