Justine Barker School: Kendall Elementary

IWU Supervisor: Dr. Angie Leffler Co-op Teacher: Mr. Ethan Evans
Teaching Date: N/A Grade Level: 2nd

Rationale​: We have so many ways of finding out what the weather will be, especially in this era
of smartphones, but sometimes meteorologists are wrong. Students can learn to make sense of
the weather around them and the world around them by looking at the clouds. They can make
informed decisions about what sorts of clothes to wear and even communicate to adults what the
weather could be that day based on the clouds.
Readiness
I. Goals/Standards/Objectives
A. Goals
1. Students will understand the different kinds of clouds and how they form.
B. Standards
2.ESS.1 Record detailed weather observations, including cloud cover, cloud type,
and type of precipitation on a daily basis over a period of weeks and correlate
observations to the time of year. Chart and graph collected data.
C. Objectives
1. Throughout the lesson, students will explore and begin to understand how
clouds are formed and what the different types of clouds are.
2. At the conclusion of the lesson, students will be able to identify different
types of clouds by participating in discussion and taking part in the
observation exercise.
II. Management
A. Time
- 55 minutes
- On-going (10 minutes for each cloud observations)
B. Space
- Student desks
- Table at the back of the room
- Outside on the playground
C. Materials
1. Mason jar
2. Hair spray
3. Boiling water
4. Ice cubes
5. Power point
6. Investigation sheets
 D. Behavior
1. Clap once if you can hear me
2. Repetition clapping
3. Say “eyes on me” when I need students to look at me
4. if Jamey or Riley act out, I will remind them of their behavior charts
5. Reinforce voice levels (level 0: no talking, level 1: whisper, level 2: indoor
voice, level 3: outdoor voice)

III. Anticipatory Set (5 minutes)

I will complete the cloud in a jar experiment. I’ll take boiling water and add it to a mason
jar. I’ll spray hairspray inside the jar, place the lid on upside down, and place ice cubes
on the lid. ​Okay students, watch carefully. What is going on? What do you see?
IV. Purpose Statement
Today we are going to talk about clouds and what they tell us about weather. We will
also explore what exactly happened inside that jar.

Plan for Instruction

V. Adaptations to Individuals with Differences and Diverse Learners
A. Students will work in groups, so students who may have trouble processing as fast
as the other students will have time to process and then externalize. This also
helps students who are still learning to write, as each person in each group will
have essentially the same words written on their recording sheets.
B. Because this is a Science lesson, I am not assessing writing skills. Students will be
able to communicate cloud type by drawing if they desire and students do not
have to write in complete sentences.
VI. Lesson Presentation (input/output) (50 Minutes)
Okay students, remember how we talked about solids, liquids, and gasses the other day?
Remember when we talked about water and how water can be all 3 states of matter?
Today we are going to talk about water when it is a gas and moves into the atmosphere.
This occurs in our everyday lives, in the sky. Does anyone know what I’m talking about?
Right, I’m talking about the clouds. Clouds form when warm water enters the cool of the
atmosphere, very similar to what we watched happen in the jar today.
There are many different kinds of clouds. This is a cirrus cloud. They are high up in the
atmosphere where it is extremely cold. They look like little wisps, and usually are a sign
of a sunny day. Cumulus means “heaps”, so these clouds look like heaps. White ones are
normally seen on a nice day, while gray ones are seen before a rainstorm. This is a
Stratus cloud, it’s sometimes compared to a blanket because it covers the entire sky.
When you can see these clouds, it normally means snow or rain is on the way. Last, these
are nimbus clouds. They are the big dark clouds you normally see during a thunderstorm.
 Have you ever seen any of these clouds before? Have you ever noticed that not all clouds
are the same?
Are clouds and weather related? How are they related? Do you think based on what we
just learned, we could make hypotheses about the weather? That’s what we are going to
do with the rest of our time. We are going to go outside, and look up at the sky at the
different kinds of clouds you see. I will give you this investigation sheet where you can
record what you see. We will also record the date and the temperature. Then, we will
come back inside and discuss with your table groups a hypothesis about the weather for
the rest of the day based on the clouds. You’ll write it down and tomorrow, we will
record whether or not your hypothesis was correct. Let’s go outside! What do you see?
What kinds of clouds do you see? Now you may discuss in your hypotheses with your
table mates. Do you have similar ideas? Decide what your hypothesis is going to be and
write it down in the hypothesis section of the investigation sheet.

VII. Check for Understanding

A. I will check student investigation sheets often to see if their predictions line up
with what we have talked about.
B. I will check student understanding by listening to student hypothesis.
VIII. Review Learning Outcomes/Closure
Okay, I need one student from each table group to share your hypothesis about the
weather. Okay students, remember your hypothesis. Go home and watch and see if your
hypothesis was right! We will continue to do this at least once a week for the next couple weeks.
Thanks for working so hard today!
Plan for Assessment
Formative: I will use student responses and student questions during the investigations. I
will also ask students to give their group hypotheses. I will also look over
Summative: At the end of the ongoing investigation, i will use the investigation sheets as
summative assessment.
Reflection and Post-Lesson Analysis
1. How many students achieved the lesson objective(s)? For those who did not, why not?
2. What were my strengths and weaknesses?
3. How should I alter this lesson?
4. How would I pace it differently?
5. Were all students actively participating? If not, why not?
6. What adjustments did I make to reach varied learning styles and ability levels?
7. Were students able to understand the connection between the anticipatory set and the rest
of the lesson?
8. Was the ongoing investigation beneficial for students?