Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 1 Standard 6.ESS2.5 – Analyze and interpret data from weather conditions, weather maps, satellites, and radar to predict probable local weather patterns and conditions. Tennessee Academic Standards for Science: Page 48 Three-dimensional Learning Performance for Lesson Students will collect and analyze current weather data* to illustrate how temperature varies across geographic regions in the United States** highlighting how geographic factors such as the location and size of the region affect temperature median and range.*** Science and Engineering Practice for Lesson Analyzing and Interpreting Data* Students should create and analyze graphical presentations of data in ways that highlight statistical features within the data. Students should evaluate multiple data sets for a single phenomenon in order to make comparisons based on a statistical spread of data. Disciplinary Core Idea for Lesson Earth and Space Science 2: Weather and Climate** “Weather, which varies from day to day and seasonally throughout the year, is the condition of the atmosphere at a given place and time...Weather and climate are shaped by complex interactions involving sunlight, the ocean, the atmosphere, ice, landforms, and living things.” A Framework for K–12 Science Education: Page 186 Crosscutting Concept for Lesson Cause and Effect*** Students use cause and effect relationships to explain phenomena and make predictions. Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 2 Prior Knowledge Location Within Instructional Unit Beginning ● End Concepts that should be covered before this lesson: ○ ● Middle N/A This lesson covers the following portion of standard 6.ESS2.5: ○ Analyze and interpret data from weather conditions. Prior Knowledge The student will benefit from some familiarity with statistical language, specifically mean, median, and range of data. However, this lesson serves as an introduction to those terms within a scientific context. Materials ● Devices that will access internet (cell phone, tablet, computer) ● Post-Test; pages 2-3 of Student Activity ● U.S. map handout with labeled regions, states, and cities ● Large sheets of graph paper, one per group, with horizontal temperature axis drawn by teacher (Each sheet should have the same scale on its temperature axis.) ● Markers and rulers to facilitate drawing the box plots Lesson Sequence and Instructional Notes 1. About This Lesson: In this activity, the students will make predictions regarding what they think current temperature averages and extremes are for various regions within the U.S., and then test those predictions by collecting temperature data. The students will construct box plots (also called box-and-whisker plots) using Desmos1 to develop a visual model of their temperature data. It is anticipated that this may be the first time the students are exposed to a box plot. As part of the lesson, the students will infer, on a conceptual and semiquantitative level, what the parts of the box plot represent. 1 https://www.desmos.com/calculator/avntywmp7c Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 3 Box plots represent the statistical spread and central tendency of a set of data in an easyto-understand visual format. Appropriate use of models and tools are important in science and math. The ability to interpret a visual model or graph and use it as a tool, even if one does not yet know how to generate the model using calculations, is an important skill. In this lesson, students use a weather site to collect current temperature data from cities around the U.S., which they then plot using Desmos. An internet search on “Desmos” and “box plots” yields several results, one of which was tested by the lesson plan author.1 The use of technology completely changes the focus of the box plot lesson from procedural emphasis (how to create a box plot) to application emphasis (what a box plot reveals about temperatures). 2. Lesson Sequence Overview: This 5-E Lesson has the following components: ● Engage: Students make predictions about current temperatures in various U.S. regions. ● Explore: Student teams collect temperature data for cities within the region they have been assigned. They enter their data into Desmos to create a box plot. ● Explain: Student teams explain the connection between their box plots and the temperatures they found within their region. ● Elaborate: Students teams compare box plots constructed within the class for the various U.S. regions. They consider the location, time of day, season of year, and geographical features of various regions and how they affect the temperature profile of the region. ● Evaluate: Students individually take a short post-test for formative assessment purposes. 3. Engage: Begin the lesson by asking students to make predictions about current temperatures in the various regions of the U.S., and write student responses on the board. Example questions are below. ● Which U.S. region currently has the warmest average temperature? ● Which U.S. region currently has the coldest average temperature? ● Which U.S. region currently has the broadest range of temperatures, from warmest to coldest? Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 4 Region names are defined on a map of the U.S.. The map provided in this lesson has five color-coded regions, and it designates cities and states within each region. However, for the purposes of regional interpretation, it is recommended that Alaska and Hawaii each be considered a separate region from the western mainland states. Be prepared to give students a little help interpreting the regional map. For example, ask students to find their city and state on the map, and to identify the U.S. region in which they live. 4. Explore: Divide students into teams of three, and give each team a What’s the Weather Now handout and map. Each team must have access to, at minimum, one device that will access the internet. Two or three devices are preferable. Student roles include meteorologist (who collects temperature data), statistician (who plots the data), and research director (who selects regional cities and directs the activity). Prior to embarking on the actual exploration, use the I Do - We do - You Do instructional strategy to ensure that students can successfully use the technology. For example: ● Using the internet to find a temperature: ○ I Do: Model finding the current temperature of the city where you live using Weather Underground, Weather.com, or another weather service. Students watch you perform this action. ○ We Do: Suggest another city name, and find its temperature as the students perform each step with you. ○ You Do: Suggest a third city name, and have each student group find its temperature while you monitor their actions. ● Using Desmos to make a box plot: ○ I Do: Model entering seven numbers into Desmos1. The seven numbers you enter will replace the 11 numbers in the list L1 shown at the top left. Your numbers must be separated by commas and be between the left and right brackets. For example, your list might look like L1 = [6,2,5,8,10,5,15]. ○ We Do: Have students follow along as you enter a different set of seven to 10 numbers into the Desmos box plot generator. ○ You Do: Give students a set of at least seven numbers, and have them enter them into the Desmos box plot generator as you monitor their actions. At this point, the students should be prepared to begin their exploration. Have them follow the student handout What’s The Weather Now to guide their exploration. During exploration, Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 5 the teacher should monitor student engagement and technology use, and ask questions to prompt student thinking. 5. Explain: In this part of the lesson, students will interpret the box plots they have generated for their individual regions. The teacher should guide this process by asking questions such as: ● What do you think the central line of the box plot represents? ○ ● This is the average temperature, specifically the median. How would you determine the median temperature if you did not have the numeric temperature data and only had the box plot? ○ You would follow the line down to the horizontal axes, and read the number on the axis. ● Where does the lowest temperature you collected appear? ○ ● Where does the highest temperature you collected appear? ○ ● It’s the left end of the left “whisker,” the line extending to the left. It’s the right end of the right “whisker,” the line extending to the right. How would you find the range of temperatures in your region using the box plot? ○ You would read the values of the right and left extremes to get the highest and lowest temperatures. You would then subtract the lowest temperature from the highest temperature to get the temperature difference. If you want your students to have more information about box plots, you can show a video that explains them in some detail2. Alternatively, you can view the video yourself and construct a shortened explanation of what is represented in a box plot. 6. Elaborate: During this part of the lesson, students will compare box plots for the various regions of the U.S. Each student team should redraw their Desmos box plots on large sheets of graph paper that the teacher has previously scaled with a common temperature axis. It is important that the teacher draw the temperature axis on each sheet of graph paper to ensure subsequent valid comparison of box plots. Students should use markers and rulers so the box plots are neat and visible from a distance. https://www.khanacademy.org/math/probability/data-distributions-a1/box--whisker-plotsa1/v/reading-box-and-whisker-plots 2 Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 6 The large box plots should then be arranged vertically in a visible location so the temperature axes are aligned. If necessary, cut the graph paper so that all seven box plots can be displayed one above the other. Each box plot should be clearly labeled with its region designation. After the box plots are appropriately arranged and labeled, questions such as the following should be asked. ● ● ● ● ● ● Which region had the largest temperature range? Why do you think this region had such a large variation in temperature? Which region had the smallest temperature range? What factors might explain this small temperature variation? If we were to repeat this experiment later today, what changes in the box plots would we be likely to notice? If we were to repeat this experiment in the middle of the winter, what changes in the box plots would we be likely to notice? Compare the box plot for Hawaii with that for the Southwest. What differences do you observe? What could account for those differences? What are some of the advantages of using a box and whisker plot instead of a table of numeric data? What are some disadvantages? Teachers should emphasize claim/evidence thinking as students extract information from the box plots. Additionally, teachers should ask students to think about the various causes for the temperature profiles they are seeing. Geographical and geological features of the regions should be considered, as well as the time of day and the season of the year. For example, if the class is early in the day, temperatures will rise as the day progresses and the sun warms the region. This will cause a rightward shift in the box plots. If the region has a large distance from north to south, that could explain a very large temperature range. Temperatures in Hawaii, which is farthest south, are moderated by its geographical location in the middle of the ocean. Temperatures tend to be more extreme (hot in the summer and cold in the winter) in locations in the interior of the country rather than locations on the coast. Note that, for this lesson, a complete list of correct answers cannot be constructed prior to collecting and analyzing the data. The most appropriate explanations are situational, depending on the time of year, time of day, and spread of cities selected by the students. This lesson gives the Earth Science teacher an opportunity to construct explanations along with the students, and makes the teacher a part of the team rather than the repository of all the correct answers. The predictions made at the beginning of the class can be revisited at this point to see if they are supported by the data collected. Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 7 7. Evaluate: A post-test is provided on the second page of the student handout, to be used as formative assessment. A key for the post-test is provided at the end of this Teacher Guide. Teacher Guide for Grade 6 - Page 8 Post-test key 1) What was the lowest temperature measured, and which region was it in? What evidence did you use from the plot to determine your answer? -15 degrees Fahrenheit in Region A. I used the left end of the left “whisker.” 2) If you take a random temperature reading somewhere in Region B, what is its most likely value? What feature of the box plot did you use to determine your answer? 40 degrees Fahrenheit. This came from the central line, which represents the median temperature. 3) Which region has the largest variation in temperature? Calculate the temperature range for this region. The distance between whisker ends is 50 degrees for Region A (35 – (-15) = 50) 4) Which region is likely to be farthest north? Explain your choice. Region A, since it has the lowest average temperature and the lowest overall temperature. 5) Is it likely that Region B represents Hawaii? Why or why not? Region B could not be Hawaii. The temperatures are just too low. 6) What season of the year is likely represented by the graph? Explain your choice. Because the temperatures are all pretty low, this could be winter.
