Standard and Benchmark Assessed:
Standard: Earth and Space Sciences
Benchmark: B. Explain that many processes occur in patterns within the Earth’s systems.
Multiple Choice Question:
6. Climatographs are often used to represent a location’s temperature and precipitation patterns.
(Precipitation is represented by the bar graph because it is cumulative.)
Which climatograph most likely represents a tropical rainforest?
Source: Ohio Department of Education August 07

Commentary:
This multiple choice question asks students to examine four climatographs and determine which one most likely represents a tropical rainforest. Students are given graphs that provide information about average monthly temperature and precipitation for four different regions.
Students must recall that a tropical rainforest biome has consistently high temperatures and high levels of precipitation throughout the year. Upon examination of the climatographs, students should observe that in graphs B, C, and D the maximum temperature is relatively constant between 20 o C and 30 o C. Students should also note that graph B is the only one showing a consistently high level of precipitation over the course of a year. Answer choice B is correct because the average maximum temperature is 30 o C and the average precipitation is between 175 and 275 mm for the entire year which would characterize a tropical rainforest.
Answer choice A is incorrect because the precipitation level shown in this climatograph is too low and the wide temperature fluctuations are not representative of a tropical rainforest. Answer choices C and D are incorrect because the precipitation levels fluctuate significantly over the course of a year, with some months very dry and others very wet, which would not be expected in a tropical rainforest.
This question is classified as Communicating Understanding / Analyzing Science Information because the task requires students to analyze and identify graphical information in relationship to the concept of biomes. Students examine four climatographs and determine which one most likely represents a tropical rainforest to demonstrate their understanding of concepts related to climate.
Performance Data:
The percent of public school students selecting answer choice B for question 6 on the March
2007 Ohio Graduation Test was 86%.
Keywords: biome, climate
Source: Ohio Department of Education August 07