This interactive diagram of the water cycle invites students to click on a part of the cycle to get information about streamflow, surface runoff, freshwater storage, ground-water discharge, ground-water storage, infiltration, precipitation, snowmelt, runoff to streams, springs, condensation, evaporation, transpiration, water in the atmosphere, ice and snow, and oceans. A summary of the water cycle on a single webpage is also available as text with pictures in about fifty languages, text only in thirteen languages, or diagram only.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Interactive Simulation, Audio/Visual - Illustration
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Antarctic Weather

http://www.antarcticconnection.com/antarctic/weather/

Visitors to this site can read a discussion about the weather in Anarctica, including why it is so cold, how weather observations are conducted there, and what role the continent plays in the global weather system. Links to related topics, a wind chill calculator, and a Fahrenheit-Celsius-Kelvin temperature converter are also provided.

Resource Type: Dataset - Observed Data, Dataset - Remotely Sensed Data, Reference Material - Nonfiction Reference
Grade Level: 3, 4, 5, 6

Clouds - Dans Wild Weather Page

http://www.wildwildweather.com/clouds.htm

See how many cloud formations you can name on this page brought to you by a meteorologist in Alabama.

Resource Type: Reference Material - Nonfiction Reference, Audio/Visual - Photograph
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Online Guide - Weather Forecasting

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/fcst/home.rxml

Weather Forecasting is one of several online guides produced by the Weather World 2010 project at the University of Illinois. These guides use multimedia technology and the dynamic capabilities of the web to incorporate text, colorful diagrams, animations, computer simulations, audio, and video to introduce topics and concepts in the atmospheric sciences. This module introduces forecast methods and the numerous factors one must consider when attempting to make an accurate forecast. Sections include forecasting methods for different scenarios, surface features affecting forecasting, forecasting temperatures for day and night, and factors for forecasting precipitation.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Tutorial
Grade Level: 4, 5, 6

Online Guide - Hurricanes

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/hurr/home.rxml

Hurricanes is one of several online guides produced by the Weather World 2010 project at the University of Illinois. These guides use multimedia technology and the dynamic capabilities of the web to incorporate text, colorful diagrams, animations, computer simulations, audio, and video to introduce topics and concepts in the atmospheric sciences. The purpose of this module is to introduce hurricanes and their associated features, to show where hurricanes develop, and to explain the atmospheric conditions necessary for hurricane development. This guide covers topics such as hurricane growth, structure, movement, stages of development, preparation for hurricanes, damage and destruction, naming hurricanes, and how El Nino affects hurricanes. There is a storm tracker to view tracks of past cyclones, and a 3-D interactive trip through a hurricane.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Tutorial, Audio/Visual - Movie/Animation
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Online Guide - Severe Storms

http://ww2010.atmos.uiuc.edu/(Gh)/guides/mtr/svr/home.rxml

Part of the University of Illinois Weather World 2010 project, this guide uses multimedia technology and the dynamic capabilities of the web to incorporate text, colorful diagrams, animations, computer simulations, audio, and video to introduce topics and concepts in the atmospheric sciences. This module is a combination of two elements. The first is the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Severe Storms Spotters Guide. The second is a section discussing the efforts and results of modeling severe storms. The Spotters Guide contains supplemental instructional resources and a program designed to familiarize meteorologists and advanced severe storm spotters with the building blocks of convective storm structure. The focus of the training series is the development of a thunderstorm spectrum and a discussion of the physical characteristics and severe weather potential of the various storm types in the spectrum.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Tutorial, Audio/Visual - Photograph
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Temperature

http://www.enviroliteracy.org/article.php/1332.html

This article discusses the relationship between temperature and heat and kinetic energy and it shows how to convert from degrees Fahrenheit to Centigrade. It also includes links to other resources, data, maps, and classroom activities.

Resource Type: Reference Material - Nonfiction Reference
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Its a Breeze - How Air Pressure Affects You

http://kids.earth.nasa.gov/archive/air_pressure/index.html

An explanation of air pressure and how it relates to weather is highlighted on this National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) kids page. The site offers experiments, discussion questions, a word search game, and interactive computer animations that explain the relationship between weather and air pressure.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Experiment/Lab Activity, Instructional Material - Student Guide, Audio/Visual - Illustration
Grade Level: 3, 4, 5, 6

The aneroid barometer and how to use it

http://www.bom.gov.au/info/aneroid/aneroid.shtml

This article defines barometer, gives its history, describes how the aneroid barometer works, and is enhanced with photos and illustrations.

Resource Type: Reference Material - Article, Audio/Visual - Illustration, Audio/Visual - Photograph
Grade Level: 4, 5, 6

Observe an animation of the Coriolis effect over Earth's surface

http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es1904/es190...

This animation provides a practical example of the impact of the Coriolis effect on daily life. After examining the animation, students can use a map or globe to locate where the pilots might have landed if they had followed their original flight path. They can then estimate how many miles the pilots have gone off their course. Students can also think about factors that navigators would consider when planning their flights and research the calculations used to account for the Coriolis effect. Although the resource was designed to accompany a specific Earth science textbook, it can be used without that text.

Resource Type: Reference Material - Nonfiction Reference, Audio/Visual - Movie/Animation
Grade Level: 5, 6

Seasonal Change on Land and Water

http://www.globe.gov/tctg/earth_la_seaphen_s5.pdf?sectionId=260

Though designed as a middle or high school lesson, this PDF contains thorough background information and maps supporting inquiry into the differences in seasonal change in the Northern and Southern Hemispheres, culminating in an evidence-based argument about why one hemisphere experiences warmer summers although it receives less total solar energy.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Lesson/Lesson Plan, Audio/Visual - Map
Grade Level: 3, 4, 5, 6

Why Is Antarctica the Windiest Place on Earth?

http://www.amnh.org/education/resources/antarctica/winds.php

This site contains teacher tools, which include downloadable readings, detailed daily breakdowns of tasks, teacher strategies for using the activities, a portfolio grading sheet, a project rubric sheet, and additional readings. There are also three activities in which students examine the overview information and develop questions for further study, examine weather data collected at several Antarctic weather stations, and investigate the behavior of cold air. In addition there are interviews with Antarctic researchers, a polar climatologist and a glacial geologist.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Instructor Guide/Manual
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Observe an animation of land and sea breezes

http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es1903/es190...

Learners can view the animation, identify the key components in this system, and explain how each one contributes to the formation of a breeze. Although the resource was designed to accompany a specific Earth science textbook, it can be used without that text.

Resource Type: Audio/Visual - Movie/Animation
Grade Level: 3, 4, 5, 6

On Observing the Weather

http://learningcenter.nsta.org/product_detail.aspx?id=10.2505/4/sc04_041_08_32

In this article, Mount Washington Observatory meteorologist Tim Markle shares the ins and outs of his daily weather-observing routine and offers insights on making weather observations at home or at school.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Instructional Strategy, Reference Material - Article
Grade Level: 3, 4, 5, 6

Enviropedia: Introduction to Weather

http://www.enviropedia.org.uk/Weather/Weather_Introduction.php

This resource provides an overview of weather, the day-to-day changes in temperature, air pressure, moisture, wind, cloudiness, rainfall and sunshine. Links embedded in the text provide access to descriptions of cloud types and to information on weather hazards such as fog, hurricanes, thunderstorms, and tornadoes. Other topics include meteorology, weather measurements, and weather mapping. Materials are also provided on the water cycle and its elements, such as evaporation, uplift and cooling of air, dew point, condensation, and precipitation.

Resource Type: Reference Material - Nonfiction Reference
Grade Level: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

The Online Tornado FAQ

http://www.spc.noaa.gov/faq/tornado/index.html

This site provides answers to frequently asked questions about tornadoes. The questions are grouped into the following categories: the basics about tornadoes, tornado forecasting, tornado damage, tornado safety, historical tornadoes, tornado climatology, spotting and chasing, tornado research, and scientific references. Information on related concepts is linked within each section and can also be accessed via a clickable index of terms.

Resource Type: Reference Material - FAQ
Grade Level: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6

Oceans, climate and weather

http://msteacher.org/epubs/science/science6/science.aspx

What is the difference between weather and climate? What do the oceans have to do with them? Weather is the day-to-day state of the atmosphere and its short-term (minutes to weeks) variation. Climate is typically described by the regional patterns of seasonal temperature and precipitation over 30 years. The averages of annual temperature, rainfall, cloud cover, and depth of frost penetration are all typical climate-related statistics. The oceans influence the worlds climate by storing solar energy and distributing it around the planet through currents and atmospheric winds.This publication is all about developing your students understandings of earths oceans and the major effect they have on climate. Understanding and interpreting local weather data and understanding the relationship between weather and climate are important first steps to understanding larger-scale global climate changes. Activities that ask students to collect and analyze local weather data as well as analyze global data can be found in the Lessons and Activities section. Analyzing and interpreting data is a major focus of this publication. Numerous data sets can be found in the Sources for Real Data section. The Background Information section and the article Tomorrows Forecast will help reinforce your own content knowledge.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Instructor Guide/Manual
Grade Level: 4, 5, 6

Examine an animation of hail forming

http://www.classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/visualizations/es1805/es180...

Teachers can use this animation to continue a study of clouds. In addition to asking students to construct their own explanation of how hail forms, students can identify the cloud type pictured and explain how its characteristics optimize the formation of hail. Although the resource was designed to accompany a specific Earth science textbook, it can be used without that text.

Resource Type: Instructional Material - Simulation, Audio/Visual - Movie/Animation
Grade Level: 2, 3, 4, 5, 6