Crowded Clouds

 Topic: Science, Clouds 

Images

Stratus - They resemble fog and cover the entire sky.

stratus.bmp 

Cumulus - They are white puffy clouds.

cumulus.bmp

Cirrus - The most common of the high clouds.

cirrus.bmp

Water Cycle - The movement of water in different stages.

Scenario

Scenario:

After hearing Multo tell a story about a Golden Cloud, Wizzy and Wigg set out to find it to give to Multo as a surprise present. Dark Truder over hears them and, unaware it's just a story, plots to find the Golden Cloud himself so he will be rich. Our heroes hike up Mount Zula, meeting many types of clouds along the way. When they reach the top, they actually see a golden cloud that Truder attempts to grab, but it turns out to be the Zula Space Patrol ship hidden in a cloud of astro-smoke. Dark Truder is fooled by his own greed, but Wizzy and Wigg discover that sometimes the key to happiness is making others happy.

Task

Sample Investigations/Teacher Resources

You and your team has been asked to find out everything you can about clouds.  Knowing that clouds play a very important job in weather, your task is to help answer the question "how do clouds affect the water cycle?"

Possible Questions:

What are Clouds?

How do clouds move?

Do clouds float?

How are clouds formed?

Why are clouds gray?

How many types of clouds are there?

Student Resources

Other Resources:

http://sciencefactsandarticles.blogspot.com/2009/10/interesting-science-facts-about-clouds.html

Clouds by the Grade One Class

http://www.k12.nf.ca/fatima/grassroots/clouds/index.html

Clouds Facts

http://www.muskurahat.us/amazing-facts/clouds-facts.asp

Fun Facts About Clouds

http://dawn.com/2012/07/07/fun-facts-about-clouds/

The Water Cycle

http://www.kidzone.ws/water/

The Water Cycle

http://library.thinkquest.org/11353/water.htm

Water Cycle Diagram

http://earthguide.ucsd.edu/earthguide/diagrams/watercycle/

Games:

http://www.epa.gov/ogwdw/kids/flash/flash_watercycle.html

Student Work

TEKS

1. List your personal understanding, ideas or hunches.

 With your team use all the information available in the scenario to list everything that you know about clouds. You do not have to conduct any research yet. Just use the information given and write the facts that you already know about clouds.

With your team, make a list about what you do not know and would like to learn. List all the questions you will need to answer to solve the problem.  

4. List what needs to be done.
"What should we do?" List actions to be taken, e.g., question an expert, conduct research, go to a board meeting about topic. List possible actions. 

5. Develop a problem statement.

You will be responsible for thinking and choosing one of the questions to solve the problem.  A problem statement should come from your analysis of what you know. In one or two sentences, you should be able to describe what it is that your group is trying to solve, produce, respond to, or find out. The problem statement may have to be revised as new information is discovered and brought to bear on the situation.

Use all the resources available (Internet, library, etc) to research about the problem/topic and find a solution.

7. Present Findings

You will presents your findings using one of the following:

Microsoft PowerPoint

glogster

http://www.glogster.com/

spicynodes

http://www.spicynodes.org/access/logout.html

(8) Earth and space. The student knows that the natural world includes the air around us and objects in the sky. The student is expected to:

(B) observe and record changes in the appearance of objects in the sky such as clouds, the Moon, and stars, including the Sun;

References: 

youtube.com: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-xEwkBmoCWg

TEA TEKS: http://www.tea.state.tx.us/index2.aspx?id=6148

Google Images: http://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather-clouds.htm

Google Images: http://www.cotf.edu/ete/modules/msese/earthsysflr/water.html

Microsoft PowerPoint 2007

Created by: Saul Mendiola