Weather



**How My List Helped Enrich My Unit (Weather) (Donica Goodwin) **

One of the things that I took great pride in as a classroom teacher was how I used non-fiction in my kindergarten room and how I was able to get the students excited and motivated to learn about non-fiction. Before every unit of study, I would drag out mountains of my own personal books, as well as head to the library to check out even more books for the classroom. It was not unusual at all for me to have over 100 books checked out at a time!

I worked very hard at integrating science and social studies into my literacy block. Most of my units started out with some type of “book frenzy”. Sometimes I would lay out 30 to 50 books on the tables and just let the students do a book browse. Sometimes, after a certain amount of time doing a book browse, I would ask them to choose a book that they found interesting. Sometimes they had to look for new things that they discovered or things that they wanted to share. Sometimes they had to look for particular text features. Sometimes they had to write questions that they had and that they wanted to learn more about. Post-it notes were my favorite learning tool! Even if some of them couldn’t read or write, they could still be active participants by marking pages and drawing pictures, (as well as speaking and listening with peers). At the end of our frenzy, we would “share out” our thinking and it was always a wonderful way to help build background and draw on prior knowledge before jumping into the new learning.

I personally feel like book frenzy days in my kindergarten classroom were some of the most exciting and engaging times of our literacy block. The students never failed to impress me with their enthusiasm and motivation to learn about new topics. There were always enough books for students to find ones that looked appealing and interesting to them and I always included a wide range of levels. The books were almost always nonfiction, (except for when we did a lesson on fiction vs. nonfiction) and after the frenzy, the books got added to our classroom library for the duration of that unit.

Many of the books listed below were simply part of the “book frenzy” but were used later when the students were learning about and researching their weather questions. The next day after our book frenzy is usually when I would begin to introduce new vocabulary and in the case of our weather unit, create a concept map with the students on the different types of weather and then start a K-W-L chart to help organize and guide our learning.

Each day of our unit was a little bit different and we’d have a different focus. Our topics ranged from types of weather, stormy weather, weather and seasons, weather safety, weather-related jobs, clouds, the water cycle, etc. Each day I would do a read-aloud that started out our lesson and then we would move into the focus skill. Much of our unit focused around using the table of contents and text features to help us answer our “want to know” questions on the K-W-L chart. Many of the books listed are great “question/answer” types of books or are also part of a series that is weather related and is really conducive to helping answer questions. We also used a few other non-fiction resources like Time for Kids and Weekly Readers, (present and past editions), that were specifically tailored to our grade level.

One other thing to note is that this unit is perfect for pairing fiction and non-fiction books. Some of the fiction include popular titles such as //Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs// by Judi Barrett, //It Looked Like Spilt Milk// by Charles Shaw, //The Rain Came Down// by David Shannon, and //The Wind Blew// by Pat Hutchins, just to name a few.


 * __Non-fiction books __**

This book contains a wealth of weather related topics and is very eye-appealing and kid-friendly. There are wonderful non-fiction text features such as captions and titles and it is perfect to use when showing the steps or the sequence of weather-related phenomenon.
 * Catriona, C. (2009). //Weather//. Scholastic, Inc. **
 * Lexile = 740L IG Grades K - 2 **

This book can be used to help students learn how to generate questions about //__what__// they want to learn about as it relates to weather. The table of content shows all the different questions that are asked throughout the book including some things such as “What makes a rainbow?” “What makes the sky clap?” “Why is summer warm and sunny?”
 * Oxlade, C. (2005). //Why why why do tornadoes spin?// Miles Kelly Publishing, Ltd. **
 * (no description for reading level) **

Not only does this book have breath-taking photos, but it is an easy enough read for some of the higher level kindergarten students. It is good for showing students different book features such as table of contents, glossary and index.
 * Rustad, M. (2013). //Weather in spring.// Capstone Press. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lexile = 350L Grades K - 1 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This book is a must-have for a weather unit because the text features are incredible. There are many captions, labels, diagrams and illustrations that are so neatly organized and the whole book is eye-appealing and kid-friendly.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Adams, S. (2001). //The best book of weather.// Kingfisher Publications Plc. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Grades Preschool - 3 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This is one of the first non-fiction books that I read to my class during this unit. It is wonderful for helping to build background and to introduce new vocabulary words such as meteorologist, overcast, rain gauge and weather vane.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Hoena, B.A. (2005). //Weather ABC//. Capstone Press. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Grades K - 2 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This book is a valuable resource to have to help students generate questions related to weather. This wouldn’t be appropriate for young students to try and read on their own but would be an excellent resource for teachers to use with students for adding questions to the K-W-L chart. Similar to //Why why why do tornadoes spin?// but is more in-depth. A good one to use when talking about author’s purpose or even when talking about how the book is written and organized, (in question/answer format), which is not something the students may have been taught before.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Berger, G. & Berger, M. (1999). //Can it rain cats and dogs? Questions and answers about weather//. Scholastic, Inc. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Grades Preschool - 3 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This book seems to always be a student favorite. It’s a great way to introduce the water cycle in a humorous and unique way. Also includes some wonderful vocabulary words such as condensation, evaporation, and precipitation. A great one to read year after year and it’s written in a way that students would gain new knowledge each time. If teaching the water-cycle, this book must be used!
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Slade, S. (2011). //A raindrop’s journey//. Picture Window Books: A Capstone Imprint. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lexile = 690L Grades K - 3 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This book is part of a series of Science Vocabulary Readers, written by various authors, including titles such as //Tornadoes, Lightning, Floods, Hurricanes,// and //Blizzards//. In my opinion, these are some of the most appropriate non-fiction books for students in grades K - 2. There are wonderful photos, captions, and diagrams. The text, print, vocabulary and organization of the books are top-notch.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Martin, J. M. (2006). //Science Vocabulary Reader: Weather!// Scholastic, Inc. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lexile = 430L Grades K - 2 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">This book is another that is part of the Heinemann Library and there are many, many books in this series that are weather-related. These books are also some of the best ones for the primary students because the photos are captivating and the non-fiction text features are the best! Any of the books from this series is a must-have for this unit, no question!
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Miles, E. (2005). //Watching the Weather: Clouds.// Heinemann Library. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Ages 6 to 8 **

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Students may not realize that this book is non-fiction because there are no photographs but instead, simple illustrations that look typical of a fiction book. This book would be most appropriate to talk about or review what the difference is between fiction and non-fiction stories and what the author’s purpose is for writing them. This book is part of a series that includes titles such as //Snow, Rain//, and //Wind//. The books are informative but simple and are very appropriate for primary students.
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Bauer, M. D. (2003). //Wind//. Scholastic, Inc. **
 * <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Lexile = 370L Grades Preschool - 1 **


 * __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Guided Reading __**

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">In my kindergarten class, I had readers ranging from a guiding reading level A all the way to a guided reading level J. Below are just some of the titles that I pulled from the Reading A to Z website and used with my students during their guided reading block. There are many more titles available, especially at levels higher than the ones listed.

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Reading A to Z Website: <span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[]

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Level A - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">*//Spring Weather// by Kate Knight Lexile BR - 70 <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">*//The Rainstorm// by Laura Tully Zwicki Lexile BR - 70

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Level D - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">*//Clouds// by Kira Freed Lexile 80 - 450

<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Level F - <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">*//How is the Weather Today?// by Cheryl Ryan Lexile 80 - 450


 * __<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">Websites __**

<span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> This is a weather-related website for kids created by meteorologist Crystal Wicker. This website has lots of facts and features related to different types of weather events. It also contains everything from jokes to experiments to safety to games and much more. It’s a very comprehensive website and a great tool for any teachers or students learning about weather or looking for answers to questions about specific weather-related items.

<span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> This website comes from the University of Illinois Extension and was created for teachers and students in grades 5th - 8th. Not only is it appealing to look at but there is a “sound” component where a voice reads the text. It would be perfect for younger students who might not be able to read it and also for struggling readers. There are some great visuals, activities and lesson plans.

<span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> Incredibly awesome website that features short videos, slide shows and quizzes to help students learn and retain information related to a particular topic. StudyJams is a free scholastic site that provides engaging multimedia lessons for math and science through music and images. Very thorough list of weather and climate categories to explore.

<span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> The creators of this website are genius! Even though a subscription is needed to watch the short videos on this website, it is well worth the money. There are an incredible number of topics that are covered under various subjects such as Math, Science, Social Studies, Reading & Writing, Health, and Arts & Technology. The videos show the characters of Annie, a young girl, and a robot, Moby, who are asking questions, learning new vocabulary and concepts, and are making discoveries about the world around them. The weather videos that are available include seasons, the water cycle, and temperature. They are perfect to use during snack time or as a transition activity as a way to introduce new learning, or to reinforce and review concepts and vocabulary that have been taught.

<span style="color: #1155cc; font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;">[] <span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman',serif; font-size: 12pt;"> This website has quite a number of simple games directly related to the basic weather vocabulary and weather concepts. Perfect to use with students who struggle on a basic level as well as students who may be ESL or have language deficits. Would be easy enough to do as a whole-group activity on a Smartboard or have students do it individually on a computer or an iPad.