Look for: Regardless of the time of year, the temperatu…

3.A Analyze and interpret sets of data to identify patterns (similarities across data sets) that provide evidence that air temperature changes based on altitude above Earth’s surface independently of geographical location or time of year.

As students work with partners and in small groups, and share as a class, listen for the following ideas in their conversations and look for the same ideas in their written observations and claims:

• Regardless of the time of year, the temperature of the air always decreases as you move away from Earth’s surface and higher into the atmosphere.
• The air temperature at very high altitudes is coldest in winter.

The air temperature at 16,000 ft and higher is cold enough for hailstones to form. (In a few cases, the air temperature in winter and spring at altitudes lower than 16,000 ft is cold enough for hailstones to form.)

Throughout the lesson, students are asked to look for patterns in the data and to document their observations in their science notebooks. As students work, listen to their conversations and look at their written observations to do a quick formative assessment of their understanding of the data and the patterns they find. When students write claims, look for the use of data as evidence to support their claims. Later, when students come together in the Scientists Circle, listen to the ideas students share and how they connect their thinking with evidence from the weather balloon data.