OpenSciEd Unit 6.3 · Lesson 19 · 19.A
Look for: the pattern of air movement at different lati…
From Teacher Edition
Facilitation guidance from the lesson plan — what to notice in student thinking and how to respond while teaching.
Building towards
19.A Use visualized precipitation data from a large data set to identify spatial patterns in the direction of air masses movement that influences long-term weather patterns in predictable ways.
What to look / listen for
Students to identify:
the pattern of air movement at different latitudes, but specifically from west to east across the U.S
cold air from the north or northwest moving to the east and colliding with warm air from the south/southeast (i.e., Gulf of Mexico)
places with a lot of precipitation as likely locations where warm and cold air masses interact or collide
predictable wind patterns, bringing cold or warm air, as one way for us to predict a location’s long-term precipitation pattern.
What to do
If students struggle with identifying the ideas above, revisit the first visualization of one week of precipitation rates in the United States. Pause the visualization at a moment with a large storm. Label the flow of a cold air mass from the north and a warm air mass from the south that resulted in the storm. Unpause the simulation and pause again at a second storm. Have your students describe how they would label the cold air mass (from the north or northwest) and the warm air mass (from the south or southwest) that resulted in the storm. If students are getting confused due to the curving of the air, consider using Why do air and water spin in different directions on Earth? as a resource for additional information to support a discussion about air flow.