Unit Plan 27 (Grade 3 Science): Weather & Climate — Quarter Synthesis

Focus: Describe weather patterns, climates, weather-related hazards, and mitigation designs using data, models, and simple engineering projects.

Grade Level: 3

Subject Area: Science (Earth & Space Science • Engineering Design)

Total Unit Duration: 5 sessions (one week), 45–60 minutes per session

I. Introduction

This quarter-synthesis unit pulls together everything students have learned about weather, climate, and weather-related hazards. Students revisit daily weather data, seasonal patterns, and climate regions around the world, then connect these ideas to real-world hazards (floods, blizzards, strong winds, heat waves). They take on a simple engineering design challenge: create and test a model solution that helps reduce the impact of a weather hazard on a “town” or “house.” The week ends with a mini Weather & Climate Expo, where students share data displays, climate comparisons, and their hazard-mitigation designs.

Essential Questions

• How do weather patterns change from day to day and season to season where we live?
• How are climates in different parts of the world similar or different from each other?
• What kinds of weather-related hazards can affect people and places, and how can they cause damage?
• How can we design and test solutions that help reduce the impact of weather hazards on communities?
• What does it mean to carry out a fair test of a design and use results to improve it?

II. Objectives and Standards

Learning Objectives — Students will be able to:

1. Use tables and graphs of weather data to describe typical weather conditions in different seasons (3-ESS2-1).
2. Obtain and combine information from texts, maps, and images to describe climates in different regions of the world (3-ESS2-2).
3. Describe examples of weather-related hazards (e.g., heavy rain, strong winds, snow/ice, extreme heat) and their effects on people and places (3-ESS3-1).
4. Define a simple design problem related to a weather hazard, including criteria (what the design should do) and constraints (materials, size, time) (3–5-ETS1-1).
5. Generate and compare multiple solutions to their design problem and choose one to build and test (3–5-ETS1-2).
6. Plan and carry out fair tests of their design by controlling variables, changing only one thing at a time, and using observations/data to decide how to improve the design (3–5-ETS1-3).
7. Make and share a claim about the merit of their design solution, supported by test results and observations (3-ESS3-1).

Standards Alignment — 3rd Grade (NGSS-Aligned)

• 3-ESS2-1 — Represent data in tables and graphs to describe typical weather conditions expected during a particular season.
• 3-ESS2-2 — Obtain and combine information to describe climates in different regions of the world.
• 3-ESS3-1 — Make a claim about the merit of a design solution that reduces the impact of a weather-related hazard.
• 3–5-ETS1-1 — Define a simple design problem with clear criteria and constraints.
• 3–5-ETS1-2 — Generate and compare multiple possible solutions based on criteria and constraints.
• 3–5-ETS1-3 — Plan and carry out fair tests with controlled variables to improve designs.

Success Criteria — Student Language

• I can use tables and graphs to show typical weather for a season in our area.
• I can describe how the climate in two places in the world is similar and different (for example, hot/dry vs. cold/snowy).
• I can explain what a weather hazard is and how it might harm people or buildings.
• I can tell what my design problem is, what my design must do, and what limits I have (materials, time, size).
• I can plan, build, test, and improve a model that helps protect a place from a weather hazard, and use my test results as evidence in a claim.