Science Lesson Kit · Teacher Resource
Weather & Seasons: Patterns We Can Observe — 5E Lesson Plan
Earth Science · 40 minutes
Grade 2
5E lesson flow
01
Engage
6 min
Teacher Does
Show the same location in two seasons.
Students Do
Notice visible weather differences and make a first comparison.
Ask
- What changed? What weather clues can you observe?
Look For
Temperature words, precipitation, clouds, or wind.
02
Explore
11 min
Teacher Does
Provide a picture graph with weather observations from several seasons.
Students Do
Count symbols and compare warm/cool and rainy/snowy days.
Ask
- Which season has more? Which has fewer?
Look For
Accurate graph reading.
03
Explain
8 min
Teacher Does
Introduce weather, season, pattern, precipitation, temperature, and predict.
Students Do
Turn one graph comparison into a pattern statement.
Ask
- How can we say the pattern without using always or never?
Look For
Usually, often, more, fewer, warmer, cooler.
04
Elaborate
10 min
Teacher Does
Show a cool summer day and a mild winter day alongside the larger pattern.
Students Do
Explain why the unusual day does not erase the seasonal pattern.
Ask
- Can one day be different from the usual pattern?
Look For
Daily variation plus overall pattern.
05
Evaluate
5 min
Teacher Does
Assign the seasonal-weather performance task.
Students Do
Compare two seasons and make one prediction.
Ask
- Which two pieces of data support your idea?
Look For
Evidence-based comparison and careful prediction.
Student goal
I can use weather data to compare seasons and make a careful prediction.
Learning objectives
- Read a simple weather picture graph or tally chart and describe a pattern over time.
- Compare two seasons using at least two weather features such as warmer/cooler conditions, precipitation, clouds, or wind.
- Use a seasonal pattern to make a careful prediction without claiming every day in a season has the same weather.
Materials
- Season weather picture graphs
- Weather-symbol cards
- Warm/cool comparison cards
- Pattern sheet
- Crayons or pencils
Before class
- Prepare a simple dataset from one location.
- Use whole-number picture counts and relative warm/cool language.
- Include at least one counterexample day so students see that a pattern is not a guarantee.
Prior knowledge
- Students can identify common weather such as sunny, rainy, windy, warm, and cool.
- Students can count picture symbols and compare more or fewer.
Vocabulary
- weather
- What the air and sky are like at a place and time, including temperature, clouds, wind, rain, or snow.
- season
- One of the repeating parts of the year.
- temperature
- A measure of how warm or cool something is.
- pattern
- Something that happens again in a way we can notice.
- precipitation
- Water that falls from clouds, such as rain or snow.
- predict
- To say what you think may happen using evidence or a pattern.
Differentiation
- Use weather icons and color-free shape coding so students do not rely on color alone.
- Read graph labels aloud.
- Provide the frame: ___ usually has more ___ than ___.
- For extension, ask students to compare a third season using two weather features.
Assessment
- Check accurate reading of the picture graph.
- Check whether the comparison uses at least two weather features.
- Check that predictions avoid always/never overclaims.
Exit ticket
Tell one seasonal weather pattern and one word that makes your statement careful.
Extension
Add a week of class weather observations to a calendar and compare the new data with the prepared seasonal pattern.