Weather Education lesson plan created for the Instructional Tech class at Emporia State University. The subject of the the lesson covers winter weather, thunderstorms and tornadoes, with students experiencing one through VR technology.

1. Weather & Natural Hazards
IT360 | Group A
Rebecca Cunningham | Kati Haybarker | Blake Miller | Doug Spencer

2. Overview: The weather and geology of the United States allow for many natural perils and disasters.
Earthquakes, volcanoes, blizzards, tornados, intense storms, wildfires, landslides, avalanches,
sinkholes, flooding, droughts, heat waves, and more are all on the table.
In this presentation we will discuss those that affect us here in Kansas.
RESOURCES
Online Resources:
https://www.weathertap.com/radar/national/normal
http://www.kandrive.org/kandrive/roads/#construction/-98.41/38.3957/7
https://nwschat.weather.gov/live/
http://www.noaa.gov/
https://weather.com/
Offline Resources:
Handouts
Google Cardboard w/ mobile devices
Questionnaires
STANDARDS
3-ESS2-1. Represent data in tables and graphical displays to describe typical weather conditions
expected during a particular season. [Clarification Statement: Examples of data could include
average temperature, precipitation, and wind direction.]
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 impacts of a weather-
related hazard. [Clarification Statement: Examples of design solutions to weather-related hazards
could include barriers to prevent flooding, wind resistant roofs, and lightning rods.]

3. LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of this activity, students will be able to:
❖ Identify and define various weather and natural hazards that affect us in Kansas, during a typical
natural season.
❖ Compare and contrast winter weather hazards, (snow, blizzards, ice & black ice).
❖ Compare and contrast warm weather hazards, (thunderstorms, hail, lightning and tornados).
❖ Experience a simulation of a tornado through VR (virtual reality) using google cardboard.
❖ Obtain knowledge on the websites used by the Kansas Army National Guard Joint Operations
Center during times of inclement weather.
❖ Obtain knowledge on how to prepare yourself for severe weather and the steps you should take
during the hazard to keep yourself safe, guest speaker(s)
DELIVERY OF INFO
Introductions of Student Teachers (5 minutes)
Phase I – Cunningham (10 minutes): Winter Weather
Winter comes after fall and before spring. It is caused by tilt of the Earth on its Axis. Season marked
by cold temperature causing:
• Snow – Crystalized condensation (water)
• Ice – Frozen condensation (water/rain)
• Black Ice – Ice on roads that cannot be easily seen.
• Blizzards -- Combination of strong winds (35 MPH) and snow which lasts several hours or more.
Winter storms can cause:
• Power outages
• Dangerous road conditions
• Injuries or deaths
During Snowstorms and Extreme Cold:
• Stay indoors during the storm
• Keep dry; change out of wet clothes immediately
If you must go outside:
• Do not go out alone
• Walk carefully on snowy, icy, walkways
• Wear several layers loose-fitting, warm clothing including mittens, a hat, and scarf
Cold Related Illness:
• Frostbite – Contact with extremely low temperatures
• Hypothermia – Extremely low body temperature
(resources - http://www.nws.noaa.gov/glossary/; https://www.ready.gov/winter-weather)
Questions:
1. What types of condensation does winter weather cause?
2. What problems can winter storms cause?
3. Where should you stay during a winter storm?

4. DELIVERY OF INFO Cont…
Phase II – Haybarker (10 minutes):
What is a Thunder storm(lightning, hail):
-A thunderstorm is a storm with lightning and thunder
-Its produced by a cumulonimbus cloud, usually producing gusty winds, heavy rain and sometimes
hail.
-The basic ingredients used to make a thunderstorm are moisture, unstable air and lift. You need
moisture to form clouds and rain. You need unstable air that is relatively warm and can rise rapidly.
Finally, you need lift. This can form from fronts, sea breezes or mountains.
-Lightning is a bright flash of electricity produced by a thunderstorm. All thunderstorms produce
lightning and are very dangerous. If you hear the sound of thunder, then you are in danger from
lightning. Lightning kills and injures more people each year than hurricanes or tornadoes; between
75 to 100 people.
-Lightning is an electric current. Within a thundercloud way up in the sky, many small bits of ice
(frozen raindrops) bump into each other as they move around in the air. All of those collisions create
an electric charge. After a while, the whole cloud fills up with electrical charges. The positive charges
or protons form at the top of the cloud and the negative charges or electrons form at the bottom of
the cloud. Since opposites attract, that causes a positive charge to build up on the ground beneath
the cloud. The grounds electrical charge concentrates around anything that sticks up, such as
mountains, people, or single trees. The charge coming up from these points eventually connects
with a charge reaching down from the clouds and - zap - lightning strikes!
Hail is created when small water droplets are caught in the updraft of a thunderstorm. These water
droplets are lifted higher and higher into the sky until they freeze into ice. Once they become heavy,
they will start to fall. If the smaller hailstones get caught in the updraft again, they will get more
water on them and get lifted higher in the sky and get bigger. Once they get lifted again, they freeze
and fall. This happens over and over again until the hailstone is too heavy and then falls to the
ground.
Safety precautions when there is lightening
-Get into your home, large building, or hard topped car
-If you are in a field or open area, crouch on your knees and bend over. Don't lie on the wet ground
because it can carry electricity!
-If in the water, get out and get away.
Safety precautions (outside)
-stay in the open, not under a tree or in a picnic shelter or shed
-move away from anything made of metal
-get to the lowest point possible if you are on a hill or mountain
- get out of a boat and into a building
Questions
1. What is lightening?
2. What should you do if you are at the beach swimming when a storm occurs?
3.What is a Thunderstorm?

5. DELIVERY OF INFO Cont…
Phase III – Miller (10 minutes):
What a tornado is and how it is made.
-Winds come together to form a horizontal tube of spinning winds
-Warm updrafts cause the tube to break and push upwards
-The tube is now moving vertically
-Once it gets to this point the winds are moving at their fastest and a tornado is formed
-When the pointed end of the funnel reached the ground is is called a “touchdown”
Safety precautions
-Things to do in advance
-Put together a first aid box
-Make a safety plan of what to do and who to grab
Tornado is approaching
-Go to your safe room “A lower level room with no windows and as close to the middle of the
house”
-Stay in the shelter until the new tells you it is all clear
-Use a battery powered radio
-Last look to help keep other people calm and help them
Questions
1. What is it called when the tornado reaches the ground?
2.How long should you stay in your shelter?
3.Where should your safe room be?
Practical Exercise – VR experience: Tornado (20-30 minutes)

6. DELIVERY OF INFO Cont…
Phase IV – Spencer (10-15 minutes):
Secondary introduction and background as an employee of the KSARNG Joint Operations Center.
Six years working night shift through state and federal emergencies. Direct participation on Ground
during the Coffeyville flood of 2007, where swollen Verdigris River burst through a levee over taking
the Coffeyville Resources Refinery. Although the refinery had been shut down in anticipation of the
flooding, it leaked more than 42,000 gallons of crude oil into the Verdigris River, triggering a state
emergency and the activation of the Kansas National Guard.
https://earthobservatory.nasa.gov/NaturalHazards/view.php?id=7873
https://www.weather.gov/ict/coffeyvilleflood
Display and explain to the students each of the following websites and what they are used for and
what you are looking for on each.
https://www.weathertap.com/radar/national/normal
http://www.kandrive.org/kandrive/roads/#construction/-98.41/38.3957/7
https://nwschat.weather.gov/live/
http://www.noaa.gov/
https://weather.com/