In Chapter 1, “What Causes
Weather Patterns?,” students learned some of the important
science concepts that dictate the weather. In this chapter,
“When Natural Events Become Natural Disasters,” they learn
about different types of natural disasters and how they are
influenced by the weather. They will focus on five kinds of
natural disasters: wildfires, droughts, floods, tornadoes, and
hurricanes.
In the Engage activity, Extraordinary
Events, students consider what natural events or disasters they
know about and think about how those types of events can affect
people’s lives.
The Explore activity, Miniature Events,
asks students to investigate the five types of natural disasters
using small, hands-on models that demonstrate factors that are
important for the formation or growth of each natural event.
In the Explain activity, Presenting
Events, students build on the investigations they did with the
miniature models. They will read about one of the five types of
natural events to learn about how it develops and the factors
that affect its strength or severity. They will then read about
historical examples of the natural disaster they read about.
From the examples, they will learn how people have gathered
information about natural disasters that will help prevent or
reduce their impact should they occur again. They will see
examples of how technology has been used to study each of the
five natural events.
In the Elaborate activity, Twisters,
students analyze data about the occurrence of tornadoes in the
United States. This experience with data analysis should help
them think about how knowing about the past can help people
think about the future of natural events. They also will
consider how these data help them identify patterns.
In the Evaluate activity, Learning
from the Past, Thinking about the Future, students choose one
type of natural event on which to focus. They will summarize
what they know about that type of event and consider how
understanding that event can help people think about the future.
By the end of Chapter 2, “When Natural Events Become
Natural Disasters,” students should
- recognize that some natural events cause few or no
problems for humans whereas others can cause serious problems
and damage
- understand that natural processes cause natural events,
including natural disasters
- be able to explain how different factors, such as
temperature and density of air and water, interact to affect
the size of a natural event
- be able to give examples of natural disasters and their
effects on people and the environment
- practice using data to identify patterns of weather
events
- communicate their understanding of natural events.
As with many areas of science, students may hold a variety
of misconceptions about natural events such as those discussed
in this chapter. Many of the misconceptions are likely related
to the chance of a certain type of natural disaster occurring in
their area or the actions that people should take if that
disaster is occurring. For example, students may think that
tornadoes never occur in their state. In fact, tornadoes have
been reported in every state in the United States. They are just
more frequent in some states than others. Another misconception
about tornadoes is that the storms target mobile homes.
Tornadoes do not target mobile home parks, but mobile homes
often sustain more damage from a tornado than do other kinds of
buildings.
Some people believe that hurricanes occur only during the
official hurricane season. Although most hurricanes do occur
during this designated time period, they can also occur before
or after this time. There are many misconceptions about safety
practices to follow if a severe storm or disaster is imminent.
Some of the safety practices that we have believed to be correct
for many years are, in fact, not the currently recommended
practices. Also, as you might expect, scenes portrayed on
television or in the movies are often inaccurate, which has
reinforced misconceptions.
If students have questions about what people should do
during a particular type of storm, for example, ask them to
conduct some Internet research to find out the most recent
recommendations. However, it is critical that they seek
appropriate sites for information. This could be an opportunity
to discuss strategies for finding accurate, well-vetted
information on the Internet.
For several of the activities in the chapter, you will need only
24 hours of advance notice for preparations. Other activities
are likely to require additional time. The investigations in the
Explore activity, Miniature Events, require the most
preparation because you may need to order psychrometers and
Tornado Tubes. This activity also requires you to collect a
variety of materials. You are likely to have some of the
materials, but if not, all of the materials can be purchased
inexpensively.
See the Advance Preparation sections of these activities
for details on the necessary preparations.
