Any day outdoors
View Sequence overviewStudents will:
- identify wind strength as an important characteristic of weather.
- observe the effect of wind on different materials.
- use a selection of materials to investigate wind around the school.
- use a wind meter to observe the strength of the wind.
Students will represent their understanding as they:
- discuss ideas and experiences of wind.
- record and report on an investigation of the wind.
- use language to make distinctions, speculate and question.
In this lesson, assessment is summative.
Students working at the achievement standard (science inquiry) should:
- be able to use their experience to predict windy places in the school.
- be able to make and record informal wind measurements.
- be able to compare their observations with those of others and the predictions that were made.
Refer to the Australian Curriculum content links on the Our design decisions tab for further information.
Whole class
Class science journal (digital or hard-copy)
Word wall
Weather watch class table
Range of differently weighted materials cut to the same size (e.g. 8 x 15 cm), including:
- lightweight materials that do not tear easily (thin card, calico, plastic from plastic bags)
- heavyweight materials (heavy card, balsa wood, linoleum)
Demonstration copy of Moving materials Resource sheet
Demonstration copy of Wind investigation planner Resource sheet
Each group
Hand-held fan (made from thin pleated cardboard or similar)
2 Pegs
Coat hanger
Moving materials Resource sheet
Wind investigation planner Resource sheet
Each student
Individual science journal (digital or hard-copy)
Frame from Lesson 1
Lesson
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkRe-orient
Review and add today's entry to the weather watch table. Discuss what the class has observed and recorded about the weather.
Review the previous lesson, focusing on the decision tree that was created to decide how temperature impacts our clothing and activity choices.
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkIdentifying and constructing questions is the creative driver of the inquiry process. It allows students to explore what they know and how they know it. During the Inquire phase of the LIA Framework, the Question routine allows for past activities to be reviewed and to set the scene for the investigation that students will undertake. The use of effective questioning techniques can influence students’ view and interpretation of upcoming content, open them to exploration and link to their current interests and science capital.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to spend some time considering the mindset of students at the start of each Inquire phase. What do you want students to be thinking about, what do they already know and what is the best way for them to approach the task? What might tap into their curiosity?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkWhat is wind?
Recall the language about wind that students have used in previous discussions about the weather and when observing and recording for the weather watchers activity, using prompts such as Do you remember when Yumi said it was windy yesterday morning?
Invite students to wave their hands in front of their faces and to spin in a circle with their arms out to feel the movement of air around them.
Ask: What can you feel? Elicit the idea that they feel moving air. Discuss how when we experience moving air outside, it is part of the weather called ‘wind’.
Adapting to your context
Alternative activities that encourage students to think about the existence and movement of air.
Alternative activities that encourage students to think about the existence and movement of air include:
- trying to capture air in a plastic bag.
- make a flag that moves in wind.
- letting all the air out of a balloon.
- using streamers/ribbons in wind/fan.
- running around with streamers.
Alternative activities that encourage students to think about the existence and movement of air include:
- trying to capture air in a plastic bag.
- make a flag that moves in wind.
- letting all the air out of a balloon.
- using streamers/ribbons in wind/fan.
- running around with streamers.
Wind
Wind is the movement of air over the surface of the Earth.
Wind is the movement of air over the surface of the Earth. Winds are driven by the heat from the Sun, which warms the air and causes it to rise. Where warm air rises, cool air flows in to take its place. This motion is felt on the Earth’s surface as wind. Wind is described in terms of its strength or speed and the compass direction from which it is blowing. Wind speed can be expressed in kilometres per hour, metres per second, knots, or as a force on the Beaufort Scale.
When weather forecasters describe the wind they usually include information about both its strength and direction. For example, a fresh south-westerly wind is a wind blowing from the south-west at an average speed of 30–39 kilometres per hour (the speed of ‘fresh breeze’ on the Beaufort Scale). The term ‘gusty’ is often used in weather reports to describe winds that have sudden increases above the average speed for short periods of time. Knowledge of wind strength is useful for recreational activities like sailing, the safety of people working in high places or at sea and for forecasting the movement of pollution and smoke from bushfires to populated areas.
Wind is the movement of air over the surface of the Earth. Winds are driven by the heat from the Sun, which warms the air and causes it to rise. Where warm air rises, cool air flows in to take its place. This motion is felt on the Earth’s surface as wind. Wind is described in terms of its strength or speed and the compass direction from which it is blowing. Wind speed can be expressed in kilometres per hour, metres per second, knots, or as a force on the Beaufort Scale.
When weather forecasters describe the wind they usually include information about both its strength and direction. For example, a fresh south-westerly wind is a wind blowing from the south-west at an average speed of 30–39 kilometres per hour (the speed of ‘fresh breeze’ on the Beaufort Scale). The term ‘gusty’ is often used in weather reports to describe winds that have sudden increases above the average speed for short periods of time. Knowledge of wind strength is useful for recreational activities like sailing, the safety of people working in high places or at sea and for forecasting the movement of pollution and smoke from bushfires to populated areas.
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkThe Investigate routine provides students with an opportunity to explore the key ideas of science, to plan and conduct an investigation, and to gather and record data. The investigations are designed to systematically develop content knowledge and skills through increasingly complex processes of structured inquiry, guided inquiry and open inquiry approaches. Students are encouraged to process data to identify trends and patterns and link them to the real-world context of the teaching sequence.
When designing a teaching sequence, consider the diagnostic assessment (Launch phase) that identified the alternative conceptions that students held. Are there activities that challenge these ideas and provide openings for discussion? What content knowledge and skills do students need to be able to complete the final (Act phase) task? How could you systematically build these through the investigation routines? Are there opportunities to build students’ understanding and skills in the science inquiry processes through the successive investigations?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkInvestigating wind strength
Discuss students’ experiences with wind, including:
- What types of activities work well when there is wind?
- For example, flying kites, kite surfing, wind chimes, wind socks at airports.
- How can you tell when there is wind?
- Possible answers or observations might include that they can hear it and they see things, such as moving tree branches, waving flags and flapping laundry on a clothesline.
- How can you tell what direction the wind is coming from?
- Possible answers might include wind vanes, the direction hair/ribbons/streams move.
- Are there different types of wind?
- Give names/symbols to the different strengths of wind (light wind, gentle, moderate, strong, gale)
- Where have you experienced wind around the school?
Record students’ ideas in the class science journal.
Pose the question: How can we measure if it is windy? And how can we measure how strong the wind is?
Students suggest how they could investigate these questions. Record ideas in the class science journal.
Through discussion establish that a light/weak/gentle wind might move light objects, but couldn't move heavy ones.
- Could a light/weak/gentle wind move an empty plastic bag?
- What about the lunch order box? Or a tub full of books?
- Why do you think that think that?
- Would a strong wind also move an empty plastic bag?
- How far might it move in a strong wind as compared to a weak wind?
- How fast might it move in a strong wind as compared to a weak wind?
Discuss the idea that students could make a wind meter to investigate how strong wind is.
Show a lightweight material and ask students the strength of wind that would be required to move it. Use a manual hand-held fan to demonstrate, fan lightly to simulate a gentle wind. Repeat with a heavyweight material and strong wind.
Introduce the selection of lightweight and heavyweight materials that teams can test. Write material names in the class science journal or add to the word wall for students to refer to.
Students use hand-held fans to test up to six materials, to select the two 'best' ones use for their wind meter: one that moves with a light wind and one that needs a strong wind to move.
Introduce the table on the demonstration copy of Moving materials Resource sheet to record results. Teams will record items that move in a 'gentle' wind, and items that need a 'strong' wind to move them in the table.
Optional: Review the purpose of a table (to organise information so that we can understanding it more easily) and its features.
Optional: If students are working in collaborative teams for the first time, consider taking time to discuss/model the expectations and conventions of working in a team.
Working collaboratively
Students working in collaborative teams is a key feature of the Primary Connections inquiry-based program.
Students working in collaborative teams is a key feature of the Primary Connections inquiry-based program. By working in collaborative teams students are able to:
- communicate and compare their ideas with one another.
- build on one another’s ideas.
- discuss and debate these ideas.
- revise and rethink their reasoning.
- present their final team understanding through multi-modal representations.
Opportunities for working in collaborative learning teams are highlighted throughout the unit. Students need to be taught how to work collaboratively. They need to work together regularly to develop effective group learning skills.
Students working in collaborative teams is a key feature of the Primary Connections inquiry-based program. By working in collaborative teams students are able to:
- communicate and compare their ideas with one another.
- build on one another’s ideas.
- discuss and debate these ideas.
- revise and rethink their reasoning.
- present their final team understanding through multi-modal representations.
Opportunities for working in collaborative learning teams are highlighted throughout the unit. Students need to be taught how to work collaboratively. They need to work together regularly to develop effective group learning skills.
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkFollowing an investigation, the Integrate routine provides time and space for data to be evaluated and insights to be synthesized. It reveals new insights, consolidates and refines representations, generalises context and broadens students’ perspectives. It allows student thinking to become visible and opens formative feedback opportunities. It may also lead to further questions being asked, allowing the Inquire phase to start again.
When designing a teaching sequence, consider the diagnostic assessment that was undertaken during the Launch phase. Consider if alternative conceptions could be used as a jumping off point to discussions. How could students represent their learning in a way that would support formative feedback opportunities? Could small summative assessment occur at different stages in the teaching sequence?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkDiscussing wind strength investigation
After the investigation, discuss what teams found out about the wind strength needed to move different materials.
Collate the results of the materials that moved in different wind strengths in the class science journal. Discuss/retest any materials that teams may have placed in different categories.
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkThe Investigate routine provides students with an opportunity to explore the key ideas of science, to plan and conduct an investigation, and to gather and record data. The investigations are designed to systematically develop content knowledge and skills through increasingly complex processes of structured inquiry, guided inquiry and open inquiry approaches. Students are encouraged to process data to identify trends and patterns and link them to the real-world context of the teaching sequence.
When designing a teaching sequence, consider the diagnostic assessment (Launch phase) that identified the alternative conceptions that students held. Are there activities that challenge these ideas and provide openings for discussion? What content knowledge and skills do students need to be able to complete the final (Act phase) task? How could you systematically build these through the investigation routines? Are there opportunities to build students’ understanding and skills in the science inquiry processes through the successive investigations?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkIs wind different in different places?
Pose the question: Is the wind different in different places around the school?
Record students’ ideas of different locations around the school in the class science journal.
Discuss how students could use materials to investigate wind strength in different places in the school, for example, by attaching the materials to a coat-hanger or length of bamboo and taking the wind meter to the different places.
Invite each team to select one material that moves in a ‘light’ wind and one that moves in a ‘strong’ wind to use for their wind meters.
Example of a wind meter
Form teams and allow time for students to construct their wind meters.
After teams have constructed their wind meter, discuss how they will be able to tell how strong the wind is in different places.
- Using your wind meter, how will you know the wind is blowing?
- What will happen if there is no wind?
- What will happen if there is a strong wind?
Discuss what teams will:
- change: where the wind is tested.
- observe: how much the materials move.
- For Year 1 learners the teacher provides the information for the ‘observe’ section, as this is usually the hardest part of the planner to decide.
- keep the same: the actual wind meter and the materials, the size of the materials, the way the materials are attached to the coat-hanger or bamboo, the height at which the wind meter is held.
Record ideas on Wind investigation planner Resource sheet or in the class science journal.
Model how to attach materials to the coat-hanger or bamboo.
Discuss why it is important to change only one thing at a time to keep the investigation fair.
Brainstorm places around the school where teams could test the wind. Discuss how to be safe when testing the wind around the school.
Discuss how teams will be able to find out if there is no wind, a light wind or a strong wind using their wind meters.
Record their predictions about wind strength in different areas in the class science journal.
Move outside so teams can use their wind meters to observe the strength of the wind in three different places.
How to conduct a fair-test investigation
What questions might students answer in this investigation?
Scientific investigations involve posing questions, testing predictions, planning and conducting tests, interpreting and representing evidence, drawing conclusions and communicating findings. In this teaching sequence, students investigate things that affect the movement of materials hanging on a wind meter. Questions students may investigate include:
Will the wind in different places around the school cause the materials to move differently? Will changing the way the materials are attached to the coat-hanger affect the way the materials move in the same wind? Will changing the length of a material change the way it moves in the same wind?
To investigate wind strength in different places in the school, students could:
The Inquire phase allows students to cycle progressively and with increasing complexity through the key science ideas related to the core concepts. Each Inquire cycle is divided into three teaching and learning routines that allow students to systematically build their knowledge and skills in science and incorporate this into their current understanding of the world.
When designing a teaching sequence, it is important to consider the knowledge and skills that students will need in the final Act phase. Consider what the students already know and identify the steps that need to be taken to reach the level required. How could you facilitate students’ understanding at each step? What investigations could be designed to build the skills at each step?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkFollowing an investigation, the Integrate routine provides time and space for data to be evaluated and insights to be synthesized. It reveals new insights, consolidates and refines representations, generalises context and broadens students’ perspectives. It allows student thinking to become visible and opens formative feedback opportunities. It may also lead to further questions being asked, allowing the Inquire phase to start again.
When designing a teaching sequence, consider the diagnostic assessment that was undertaken during the Launch phase. Consider if alternative conceptions could be used as a jumping off point to discussions. How could students represent their learning in a way that would support formative feedback opportunities? Could small summative assessment occur at different stages in the teaching sequence?
Read more about using the LIA FrameworkWill wind affect our picnic?
Invite students to record their findings. For example, students might:
- draw a picture of the wind meter at each place, showing how much the materials moved.
- write the names of the places and the wind strength observed in each place.
- annotate copies of photographs taken in the different locations.
Discuss the teams’ investigation findings and why it can be important to know about the wind when planning for a picnic. Discuss the impact of a strong wind (e.g. falling trees, food blowing away, erosion of soil, throwing a ball).
Prepare a decision tree of what to do if their picnic is a windy day. Discuss if the direction of the wind will be important (if playing games or if there is protection in one direction).
Reflect on the lesson
You might:
- add to/review the class word wall.
- share a text about wind, for example The wind blew by Pat Hutchins.
- make predictions about tomorrow's weather.
- discuss what students learned about working in a team.
- relate the new information about wind to the decisions that will be made about the picnic.
- review the students’ question page in the class science journal and review the questions related to wind. Add any new questions students might have.
The Beaufort scale
The Beaufort scale classifies wind into categories on the basis of its strength.
The Beaufort scale was developed by Naval officer Sir Francis Beaufort in 1806. It classifies wind into categories on the basis of its strength, from calm (no wind) to cyclone (wind speed over 118 kilometres per hour). Wind speed always increases with height above the ground, so wind speeds in the Beaufort Scale are measured at a height of 10 metres above open, flat ground.
The Beaufort scale was developed by Naval officer Sir Francis Beaufort in 1806. It classifies wind into categories on the basis of its strength, from calm (no wind) to cyclone (wind speed over 118 kilometres per hour). Wind speed always increases with height above the ground, so wind speeds in the Beaufort Scale are measured at a height of 10 metres above open, flat ground.