### General Instructions to the Teacher:

-   This task took 4^th^ grade students approximately two 35 minutes to
    complete.

-   Students may work individually, or in groups. If group work is the
    norm for your classroom, it is recommended that the final question
    be assigned as an activity for individual students.

### Advanced Preparation and Set Up:

### Each item in a GLOBE Classroom Assessment begins with an assessment framework statement / goal that cues the student and teacher to the critical features of the item. If this information is not useful to your students, remove the bold parenthetical statement at the beginning of each item.

### It is critical that the students work with colored pictures. Here are some suggestions for dealing with this if you do not have access to a color printer/copier:

### make one classroom copy of the pictures (laminate them for future use); display the pictures in a prominent place in the classroom where all students will be able to view them

### take photographs of your site throughout the year and use these 

**(Given data from the GLOBE data archives)**

![](media/image1.jpeg){width="4.274305555555555in" height="2.91875in"}

![](media/image2.jpeg){width="4.430555555555555in"
height="2.988888888888889in"}

> ![](media/image3.jpeg){width="4.25in" height="2.8979166666666667in"}

1)  **(Take GLOBE Measurements: Make cloud observations that are
    accurate and appropriate)** Look at the 3 pictures taken from your
    GLOBEpal school. Next to each picture write the name of the clouds
    you see.

*The clouds on April 3^rd^ look like they are altostratus clouds.*

*The clouds on April 23^rd^ look like they are cirrostratus clouds.*

*The clouds on May 14^th^ look like they are cumulus clouds.*

2)  **(Take GLOBE Measurements: Make cloud observations that are
    accurate and appropriate)** Look at each picture and estimate the
    amount of cloud cover on each of the days. Write your estimate under
    the name of each cloud type.

> *answers will vary and the following are estimates only:*

*The clouds on April 3^rd^ look like they cover 90% of the sky.*

*The clouds on April 23^rd^ look like they cover 20% of the sky.*

> *The clouds on May 14^th^ look like they cover 20% of the sky.*

3)  **(Interpret GLOBE data: Infer patterns / trends; Explain the
    relationship between cloud type and precipitation)** Look again at
    the clouds in each picture. Do you think that any of these clouds
    produced rain or snow later in the day? How can you tell?

The altostratus clouds on April 3^rd^ could produce rain or snow. These
clouds are grey which means lots of water in them.

Sometimes it is easier to find a pattern when you look at the data in a
different way. In this next activity you will draw a graph of the
average temperature between April 3^rd^ and May 14^th^.

4\) **(Interpret GLOBE Data: Create multiple formats to represent
data)** First draw a box around the days in the data table that stand
for week 1, week 2, etc. (HINT: all data is missing from week 4).

# Table 1: Air Temperature Information

  -------------------- -------------------- ------------------------------
                       DATE                 Current temperature

  \*Day 42             May 13               24.0C

  Day 38               May 10               13.0C

  Day 37               May 9                11.0C

  Day 36               May 8                20.0C

  Day 34               May 6                15.0C

  Day 33               May 5                22.0C

  Day 31               May 3                7.0C

  Day 30               May 2                11.0C

  \*Day 21             April 23             11.0C

  Day 20               April22              1.0C

  Day 16               April 17             21.0C

  Day 14               April 16             15.0C

  Day 13               April 15             15.0C

  Day 11               April 13             0.0C

  Day 6                April 8              10.0C

  \*Day 1              April 3              0.0C
  -------------------- -------------------- ------------------------------

5.  **(Interpret GLOBE Data: Create multiple formats to represent
    data)** Next find the average temperature for each of these weeks.
    Record the information in the data table below. The calculations for
    the first week have been done for you.

# Table 2: Calculations for Average Weekly Temperature

+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| #  | # TOTAL = add temperature | AVERAGE = TOTAL      | Average      |
| #  |                           | divided by the       | weekly       |
| We | for each day of that week | number of days the   | temperature  |
| ek |                           | temperature was      | at mean      |
|    |                           | recorded that week   | solar noon   |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| 1  | **0 + 10 = 10**           | **10 2 = 5C**        | **5C**       |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| 2  | **0 + 15 + 15 = 30**      | **30 3 = 10C**       | **10C**      |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| 3  | **21 + 1 + 11 = 33**      | **33 3 = 11C**       | **11C**      |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| 4  | **11 + 8 + 22 + 15 = 56** | **56 4 = 14C**       | **14C**      |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+
| 5  | **20 + 13 + 11 + 20 =     | **64 4 = 16C**       | **16C**      |
|    | 64**                      |                      |              |
+----+---------------------------+----------------------+--------------+

6)  **(Interpret GLOBE Data: Create multiple formats to represent
    data)** Use the data in Table 2 to make a bar graph of the average
    weekly temperature on the graph below. Data from the first week has
    been graphed to show you what to do.

# ![](media/image6.pct)Figure 2: Air Temperatures & Weekly Averages for April 3 to May 14

7)  **(Interpret GLOBE Data: Explain data & relationships)** Look at the
    bar graph that you just completed. Tell what is happening to the
    average weekly temperature from April 3^rd^ until May 14^th^.

> *The average weekly temperature from April 3^rd^ to May 14^th^ is
> going up little by little.*

8)  **(Interpret GLOBE Data: Explain data & relationships)** Predict the
    weekly air temperature for the three weeks after the last photo was
    taken at this school. Draw your predicted weekly temperature on the
    graph in Figure 2.

> *see bars with dots added on the graph on previous page*

9)  **(Communicate: Compose reports to explain or persuade)** Write a
    GLOBEmail to your GLOBEpals. Tell them about your air temperature
    predictions. Tell them how you made the predictions by explaining to
    them about the graph you made. Ask them to write back and tell you
    about the temperatures that they actually measured on these days.

> *Answers will vary. Possible suggestions may include: more frequent
> temperature readings, daily temperature readings, averaging the
> temperatures on some basis (every couple of days, every week etc.),
> recording high and low temperatures rather than just one temperature.*