Lesson Plans on Seasons, Severe Weather, Natural & Man-made Disasters

Seasons | Spring | Summer | Autumn | Winter
Severe Weather | Natural Disasters | Nuclear Hazards

with videos and additional resource recommendations following each section

Seasons Introduction:

A season is a division of the year, marked by changes in weather, ecology, and hours of daylight. Seasons result from the yearly revolution of the Earth around the Sun and the tilt of the Earth’s axis relative to the plane of revolution. In temperate and polar regions, the seasons are marked by changes in the intensity of sunlight that reaches the Earth’s surface, variations of which may cause animals to go into hibernation or to migrate, and plants to be dormant… In temperate and subpolar regions generally four calendar based seasons are recognized: spring, summer, autumn, and winter… In some tropical and subtropical regions it is more common to speak of the rainy (wet/monsoon) season versus the dry season… In some parts of the world, special “seasons” are loosely defined based upon important events such as a hurricane season, tornado season or a wildfire season. – Wikipedia

Four Seasons Videos | Lesson Plans | Additional Resources

General Lesson Plans about Seasons

• This vocabulary lesson asks “What Should I Wear?” (LA K)
• Here is an idea for making a four seasons tree booklet (Science/Art K)
• This is a measuring, temperature and seasons lesson (Science/Math K-1)
• This is a seasonal landscape drawing art activity (Art K-1)
• Here is another seasons book idea (LA/Science/Art K-1)
• “Taking Care of the Earth” is also a four seasons lesson plan (Science 1-6)
• This is an idea for teaching seasons and precipitation (MD 2)
• This is a changing seasons webquest (Science/Art/CI 2-3)
• Students write letters describing how climate changes over various seasons in this weather unit (Science 3-5)
• This is a weather vocabulary lesson developed for ELD students (Science/LA 4-MO)
• Here’s a lesson on earth’s various biomes and their associated climates (Science 4-6)
• Find specific seasons and seasonal weather lessons in the spring, summer, fall, winter and severe weather and natural disasters sections below. Four season videos and resource links immediately follow.
• If you have lesson plans about seasons to share, please add them to our site!

Four Seasons Videos

• This excellent time lapse streaming video captures a year of seasons in 60 seconds (Labnol 1:00)
• Sesame Street’s Elmo and Adrian Grenier explain the seasons to younger students here (Hulu 1:58)
• These are a RMSC Planetarium animations showing the cause of the Earth’s seasons (YouTube 2:24)
• “Season’s Greetings” is a downloadable video segment about equinoxes and solstices for grades 5-8 (PBS Nature 1:27)
• These are short animated graphic lessonsabout the seasons:
  • “What Causes Earth’s Seasons?” (YouTube 2:17)
  • “Why Does The Earth Have Seasons?” (VideoJug 3:29)
• Here you will watch a year on earth measured by one complete trip around the sun (Cassiopeia Project 9:00)
• “Winnie the Pooh discovers the Seasons” in this cartoon (Disney 9:29)
• “Earth’s Seasons” is another great episode of Bill Nye the Science Guy (Disney 23:00)
• This is a “Seasonal Forests” excerpt from the BBC film “Planet Earth” in HD (BBC 8:17)
• This Nature episode is about seasonal migrations (PBS Nature 49:00)
• Find additional videos on spring, summer, fall, winter and severe weather and natural disasters in the corresponding sections below. Additional four seasons resource links immediately follow.

Additional Four Seasons Resources

• This is a good animated tutorial on relations between the Earth, the sun, and seasons
• These are e-themed interactive whiteboard or computer activity resources about seasonal change and its effects on living things
• Here are interactive seasons tutorials, diagrams, exercises and quizzes from McGraw-Hill
• This is a high-graphic explanation of the seasons from PhysicalGeography.net
• Here is an Earth’s tilt and seasons worksheet
• This four seasons webquest was designed for second grade
• Here are National Geographic geography and earth science lessons plans about the seasons for grades 3-5
• This is a 6th grade globe and flashlight demonstration lesson plan explaining the seasons from UEN
• Find additional seasonal resource links in the spring, summer, fall, winter and severe weather and natural disasters sections below.

Spring Videos | Lesson Plans | Additional Resources

Spring Introduction:

Spring is one of the four temperate seasons, the transition period between winter and summer. Spring and “springtime” refer to the season, and broadly to ideas of rebirth, renewal and regrowth. The specific definition of “spring” as a season differs, however, among scientific disciplines such as astronomy and meteorology, and in cultural and human terms…. As it refers to climate and the earth’s tilt relative to the sun, spring days are close to 12 hours long with day length increasing as the season progresses. – Wikipedia

Spring Lesson Plans

• This is a multidisciplinary unit on spring and plants (MD – P)
• This lesson uses a coloring page to teach the parts of a plant (Science K)
• Here students make and label the parts of a paper plant (Science K)
• Zig Zag Zinnias are paper sculptures of flowers in a pot that can be used to teach parts of a plant (Art K)
• Students create a percussion rainstorm in this dynamics lesson (Music K-3)
• Children (Special Ed) learn rain concepts here by making a rain cloud out of construction paper and yarn, after discussing a related story and Power Point (Science K-5 MO)
• Here kids record observations about their growing seeds to build an understanding of the needs of all living organisms (Science/Art/LA 1)
• Here students “Spring into Story Maps” with Frog and Toad (LA 1-3)
• This Vivaldi’s “Spring” lesson correlates music, history, and weather (MD/Music 1-5)
• Use this “Open Day Template” as a roadmap to a great Spring Field Day (PE 1-6)
• In this unit, students capture SMARTboard images of nesting hawks observed live via the internet for a photo presentation about their life cycle (CI/Science 2)
• Here’s a good spring activity idea using “The Very Hungry Caterpillar” (MD/Science – 2-4)
• These center activities serve as a delightful introduction to the common garden snail (MD/Science 2-4)
• The class graphs its favorite spring flowers in this lesson (Math 2-5)
• Here student compose songs with a frog theme for a spring concert (MD/Music 3-4)
• This is a geography and science lesson on the Monarch butterfly and its spring/fall migration (SS/Science 4)
• “Bee-loved Synonyms” uses insect cut-outs to suggest “better word” choices for future writing assignments (LA/Science 5)
• Here students decorate plastic cup flowers with different materials that they then test for opacity, aesthetic value and durability (Art/Science 5-8)
• This is a great real-world and virtual plant transpiration lab for older students Science/Math 6-8)
• Students watch performances of Stravinsky’s “The Rite of Spring” in this lesson (MD/Music – 12)
• Here are more butterfly and insectlessons:
  • Here is a “Baggie Butterfly” art project (Art K-2)
  • This is a multidisciplinary lesson on the life cycle of the butterfly (MD K-1)
  • This is a multidisciplinary butterfly unit (MD K-1)
  • This butterfly life cycle lesson uses Kidspiration software (Science/CI K-2)
  • This is the butterfly life cycle with “The Amazing Caterpillar” (Science 1-2)
  • These are preschool “bee counting” activities (Math P)
  • Find more insect lessons on our Science – Biology – Insects pages

   

• Spring is also the beginning of tornado season and other severe weather events
• Find more springtime lessons on our Arbor Day, Earth Day, and Easter pages; in the weather and plant sections of our K-12 Science pages; in the four seasons section above and in the severe weather and natural disasters section below. Spring videos and additional resource links immediately follow.
• If you have any spring lesson plans to share, please add them to our site!

Spring Videos:

• This is an extra cool time lapse HD video of the spring cherry blossom season in Japan
• Young kids will absolutely love this “Spring is Here” video of real squirrels, baby birds, frogs and deer apparently singing about spring
• This is John Denver performing “The Garden Song” on Sesame Street with singing plants
• What spring means to a farmer is the topic of this educational video
• These are family fun videos of spring outdoor and rainy day indoor games and activities
• This is a high quality Canadian spring video with plenty of birdsong.
• This is delightful close-up home footage of a blackbird singing while garden birds enjoy the feeder
• Listen to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Spring movement with appropriate nature clips and footage
• Ferenc Cakó is the sand animation artist illustrating this Vivaldi Four Seasons – Spring video
• This is a “How to make a Traditional Kite” tutorial
• There is nothing cuter than this baby bunny eating a flower video
• Classes share their spring migration videos at this Journey North site(Don’t Miss!)
  • Monarch Butterfly emerging from a Chrysalis
  • Wren Videos
  • Footage from a Robin’s Nest Cam
  • Monarch Caterpillars devouring a Leaf
  • Manatee Movement
  • Hatching of a Whooping Crane
  • Up-Close Bat Videos
  • Hummingbird Tongue
  • Hummingbird at a Feeder

   

• Live Webcamor Updated Video Coverage:
  • Black bear and her Cubs in a Den (Growing Fast!)
  • Nesting Birds
  • Bird Feeder Webcams

   

• Find additional videos in the four seasons section above and the severe weather and natural disasters section below. Additional spring resource links immediately follow.

Additional Spring Resources:

• At this outstanding site, your class can share their spring migration and plant growth sightings, photographs, and videos with other classes and teachers can find a wealth of spring seasonal resources (Don’t Miss!)
• This is an unbelievably beautiful slideshow of springtime in space from MSNBC – March 2010
• Find a complete explanation of the Spring Equinox at this time and date site
• These are signs of spring lesson activities for grades K-5 and beginning to intermediate ESL students
• If you are ever feeling sad, skip the chocolate, just google the images of the baby animal of your choice — see baby hedgehogs here
• For kite tips, visit NationalKiteMonth.org
• You can also find spring puzzles, printables, coloring pages and bulletin boards at edHelper.com
• Find additional resource links in the four seasons section above and the severe weather and natural disasters sections below.

Summer Videos | Lesson Plans | Additional Resources

Summer Introduction:

Summer is the warmest of the four temperate seasons, between spring and autumn. It is marked by the longest days and shortest nights. The seasons start on different dates in different cultures based on astronomy and regional meteorology. However generally, when it is summer in the southern hemisphere it is winter in the northern hemisphere, and vice versa. In areas of the tropics and subtropics, the wet season occurs during the summer. Tropical cyclones develop and roam the tropical and subtropical oceans during the summer. In the interior of continents, thunderstorms are most likely to produce hail during the afternoon and evening. Schools have a summer break to take advantage of the warmer weather and longer days. – Wikipedia

Summer Lesson Plans

• Have you sent a letter this summer to next year’s class and their parents? They’ll love it if you do (Other K-3)
• Did you receive a postcard from your students this summer? You will next year if you try this idea (LA 1-4)
• Children explore the sun’s warmth here and observe how heat causes change in bags of chocolate (Science 1)
• This craft activity is part of a “Day Camp in Hawaii Unit” suitable for after-school, summer school, scouts or other youth groups (Art 1-3)
• Tie-dying t-shirts using Sharpie markers, rubbing alcohol and this lesson idea is an excellent summer activity as well as a science demonstration of solubility and the movement of molecules (Art/Science 4-12)
• Students sort spreadsheet data in this lab to uncover the relationships between latitude, angle of the sun, elevation, and solar energy (Science/CI 6-12)
• Students make ice cream in this physics and math lesson (Science 3-11)
• Here are more great lessons for summer and outdoor fun:
  • Sidewalk Chalk & Music Symbols Idea (Music/Art P-5)
  • Day at the Beach PE Activity (PE P-2)
  • PE Activities Outside the Classroom (PE K-2)
  • Summer Safety Posters (PE 1)
  • Making Fresh Fruit Smoothies (PE 1-3)
  • Making Slushies and Observing Changes in Matter (Science K-3)
  • The Sun’s Effects (Science 1)
  • Bubbles Science I (Science 1-2)
  • Classifying Beach Finds (Science 2)
  • Lightning Safety (Science 3)
  • Bubble Science II (Science MO 6-8)
  • National Park Unit (MD 4-6)
  • Nature Walk Journal (MD 5-12)
  • Mock Camping Activity (Other 2-5)

   

• Remember when the first week of school required a “What I did on my Summer Vacation” show-and-tell report? Here are some updated versions of that same theme, if you want to continue the tradition
  • Guess My Summer Vacation Drawing Idea (Art K-6)
  • Summer in a Can Idea (LA 3-5)
  • Summer Event Booklet (LA 2)
  • Shades of Summer Paragraph Review Idea (Art/LA 4-8)

• June is National Dairy Month:
  • Dairy and the Food Pyramid is the title of this appropriate lesson
  • This food for fitness lesson contains a dairy section
  • Find many more healthy food and food pyramid lessons on our PE/Health pages

   

• Sadly, summer is also hurricane season and other severe weather can spoil our outdoor fun
• Find more summertime lessons on our 4th of July page, in the weather sections of our K-12 Science pages and in the four seasons section above. Summer videos and additional resource links immediately follow.
• If you have any summer lesson plans to share, please add them to our site!

Summer Videos:

• This is a Rocketboom news report on Summer Solstice
• How to plan an educational summer vacation is the subject of this HowCast video
• This is composer Joe Hisaishi performing “Summer” from the motion picture Kikujiro
• This amazing sand animation film is set to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Summer
• Here pre-K kids make a summer garden collage using various mediums
• Family Fun and Kaboose bring you these great summer craft videos
• Here Better’s parenting expert offers tips and tricks for keeping children active in the summer
• A Washington University professor suggests cheap and education summer ideas for children in this video
• This is ParentDish’s list of the top 25 summer-themed movies for kids to teens
• Find additional summer video links in the four seasons section above and the severe weather and natural disasters sections below. Additional summer resources can be found in the following section.

Additional Summer Resources:

• The Wilderdom Store is the ultimate resource for on-line group game descriptions, scavenger hunts, and craft activities for summer camps and backyard fun
• Kaboose.com is the place to go for great summer craft and vacation at home ideas
• Here eHow helps you create a lesson plan for the first day of summer, the last day of school, or for a summer activity due when school resumes
• National Geographic explains why the first day of summer is the longest, but not the hottest day of the year
• Here are more summer safety lesson plans
• Here are elementary summer songs and poems
• These are preschool picnic-themed book, song, fingerplay, arts and crafts, game and activity suggestions
• These are beach-themed activities for the preschool set
• Here are Thinkfinity’s suggestions for great summer learning fun
• For additional summer activities in all grade levels, go to EdHelper.com
• Find additional summer resource links in the four seasons section above and the severe weather and natural disasters sections below.

Autumn Videos | Lesson Plans | Additional Resources

Autumn Introduction:

Autumn is one of the four temperate seasons. Autumn marks the transition from summer into winter, usually in March (Southern Hemisphere) or September (Northern Hemisphere) when the arrival of night becomes noticeably earlier…. Before the 16th century, harvest was the term usually used to refer to the season…. The alternative word fall is now mostly a North American English word for the season…. Autumn is nonetheless preferred in scientific and often in literary contexts. – Wikipedia

Autumn/Fall Lesson Plans

• This “Fall Scavenger Hunt” collects observations of autumn (Science P)
• Children write short sentences to create an autumn vocabulary booklet here (LA K)
• Children write biographies for their Pumpkin Pal Art Projects in this fall idea (LA/Art 3-6)
• This is a geography and science lesson on the Monarch butterfly and its spring/fall migration (SS/Science 4)
• This is an art lesson on falling leaves (Art K-1)
• This yummy fall math idea uses candy corn to illustrate inequalities (Math 1-2)
• Here are unrelated multidisciplinary apple lessons(K-2):
  • Apples All Around (MD-SS)
  • Ideas for a Multidisciplinary Apple Unit (MD-Science)
  • Ten Apples up on Top (MD-LA)
  • Johnny Appleseed (MD-SS)
  • Apples Traveling from New Zealand (MD-SS)

   

• Here is an apple-themed instrument activity (Music K-4)
• This is a “Pie Eater Tag” game idea for fall. (PE 1-5)
• This is a “How to make an apple pie” lesson in second person (LA 2-5)
• This lesson is about fractions as part of a collection (Math 2-5)
• Find related lessons on our Beginning of School, Halloween and Arbor Day pages, and in the weather or plant sections of our K-12 Science pages. Autumn videos and additional resource links immediately follow.

Autumn Videos and Media Resources

• This is an amazing sand animation video set to Vivaldi’s Four Seasons – Autumn
• If you thought that was great, don’t miss Firekites’ “Autumn Story” brought to life by this incredible chalk animation video in HD
• This exceptionally beautiful “October Dream” video is accompanied by “La Etite Fille de la Mer” by Bangelis
• The famous poem “Ode to Autumn” by John Keats is read and illustrated in this clip
• Music students might enjoy comparing Keith Jarret’s jazzy rendition of “Autumn Leaves” with Nat King Cole’s classic rendition illustrated here
• Here is a fun HD time lapse movie of autumn in a seemingly busy Kyoto, Japan
• Find additional seasonal videos in the four seasons section above. See additional autumn resource links below.

Additional Autumn Resources

• Learn why leaves change color and fall off the trees with these great autumn leaf science projects from Science Made Simple
• Experience autumn’s unique sights, sounds, smells and events through the eyes of the Weather Doctor
• Here are autumn pre-school activities and crafts
• These are autumn ideas for the middle school classroom
• Here are 86 autumn art-related lesson plans and projects from Crayola.com
• These are autumn printables for every subject, especially reading and math from EdHelper.com
• Find additional resource links in the four seasons section above.

Winter Videos | Lesson Plans | Additional Resources

Winter Introduction:

Winter is the coldest season of the year, between autumn and spring. The season includes the time of year with the shortest days and longest nights. Meteorological winter is the season having the shortest days and the lowest average temperatures, which have the coldest weather. This corresponds to the months of December, January and February in the Northern Hemisphere, and June, July and August in the Southern Hemisphere. – Wikipedia

Winter Lesson Plans

• Pre-School students make marshmallow snowmen in this winter craft idea (Art P)
• Making 3-D snowflake magnets is a fun winter/holiday project (Art P-5)
• Here Kindergartners do the same (Art K)
• Children will love making and giving this holiday gift craft – pinecone air fresheners (Art K-3)
• This idea combines making snowmen and rhyming (Art/LA K-3)
• “Cooperative Snowmen” is another lesson for the winter months (Art/LA K-3)
• Students retell Jan Brett’s “The Mitten” with cutout animals, and of course, a mitten in this delightful reading comprehension lesson (LA/Art 1)
• Students create an acrostic using winter words in this PowerPoint poetry lesson (LA/CI 2-5)
• Here is a “Charlie Needs a Cloak” guided reading lesson (LA 3)
• Children “skate” to the meter of waltz music in this cold weather idea (Music K)
• This lesson plan is on melting snow and thermometers (Science P-2)
• This is a lesson idea about snowballs and melting (Science K-1)
• This science lesson asks “When does snow melt?” (Science 1)
• This cardinal-inspired paper craft teaches children about circles and cutting on a curved line. (Art 1)
• “The Great Melt Race” is a well-developed 5E Science Teaching Model that asks “Where will my ice cube melt the quickest?” (Science 1)
• Snowflakes are categorized in this science and art lesson (Science/Art 2)
• Students learn about freezing and melting while making ice cream in this physics lesson (Science 3-11)
• Find related lessons in the four seasons section above, on our Christmas page and in the weather section of our K-12 Science pages. Winter videos and additional resource links immediately follow.
• If you have any winter lesson plans to share, please add them to our site!

Winter Videos:

• Raymond Briggs’ children’s book “The Snowman” is brought to life in this classic film set to Peter Auty’s “Walking in the Air”
• This Metacafe video shows amazing photos of the fun, beauty and dangers of winter
• Here is a charming Veoh winter wonderland video featuring Aspen snowscapes
• This is a Vivaldi’s Four Seasons winter sand animation film
• This is a National Geographic time-lapse video of the Aurora Borealis – The Northern Lights
• Here are instructions on how to paint realistic snow features
• Watch scientists write “Merry Christmas” on a snowflake crystal with the aid of an electron microscope here
• This is a wonderful documentary about Wilson A. Bentley who first photographed snowflakes under a microscope in the 1800′s
• This is a video of the snowflakes Wilson A. Bentley photographed
• Modern snowflake micrographs make up this video
• Make your own picture perfect paper snowflakes with this geometry-related lesson
• Make beautiful and easy to fold origami snowflakes with these simple instructions
• Find related videos in the four seasons section above
  ) and man-made disasters (nuclear issues, coping with terrorism, etc. ) topics as they become topical. A meteor could cause a natural disaster, but “meteors” will not be listed in this section until the threat is imminent or our collection grows large. Suggested links to additional severe weather and disaster videos and resource topics are listed below.” A disaster is a natural or man-made hazard that has come to fruition, resulting in an event of substantial extent causing significant physical damage or destruction, loss of life, or drastic change to the environment. A disaster can be ostensibly defined as any tragic event with great loss stemming from events such as earthquakes, floods, catastrophic accidents, fires, or explosions.” – Wikipedia

  Severe Weather, Natural & Man-made Disaster Lesson Plans

   

  • These Severe Weather, Natural & Man-made Disaster lessons apply to most of the specific topics below, and include lessons on preparing for and coping with disasters:
    • Students will learn about natural disasters, such as volcanoes, earthquakes, glaciers, tsunamis, sand dunes, drought, avalanche, etc. with this online geology course (Science/CI 4-5)
    • This well-developed unit on the impact of natural disasters on a community links to additional pages for learning activities and an assessment rubric (Science, SS, Art, LA 5-6)
    • This lesson plan on surviving a natural disaster centers on a collection of true survival stories (LA 6-7)
    • “Stranded” is a lesson on survival after a disaster (SS 4-5)
    • This lesson plan creates a neighborhood map to help first responders in the event of a natural disaster (SS 2-3)
    • This natural disaster lesson plan also demonstrates a volcanic eruption (Science K-3)
    • This “Creating Your Own Fantasy Story” lesson plan suggests that disasters such as tornadoes, fires, nuclear bombs, and earthquakes are great fantasy story topics (LA 6-12)
    • Here is an idea for students to write poems about good and bad weather events (Science/SS 2)
    • Use this math lesson to plot your route away from hurricanes and blizzards and around flooded roads (Math/SS 5-6)
    • Here young students practice dialing 911 and learn what to do in case of an emergency (Other K-2)
    • This “Brave Little Monster” idea helps young students cope with fear (Other P-3)
    • See videos on severe weather and natural disasters and additional resource links below after the lesson plans on specific severe weather and disaster topics that immediately follow
    • Also, find specific coping with disasters videos and additional coping resources in the sections below

  • Spring is the beginning of Tornado and Severe Storm Season:
    • This lesson is about weather patterns and planning for severe weather such as thunderstorms, tornadoes, and hurricanes (Science 4)
    • Here students use hands-on projects, e-pals and multimedia including spreadsheets, Inspiration, and Hyperstudio to prepare a tornado assembly (Science/CI 4-5)
    • This is a different version of the preceding plan (Science/CI 4-5)
    • Here is a lesson on tornadoes and their locations (Science/SS 3)
    • Students create a photo story presentation of the water cycle, weather, and thunderstorms here (Science/CI 3)
    • Students participate in a thunderstorm simulation here and then graph rainfall per state (MD 3)
    • This is a lesson on lightning safety (Science 3)
    • See related videos and additional recommended resources below

  • Sadly, summer is also Hurricane Season:
    • This introductory lesson helps students understand hurricanes (Science 4-6)
    • Here is a good hurricane tracking lesson (Science/LA 4-5)
    • This multidisciplinary lesson educates and prepares students (especially ESL learners) for hurricanes, especially in Florida (MD 4-5)
    • This is an idea for a Mardi Gras shoebox parade to raise funds for hurricane victims (SS/Art P)
    • See related videos and additional recommended resources below

  • Here are lessons about Earthquakes, Volcanoes, Glaciers, and Floods:
    • In this on-line geology course, students post their volcano/earthquake/glacier reports for on-line peer evaluation (Science, CI 4-5)
    • This “Mystic Isles” cartography lesson ask students to decide if “their island” was formed by shifting of tectonic plates, glaciers, earthquake, upheavals, or volcanoes (MD 3-5)
    • This is a compilation of books and poems about volcanoes and earthquakes (Science MO)
    • This lesson is on volcanic eruptions and involves creating a volcano in class (Science K-3)
    • Explore volcanoes, volcanic activity, and their effects on the environment with these activities (Science/CI/SS/LA/Art 3-5)
    • This lesson discusses the effects of earthquakes on supply curves (SS 11-12)
    • This lesson demonstrates erosion as a result of an earthquake (Science 8)
    • This unit on erosion addresses the effects of glaciers and floods, landslides, acid rain, and extreme temperature changes (MD 4-6)
    • Students create an edible map here, showing how glaciers impacted Indiana or your state (SS 4)
    • This is a unit on the Johnstown floods (LA/SS 6)
    • See related videos and additional recommended resources below

  • These are lessons on nuclear energy and Nuclear Hazards:
    • This is a reading comprehension quiz for a nuclear water contamination article (Science/LA/SS 7-12)
    • These are handy questions to use after listening to an internet radio program on nuclear waste cleanup (Science/SS 9-12)
    • This Sadako’s Cranes lesson involves an internet search for information about the development and use of nuclear energy, in general, and the atom bomb, specifically (LA/SS 6-8)
    • This environmental injustice unit asks, “How would you feel if someone was going to build a nuclear power plant next to your home?” (LA, Science, SS 6-8)
    • This “Delivering a Persuasive Speech” lesson suggests “nuclear power plants” as a good controversial topic (LA 7-12)
    • Students model radioactive decay in this lesson (Science 7-9)
    • One of these four comedic science skits is about how hydrogen puts the “nucleus in nuclear,” “the soul in solar and the fuse in fusion” (Science/LA 7-12)
    • This lesson plan on the sun touches on the topic of nuclear fission (Science 6-12)
    • Nuclear energy is discussed in this “What is Energy? lesson (Science 6-8)
    • This lesson asks students to debate “Do We Need a new Constitutional Convention?” to protect us from terrorism, particularly miniaturized nuclear explosive devices (SS 9-12)
    • “Should America bomb Cuba and risk a Nuclear War?” is one question asked of students role-playing Kennedy’s advisors during the Cuban Missile Crisis in this foreign policy lesson (SS/LA 9-12)
    • See videos on nuclear issues and additional nuclear resources in the 2011 Crisis in Japan sections and in a separate nuclear resources section we hope to develop below

     

  • Severe Weather and Disaster videos and links to additional resources on severe weather, natural disasters and nuclear issues can be found below.
  • More lessons on weather phenomena and different man-made threats to our planet’s ecology including global warming and oil spills can be found on our Science – Weather/Geology/Ecology, Social Studies – Environment, and Earth Day pages. The “man-made disaster” topic of Coping with Terrorism appears on its own page and includes ideas that can help children cope with other forms of disasters.
  • Help us increase the selection! If you have any severe weather or disaster themed lesson plans to share on these or additional topics such as tsunamis, floods, droughts, wildfires, etc., or fundraising ideas for the survivors of these tragedies, please add them to our site!

  Severe Weather, Natural & Man-made Disaster Videos:

  • These are videos directly related to the 2011 Earthquake, Tsunami and Nuclear Crisis in Japan:
    • View over 40 earthquake and tsunami videos posted by individuals on Google’s 2011 Japan Crisis site
    • Reuters compiled these videos of the 2011 Japanese earthquake, tsunami and nuclear crisis
    • This is a dramatic video of a tsunami leveling a Japanese city, breaching its seawall and being devastated by a second tsunami
    • Here a geology professor demonstrates how and why Japan’s 2011 earthquake and tsunami formed and what would happen if a tsunami hit Florida
    • Japan’s earthquake and tsunami is explained by a seismologist for the BBC here
    • Here are tsunami facts, photographs of workers inside the Fukushima Daiichi power plant, and before-and-after pictures of Japan’s effected earthquake areas from National Geographic News
    • This video explains how a nuclear meltdown works with actual footage from inside the Fukushima plant
    • A chemistry professor explains Japan’s nuclear emergency crisis in particular and nuclear power in general in this video
    • This is a short blackboard-type video explanation of the distinction between a partial meltdown (melting) and a full meltdown (a meltdown) as it pertained to the early stages of the Japan crisis
    • Find natural disaster lesson plans in the preceding section, more videos related to earthquakes, tsunamis, and nuclear issues immediately below, and specific resources recommendations on Japan’s 2011 crisis in the following resource section.

  • Here are videos on Coping with Disasters:
    • In these PBS video clips, Mr. Rogers talks to children and their caregivers about dealing with scary news
    • Also, find more information on coping with disasters in the additional resources section below

     

  • These are dramatic Disaster Music Videos:
    • This is a disaster footage montage of an avalanche, duststorm, earthquake, wildfire, flood, hurricane, landslide, meteor, tornado, tsunami, and volcano set to equally dramatic Pink Floyd music
    • This is a photo montage video of striking natural disaster phenomena compiled for a school project
    • This is an tightly edited video collection of tornadoes and tsunamis with a dramatic sound track

     

  • We highly recommend these National Geographic Educational Disaster Videos:
    • Hurricanes 101 (plus 14 more)
    • Volcanoes 101 (plus 16 more)
    • Earthquakes 101 (plus 7 more)
    • Tsunamis 101 (plus 3 more)
    • Tornadoes 101 (plus 13 more)
    • plus videos on avalanches, landslides, and wildfires

     

  • Science Kids offers these Educational Disaster Videos:
    • Earthquakes: When the Earth Shakes
    • Amazing Volcanoes (from National Geographic)
    • Catchy Volcano Song (from Ignite Learning)
    • Witness more footage of powerful tornadoes, monsoon rain, intense lightning, cyclones and dust storms video clips here

     

  • These Shamble pages showcase Disaster Videos and PowerPointsfor teaching and learning about:
    • Earthquakes (video blogspot)
    • More Earthquake videos
    • Tsunami Videos and PowerPoints
    • Volcano Videos and PowerPoints

     

  • Kidzui hosts teacher and parent reviewed Disaster and Severe Weathervideos on these channels:
    • Natural Disasters Videos
    • Earthquake Videos
    • Tsunami Videos
    • Volcano Videos
    • Tornado Videos
    • plus additional channels for floods, fires, typhoons and monsoons
    • and extreme weather, lightning, thunderstorms, and wind

     

  • Here are additional Earthquake, Hurricane, Tornado, Tsunami and Severe Weather Videos:
    • This is PBS.org earthquake, volcano and tsunami media rich site
    • “Boom! Shake the Room” is an 9-12 educational slide video for high school geography students on “Why do Earthquakes Happen?”
    • This educational BBC “How a Hurricane is Born” video shows how a girl in the African desert can cause a hurricane in the USA
    • This is a Tsunami basics teaching video
    • This is a long tsunami video taken in Southern India as it happens
    • Here WhyFiles explains “Tsunami-The Killer Wave”
    • This is a tsunami animation with tips on safety and preparedness and an interactive quiz
    • This is a tsunami curriculum for K-6 and 7-12
    • This is the international tsunami information center
    • There are plenty of severe weather videos to be found at The Weather Channel

     

  • See additional resources on all of the topics above in the additional resources section immediately following and in the preceding lesson plan section.

  Additional Severe Weather and Disaster Resources:

  • These are additional 2011 Crisis in Japaninformation sites:
    • Here are Google’s resources related to the 2011 Japan Crisis including their list of disaster relief agencies
    • This is a how-to tip sheet on “Talking to Children about the Disaster in Japan”
    • Here are more talking tips for ages 5-10 and life lessons for tweens and teenagers 9-19
    • Here is a compilation of “the best sites for learning about the 2011 Japan Earthquake & Tsunami”
    • Here are 100+ teaching resources about the Japan crisis including interactive graphics and lesson plans on tsunamis and earthquakes, radiation and nuclear energy
    • This Aussie site offers information and activities about nuclear meltdowns and earthquakes with special reference to the Japan 2011 crisis
    • Here are more helpful educational resources for teaching about the earthquake and tsunami in Japan
    • This is a “Time for Kids” article on Japan’s Nuclear Fears
    • Here is a Weekly Reader article on the Japan 2011 earthquake with a glossary
    • This is a FEMA article on the “Japan Earthquake & Tsunami and What They Mean for the U.S.”
    • This is an interactive demonstration on how shifting plates caused the earthquake and Tsunami in Japan and a slide show of the devastation from the NY Times
    • Here are the Nuclear Regulatory Commissions “FAQ’s about the March 11, 2011 Japanese Earthquake & Tsunami”
    • This is an amazing interactive demonstration of the explosion of one of the Japanese reactors
    • Here are teaching resources for the Japanese earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear crisis recommended by NSTA
    • This is an excellent social studies lesson plan on Japan’s 2011 disaster
    • Find more earthquake, tsunami, and nuclear resources below and in the video and lesson plans sections above

  • Here is more information on helping children Prepare for and Cope with Disasters:
    • FEMA’s empowering “Ready Kids” site prepares children for emergencies with easy steps, games, comic strips, printables and scavenger hunts
    • This is a disaster response point sheet on how to talk to children about earthquakes and other natural disasters
    • This HealthyChildren page covers how to help children prepare for and cope with disasters

     

  • Here are additional “best sites for learning about” Natural Disasters and Earthquakeswith English language learners in mind:
    • Best websites for learning about natural disasters
    • Best websites for learning about the 2010 Earthquake in Haiti
    • Best websites for learning about the 2010 Chilean Earthquake

     

  • Here are EdHelper’s natural disaster themed printable units
  • These are more Earthquake Resources:
    • MCEER offers a comprehensive listing of excellent K-12 earthquake education resources
    • FEMA’s “Earthquake Guide for Kids” includes information and activities about historic earthquakes, earthquake disaster math, intensity scales, home hazards and “Facts and Fiction”
    • These are EdHelper’s printable earthquake worksheets and activities
    • The U.S. Geological Survey compiled and reviewed this outstanding database of K-College educational resourcesrelated to earthquakes and plate tectonics with lesson plans, interactive web sites, and learning activities including their own:
      • Animations of Earthquake Terms and Concepts
      • Earthquake Activities for Kids (science fair ideas, Ask a Geologist, puzzles and games, cool facts, etc.)
      • Earthquake ABC’s – a child’s view of earthquake facts and feelings
      • Latest Earthquakes in the USA and in the World – in the last 7 days

     

  • Here are Tornado, Tsunami, Flood, Hurricanes and other Severe Weatherresources:
    • Here are “Playtime for Kids” activities about severe weather from the National Weather Service including coloring books, videos, projects, and additional activity guides on tornadoes, thunderstorms, floods, hurricanes, and severe weather safety
    • “A Kid’s Guide to Tornadoes and Preventing Disaster Damage” includes what a kid can do, stories from children, tornado math, coloring books, and making a tornado safe room
    • Children play the “Water, Wind and Earth Game” in this “Tsunami Guide for Kids”
    • This site offers educational materials for “Teaching about Tsunamis”
    • Here the National Severe Storms Laboratory answers questions about weather phenomena and severe weather safety including weather coloring books and a comprehensive teacher resource list
    • About.com offers this weather news site with articles on the latest severe weather topics
    • This is the National Weather Service’s “Weather Education” resource site with classroom materials, student sites, graphics and a glossary
    • Kids learn the history of hurricanes, how to track them, how they are named and which were the biggest with games, cartoons, math, and fun quizzes at this hurricane site
    • Students can track hurricanes with maps at the National Hurricane Center

  • We hope to add more nuclear resource recommendations here and additional man-made disaster themes:
    • HowStuffWorks explains nuclear power here
    • See 2011 Crisis in Japan Resources above (for excellent nuclear resources)
    • See Coping with Terrorism” (a man-made disaster theme)