SCIENCE · GRADES 6-8 · 35-45 MIN
Weather Station: Mapping Microclimates Across the Plan lesson plan
Outdoors, students record air temperature, wind and shade at stations across a site and map the microclimates.
At a glance
Time: 35-45 min
Grades: Grades 6-8
Subject: Science: Mapping Microclimates Across the Plan
Grouping: Teams of 3.
Space: An outdoor area with sun, shade and a gap between structures.
Teacher prep: 15 min printing + 10 min taping
Included: Teacher guide, student sheet, checks for understanding, exit ticket with answers
Open the printable lesson: teacher guide and student sheet →
Essential question
Does the whole yard have the same weather?
What students learn and show
Learn: Local conditions vary across a site because of sun, surfaces and structures.
Show: Use data from several stations to recommend a location for a stated use.
Objectives
Collect temperature, wind, and shade data at multiple stations
Map spatial variation (microclimates) across a site
Explain causes of local differences (sun, structures, surfaces)
Recommend the best station for a stated use from the data
Before this lesson students should: Reading a thermometer; making a simple table.
Materials and prep
The 1:1 print (outdoors)
Thermometers
Ribbon/streamer for wind
Data grids
Compass
Prep (about 15 min to print, 10 min to tape)
Plan an outdoor session; mark 5-6 stations.
Shade each thermometer bulb with a card and hold it at the same height (measures air, not sunlit surface).
Copy data grids.
Space: An outdoor area with sun, shade and a gap between structures.
Grouping: Teams of 3.
Ways to run it: 1:1 printed floor plan; Painter's tape on the floor; real
Lesson procedure
Teacher model: 'At station 1, shade the bulb, wait one minute, read 78 F. Ribbon at about 45 degrees: breezy.'
Guided practice: The class takes the first station reading together.
Set stations: teams claim rooms/spots and record location relative to sun and any structures.
Log the data: temperature, wind (ribbon angle), and shade at each station, walking between them at a calm pace.
Map it: transfer readings onto a plan sketch — where's warmest, windiest, shadiest?
Explain the pattern: why is the south-facing corner warmer? Why does wind funnel between the wings?
Recommend: 'Where would you put a garden? A nap? A weather-sensitive experiment?' — defend with the data.
Checks for understanding
Ask: Why might one corner be 8 degrees warmer? Look for: Direct sun and a heat-holding surface versus shade or grass.
Ask: What creates a 'wind tunnel' between buildings? Look for: Wind is channeled and speeds up through a narrow gap.
Ask: Why shade the thermometer bulb? Look for: To measure air temperature, not the sun heating the thermometer.
Exit ticket
Using your data, where would you put a garden that needs sun and little wind? Cite two readings. Answer: A station recommendation with two data points.
Scoring: 2 points (recommendation, two readings cited).
Common misconception
Students may think: A thermometer in the sun shows the air temperature.
Address it: Sunlight heats the thermometer itself; shade the bulb.
Supports and extensions
Learning support: One station, pre-labeled data grid; the ribbon-and-thermometer reading is a concrete paired role.
Multilingual learners: Data is numbers and a ribbon angle; 'warmer,' 'windier' shown by the instruments.
Mobility and access: Students can record, read instruments from a seat, or analyze a shared data set; data-based recommendation stays the goal.
Extension: Re-run at a different time of day — which microclimates flip, and which stay put?
Transfer task: Map microclimates on the playground at lunchtime.
Spaced review: Re-run at a different time of day and compare.
Standards connections
CCSS 6.SP.B.5 (standard)
Connections show which skills the activity practices. They are not a claim of full coverage; see the library for scope notes.
Why this approach
A National Academies consensus report arguing that spatial thinking is a teachable, underrecognized skill that belongs across the K-12 curriculum. Limit: A policy and synthesis report, not an experiment. It does not test this lesson.
Ready to teach it?
The printable version has the full teacher guide, a student recording sheet, prep steps and an exit ticket. Open the printable lesson →
Need the floor plan itself? Get a 1:1 print quote.
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