Use these resources to put together your own storm lesson or unit study! Some are affiliate links.
I am fascinated by weather in general and storms in particular. At any given time, I have 2 or 3 weather sites up on my computer, plus the weather apps on my phone. Who really needs 4 weather apps? Apparently, I do. My husband jokes that I am the family meteorologist.
We live in the midwest where violent storms are a part of life. There is nothing more beautiful and awe-inspiring than a summer thunderstorm rolling in. Watching cumulonimbus clouds form in the distance, feeling the change in the wind, and then smelling the oncoming rain is a wonderful experience. Nothing sings me to sleep quite like rolling thunder at night. Ahhh….
Storm Lesson and Unit Study
My love of weather is the reason we seem to always be doing a weather related study. Over the years, we have repeatedly tracked rainfall, watched cloud formations, and monitored the changing barometer. I have a digital weather station that sits on my kitchen counter that makes our weather studies really easy.
Storms are a weather phenomena that have always captivated me. The power and strength of storms are simply amazing. They are an uncontrollable force that, while beautiful, can leave devastation in their wake. The science behind storm formation, tornadoes, lightening, and wind is fascinating to study.
I have gathered at bunch of resources to use to create a custom storm lesson or unit study for your students. There are books, links, notebooking pages, hands-on activities, and more. Let’s starts with books…
I have always liked to base a lesson or unit study around a book, then fill in with other books and websites. Here are a few of our favorite storm books geared toward elementary age and younger students.
- A couple years back, we received the latest DK Adventures book, Twister, from our friends at DK Publishing. The books in this series are part adventure story and part fun educational information. Twister is a story of a boy that visits his storm chaser cousins in Tornado Alley and ends up on a chase himself. In between the chapters, DK has packed lots of storm information like storm chasing gear, a storm shelter guide, the anatomy of a tornado, and lots more.Twister would make a great base to launch a storm unit study. Add books, online resources, notebooking pages, and hands-on activities to round out your study.
- Storms is a National Geographic Level 1 reader that is a great book for young learners to learn the “why” about all types of weather, storms in particular. This book explains the science behind thunder, lightening, hurricanes, tornadoes, and more in a simple way that kids can easily understand.
- Children 3-7 will love The Storm Book by Charlotte Zolotow. This lyrically written Caldecott Honor book beautifully describes nature and an oncoming storm from the perspective of a young boy.
- If your child likes facts, this Time Life For Kids Science Scoops book, Storms!, is for them.
- Storms Weather Book For Kids is a Kindle book full of fun facts, science, and amazing pictures of storms, including hailstorms, blizzards, hurricanes and tornadoes.
Storm Lesson Links
- Weather Unit Study Resources
- Weather Science Pinterest Board
- Tornado Lesson Resources
- How A Hurricane Forms – NASA
- How A Storm Forms Lesson
- Storm Shelter Research
- National Hurricane Center
Storm Notebooking and Unit Studies
- Coloring Pages, Worksheets, and Activities
- Weather Coloring Pages
- Thunder-Lightening Diagram
- How Tornadoes Form Diagram
- Twisting Tornadoes Unit Study
- Hurricane Lesson Resources And Activities (tons of links)
Hands-On Storm Activities
- What Causes A Thunderstorm Activity
- Creating covection currents to study thunderstorms
- Shaving Cream Raincloud STEM Activity
- Make a hurricane
- How To Make Lightening
Weather Lesson Resources
Looking to study weather in general? Here are a bunch of great weather lesson resources to check out.
I even have a weather science themed Pinterest board.