Student Worksheet

Overview:
Scientists use graphs and charts to look for trends and relationships in data. For this activity, you will use all of the weather data collected from the two-week period and analyze it using graphs, charts, and averages to look for patterns and trends and to help compare the weather in each of the three cities (New York, Sao Paulo, and your city / town).

Materials:

Weather Learning Log or Student Worksheet Weather data from the last activity (Activity 3).

Instructions:
Part 1: How does the weather change?
Discuss and answer the following questions:

How would you describe the weather for the two-week period for each of the three cities? In general, how did the weather change during the week for each of the three cities? How was the weather the same or different in each of the three cities? For example, which location seemed the warmest? coldest? Can you think of any reasons why the weather was similar or different?

Part 2: Weather Variables
For this exercise, you will graph several of the weather variables in depth to compare and contrast the weather data that was collected from the three locations.

Temperature: Line graphs show gradual changes in data and are good for summarizing the relationship between two pieces of information, such as temperature and time. Draw three LINE graphs (one for each city) on three separate graphs comparing the Temperature each day over Time. Label the horizontal, or x-axis using dates from the first day you began to take weather measurements to the last day and the vertical, or y-axis in ºC. Don't forget to label each of the graphs to distinguish between the three locations. Wind Direction: Label the Wind direction for each day at the same points for the temperature for each day in the line graphs you made above for each of the cities (you will analyze this later). Sky Conditions: Circle graphs will help demonstrate how the whole week can be divided into its parts and will make it easier to compare the sky conditions for each of the three cities. Make three CIRCLE graphs (one for each city) showing the number of sunny, cloudy and rainy days. Precipitation: Bar graphs are good for comparing data and illustrating how something changes over time. Draw one BAR graph for your city over Time. Label the x-axis from the first day you began to take weather measurements to last day. Label the y-axis in mm of precipitation. Air Pressure Draw three LINE graphs (one for each city) on three separate graphs comparing the Air Pressure each day over Time. Label the x-axis from the first day you began to take weather measurements to the last day and the y-axis in mb from the lowest to the highest recorded air pressure value. Don't forget to label each of the graphs to distinguish between the three locations.

Part 3: Analyze the Data
Use the graphs and charts above to answer the following questions.

Temperature How would you describe the temperature changes in each of the three cities? For example, does it seem to be going up, down, or staying the same? What was the highest temperature in each location and when did it occur? What was the lowest temperature in each location and when did it occur? What was the average temperature in each location? Sky Conditions and Temperature: Which city had the most sunny days, cloudy days, and rainy days? Was there any relationship between the sky conditions and temperature in each of the three cities? For example, was it colder on cloudy days, etc.? Wind Direction and Temperature: Did the wind generally come from one direction more than another in each of the three cities? Was there any relationship between the wind and the temperature the next day in each of the three cities? For example, was it colder on days that the wind was coming from the one direction and warmer when the wind was coming from a different direction? Precipitation Which day had the most precipitation? The least? What was the total precipitation for the two weeks? Air Pressure and Sky Conditions How would you describe the air pressure changes in each of the three cities? For example, does it seem to be going up, down, or staying the same? Was there any relationship between air pressure and the sky conditions the next day in each of the three cities? For example, did falling or decreasing air pressure lead to cloudy or fair weather?