13 Severe Weather & Safety
👩🏫 Teacher’s Guide
Objective
Students will recognize types of severe weather and apply simple safety plans for each.
Vocabulary
thunderstorm, tornado, hurricane, blizzard, watch, warning, shelter
Teaching Notes
- Start with a quick demo or model to visualize the concept.
- Pre-teach key vocabulary with gestures or sketches.
- Prompt students to predict, observe, and explain in full sentences.
- Check for understanding using either/or and short-answer prompts.
🧒 Student Worksheet
Concept and Helping Material
Definition. Different storms need different responses: know the hazards, watch for warnings, and use a simple family safety plan.
Helping ideas and samples:
- Try a quick sort, draw-and-label, or compare-and-contrast.
- Name one place you see this idea at home or at school.
- Safety: follow teacher directions and handle materials carefully.
Vocabulary and Definition
- — storm with lightning, thunder, and heavy rain
- — spinning column of air from a storm cloud to the ground
- — large tropical storm with strong winds and rain
- — snowstorm with strong winds and low visibility
- — conditions are possible
- — severe weather is happening or about to happen
- — a safe place to stay during danger
Words to Learn
, , , , , ,
Sentences to Fill In
1. A tornado __ means one is happening now or soon.
2. During a tornado you should go to a __ room on the lowest floor.
3. A __ forms over warm ocean water.
4. A snowstorm with strong winds and low visibility is a __.
5. Lightning is common in a __.
Hands-On Experiment or Activities
What You Need: simple classroom items.
What You Do: Plan it: draw a floor map of your home and mark two safe shelter spots for tornado and for thunderstorm/lightning.
Think and Talk: What changed? What stayed the same?
Reflection
- Why does a small interior room help during a tornado?
- What supplies would you put in a family storm kit?