Climate Patterns and Biomes Lab

Positives

• This lab provides many opportunities to assess student understanding and learning. 
• Students have the opportunity to pursue their own interests by choosing a biome to research. 
• Students can familiarize themselves with using digital maps to investigate patterns in climate on a global scale.
  

Additional Prerequisites

• Students should be comfortable with reading maps and graphs, and following multi-step directions.
• In part B of this lab, there is a non-Google Earth option if needed. The link to download a Google Earth file (kmz format) is available. The alternative option is provided in the form of screenshots on a PowerPoint slideshow.
• Teachers should familiarize themselves with the different layers on Google Earth using the downloadable file before teaching this lesson. Students may need extra assistance if they have never used Google Earth before.

Differentiation

• Additional information for teachers and downloadable worksheets and files for this unit are available here. 
• A suggested wrap-up activity for part A is to play "Name that Biome" with students using the Whittaker graphic. Call out the temperature and the precipitation and have students shout out the name of that particular biome using the graphic, or they can point to pictures of the type of biome, which are available in the "additional resources" section.
• This lab is best suited to be taught in 3-4 class periods, where part A requires 100 minutes and part B requires 50 minutes.
• Related resources include this interactive map of biomes in Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique, historical climate maps for the State of New Jersey, and this lab about extreme weather and climate modeling.