Introduction
Hello friends! Today we will be creating an anemometer. An anemometer or wind meter is used for measuring wind speed. For this experiment we will be making a homemade anemometer. It will show you how fast the wind is blowing by spinning cups around. The faster the wind is blowing the faster the cups will spin. By the end of the quest you will know how to go home and build your own anemometer to put in different places in your yard. To calculate the velocity at which your anemometer spins, determine the number of revolutions per minute.
The Challenge:
Your challenge is to design something that can measure the wind speed. Create an anemometer that features free spinning cups that spin faster as the wind increases. The wind should blow into the cups pushing them away. The faster the wind the more force it has to push the cups and the faster they spin. You can measure the wind strength by comparing how many times the anemometer spins around every 60 seconds. Does it vary from place to place and day to day?
[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SqbTrbxWT1o align:left]
Task
The students will break up into groups of 4. Each group will take on a challenge of making something that will measure the wind speed using paper cups. Before you begin the experiment your group will need to research these four things.
- What is wind?
- What is wind speed?
- Does it change from place to place?
- Does it change from day to day?
Things you will need:
- Paper cups
- A pen or pencil to poke holes with
- Straws
- Scissors
- A marker
- Tape or glue
Process
- Sit with your assigned group of four
- Split the three research questions
- Assmeble your wind gaude how you think it will work best
- Assign roles for each student in the group when testing out the anemometer (stopwatch, counter, data recorder, guade mover)
- What is wind?
Wind is air that is in motion. Wind is made when the sun gives off uneven heating on the earth’s surface. Weed speed and direction are two factors that are used to specify wind.
Visit the Website below for some FUN facts on wind!
http://www.sciencekids.co.nz/sciencefacts/weather/wind.html
- What is wind speed?
- Does it change from place to place?
- Does it change from day to day?
Evaluation
After you have created your anemometer, observe your final product. Talk with your group and discuss how the anemometer you made will help capture wind speed. Talk with your group and see on what day would you see the cups spinning the fastest and on what type of days would you see the spinning the slowest.
After the group discussion, your group will play two quick games. For the first game, the point is to see who can make their cups spin around the most number of times in one breath. Each student will take their turn and the other group members will count the rotations of the cups. For the second game, the point is to see how many revolutions their cups can go in one minute while taking multiple breaths. Each student will take turns while the other group members count the number of rotations.
Conclusion
After each student makes their own anemometer, each student will share with the class the groups winner in the one breath contest. The students will then come together as a class and discuss their knowledge about what an anemometer is and how they calculate wind speed using the anemometer they created. After completing this challenge the students will know what an anemometer is and how it works and shows how wind speed is measured.
Credits
Weather Wiz Kids. "Wind." Weather Wiz Kids Weather Information for Kids. Weather Wiz Kids, 2015. Web. 12 Feb. 2015. <http://www.weatherwizkids.com/weather-wind.htm>
http://education.nationalgeographic.com/education/encyclopedia/anemomet…
- Google Images
Teacher Page
This experiment is a very fun and engaging way to introduce wind speed in your classroom. This experiment could be done in a Second Grade Classroom when you are on a weather unit. Below is one of the standards that you could use when conducting this expirment.
Standard 2.E.2: The student will demonstrate an understanding of the daily and seasonal weather patterns.
2.E.2A. Conceptual Understanding: Weather is the combination of sunlight, wind, precipitation (rain, sleet, snow, and hail), and temperature in a particular region at a particular time. Scientists measure and record these conditions to describe the weather and to identify patterns over time. Weather scientists (meteorologists) forecast severe weather so that communities can prepare for and respond to these events.
Performance Indicators: Students who demonstrate this understanding can:
2.E.2A.1 Analyze and interpret data from observations and measurements to describe local weather conditions (including temperature, wind, and forms of precipitation).
2.E.2A.2 Analyze local weather data to predict daily and seasonal patterns over time.
2.E.2A.3 Develop and use models to describe and compare the effects of wind (moving air) on objects.
2.E.2A.4 Obtain and communicate information about severe weather conditions to explain why certain safety precautions are necessary.