Development and evaluation of an elementary school teacher workshop on weather directly linked with classes (Centre Greene Building 1, Room 2126)

A two-day elementary school teacher workshop program on weather was developed, and the workshop has been held once a year from 2004. It is intended especially for teachers who were not major in science, for improving elementary science education. The purpose is to provide participants with the weather activities that can be applied in their classes. It is expected that the participants will use the activities in their classes or will introduce those at their own workshops in their schools or in their communities. The program by a hands-on approach includes “Let's observe clouds from space!”, “You are a weather forecaster”, "Let's explore various kinds of weather information via the Internet!", "Let's feel atmosphere through amazing experiments!", and "Let's measure the atmosphere at a mountain with sensors!". A CD-ROM of annual weather satellite data with a software program was distributed to every participant in the workshop. Also, atmospheric pressure, temperature and humidity sensors were lent out to the participant in compliance with his or her request. The participants fully understood the contents, although 68% of them did not major in science. The items that participants rated highly were as follows: weather satellite images, atmospheric measurements at a mountain and the experiments of “Supercooled bottled water”, “Egg in the bottle”, “Cartesian diver” and “Magdeburg experiment using mixing bowls”. About 8 months after the workshop (at the end of the school year), 82% of participants replied that they had used one activity or more in their classes. Examples of teachers' comments are as follows: ‘Students expressed their excitement about satellite images by saying things like “Wow! Moving!” and understood that cloud motions bring weather changes', ‘It is useful for students to understand cloud motions on the globe. It is something that has to be seen to be believed'. After the workshop, we supported a participant who conducted classes in which atmospheric measurement was carried using the sensors at a mountain near her school and raindrop measurement by the Bentley method was made.