Weather and Climate Factors Science Games

In this series of games, your students will learn the difference between weather and climate, and the characteristics that affect them both. The Weather and Climate Factors learning objective — based on NGSS and state standards — delivers improved student engagement and academic performance in your classroom, as demonstrated by research.

Scroll down for a preview of this learning objective’s games and the concepts they drive home.

Concepts Covered

Weather and climate are closely related, but they are not the same. Weather encompasses the atmospheric conditions of temperature, air pressure, humidity, precipitation, and wind occurring at a given place and time. Climate is the typical patterns of weather over a long period of time in a specific place. A region’s weather and climate are influenced by a wide variety of factors.

Higher latitudes (farther from the equator) receive less direct sunlight than lower latitudes. Mountains can affect rain shadows, and higher elevations mean lower air pressure and colder temperatures in a region. Ocean currents move warm and cool water around the world, affecting temperatures. Ocean water changes temperature more quickly than land.

Characteristics of the atmosphere, like carbon dioxide levels, affect how much heat stays in an area. Characteristics of the surface, like albedo, affect how much heat is absorbed by the ground. Plants and animals circulate oxygen, carbon dioxide, and water through the environment. Finally, Earth’s rotation causes the Coriolis effect, which affects the direction of wind and storms.

A preview of each game in the learning objective is found below.

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