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6th grade Weather or climate? Reading a climate graph worksheet

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Weather or climate? Reading a climate graph

Grade 6 Science Worksheet - Challenge Me

NameDate

Circle the best answer.

  1. A snowy week hits Bismarck, North Dakota, in April. Ari's friend says Bismarck's climate just got colder. Agree or disagree?

    • Disagree: snow is not part of weather
    • Agree: April snow sets the climate
    • Agree: a snowy week changes the climate
    • Disagree: one week is weather, not climate

  2. One winter is colder than usual in Bo's town. A friend says that proves Earth is not warming. Agree or disagree?

    • Agree: a cold winter is climate, not weather
    • Disagree: cold winters no longer happen
    • Disagree: warming is measured over decades worldwide
    • Agree: one cold winter shows the world's climate

  3. Miami's normals give July 187 mm of rain. Esme says each July day in Miami must be rainy. Agree or disagree?

    • Agree: the average shows each day's weather
    • Disagree: Miami gets no rain in July
    • Disagree: an average can hide dry and wet days
    • Agree: 187 mm falls on each day

  4. Read this first

    Use this

    Climate graph for Miami, Florida (NOAA NCEI 1991–2020 normals). Months across: January (1), April (4), July (7), October (10), a mark every 3 months. Line: average temperature, 0 to 40 °C, a mark every 10 °C: January 20 °C (69 °F), April 25 °C (77 °F), July 29 °C (84 °F), October 27 °C (80 °F). Bars: average rain and snow, 0 to 200 mm, a mark every 50 mm: January 46 mm, April 85 mm, July 187 mm, October 194 mm.

  5. Jun wants a Miami beach week that averages at least 25 °C but gets under 100 mm of rain. Which month fits?

    • April: 25 °C and 85 mm
    • October: 27 °C and 194 mm
    • July: 29 °C, the warmest month
    • January: 46 mm, the driest month

  6. Kira is writing about Miami's rainy season. Which month on the graph gets the most rain?

    • April, with 85 mm
    • July, the warmest month
    • October, with 194 mm
    • January, with 46 mm

  7. Luz sums up Miami's graph in one line. Which line fits it?

    • About the same rain each month
    • Warm all year; wettest from summer into fall
    • Below zero each January
    • Rain falls each July day, since July averages 187 mm

  9. How much more rain and snow falls in Bismarck's July than in its January, Noah?

    • 33 mm more
    • 78 mm more
    • 66 mm more
    • 90 mm more

  10. Mittens on! Bismarck's January average is −11 °C (13 °F). Which line describes Bismarck's January, Pia?

    Use the picture in question 7.

    • Above freezing, at 11 °C
    • Mild, like Miami's January
    • Below freezing, on average
    • Warmer than Bismarck's October

  11. One weather station has 30 years of records; a new one has 3 years. Which record can give a climate normal, Tala?

    • Neither, as climate cannot be measured
    • Either record, as each shows a climate
    • The 3-year record, as newer data are better
    • The 30-year record

  12. A heat wave brings 38 °C (100 °F) to Bismarck for three days in July. How does that compare with Bismarck's climate, Zee?

    • About the same as the July average
    • The new July climate for Bismarck
    • Colder than Bismarck's July average of 22 °C
    • Weather, far above the 22 °C July average
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6th grade Weather or climate? Reading a climate graph worksheet – printable
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About this worksheet

Weather or climate? Reading a climate graph. Every version has 10 questions, and the answer key prints on the second page.

What your child will learn

  • I can sort a statement into weather (one time, one place) or climate (the usual pattern over about 30 years).
  • I can read a climate graph: the line for temperature and the bars for rain and snow.
  • I can use a climate graph to describe a place's climate and to judge a claim about it.

Standard: MS-ESS2-6 (supporting: regional climates)

Words to know

weather: What the air is doing over minutes, hours, days or weeks

climate: The usual weather of a place, averaged over about 30 years

climate normal: NOAA's 30-year average for one place, such as 1991–2020

climate graph: A graph with a temperature line and rain-and-snow bars by month

precipitation: Rain, snow, sleet and hail, together

Common mistakes

Your child called one day, one week or one storm "climate". Climate is the usual pattern over about 30 years. Try sorting a few lines from a forecast and an almanac together.

Your child called a long-run average "weather". An average over many years describes climate. Try reading a town's normals together and saying "usually".

Your child read the rain bars as temperature, or the temperature line as rain. Try pointing to the line and then the bars, saying what each one shows.

Questions parents ask

What is the most common mistake with weather or climate? reading a climate graph?

Your child called one day, one week or one storm "climate". Climate is the usual pattern over about 30 years. Try sorting a few lines from a forecast and an almanac together.

Are these 6th grade science worksheets free to print?

Yes. All 6 printable versions at each level are free to print, with the answer key, and no account is needed.

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