Climate and Your Community

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

According to Merriam-Webster, a community is:

• the people living in an area as well as the area itself
• organisms from one or more species who live in one area (like a pond) and intereact ecologically
• a group of people with common interests especially when living together.

An example would be a community of people who live together, like a fraternity or sorority at a college.

To better understand what a community is, check out the Elephango lesson found under Additional Resources in the right-hand sidebar.

Being part of a community is healthy and important for emotional, physical, and spiritual growth and well-being. That being said, the climate where you are located can have a large impact on what kinds of communities you have available to you.

The climate of a geographical area includes the weather patterns and conditions on a regular basis and for a long period of time. For example, if you live near the equator, or in the tropics, you would not experience snow, unless you are on Mount Kenya or in the Andes mountains. This geographical area is mostly sunny and warm year-round, so you would not join a ski club or have a community of fellow skiers.

In contrast, if you lived in Canada, you would not likely have a community of beach-going friends. The climate in Canada would not support this kind of community, so not that many people would enjoy this kind of club! However, a ski-club community is absolutely available to you in Canada.

Here is an interesting fact that you probably didn't know: there are 12 different climates found on Earth! TWELVE! Each of the 12 climates is grouped into six different categories though, and those in the same category usually share some common characteristics. That seems like a lot of different climates, so take a look at the list below and watch the video to try to identify which of these climates is closest to the one in which you live. You will write about it in the Got It? section.

According to Climate Types for Kids, these are the 12 climates and their categories. You can refer to the website if you need extra help:

• tropical: tropical wet and tropical wet and dry
• dry: semiarid and arid
• moderate: Mediterranean, humid subtropical, and marine west coast
• continental: humid continental and subarctic
• polar: tundra and ice cap
• highland

To learn more about each climate, fill in the informational chart below while watching Climates of the Earth, by Chelsea Grant. Be sure to identify at least three characteristics of each climate. As you watch the video, pause it to write your responses and resume the video when you are ready. You will use this in the Got It? section of this lesson:

In the Got It? section, you will write about your climate and how it supports your activities, and therefore your available communities.