Lowell — In conjunction with the start of a new reading unit, Murray Lake Elementary third-graders recently received a visit from local alum Joel Fritsma, chief meteorologist for Michigan Storm Chasers.
Fritsma touched on several topics, from how he became a storm chaser, to identifying storm clouds and tips for staying safe during extreme weather.
Since the third-graders were reading stories about storm chasers in their new reading unit, their teachers thought a visit from the meteorologist would be a great way to tie these stories in a textbook to real-life people and careers.
Third grade teacher Katherine Wills said this is Murray Lake’s first year using a new comprehensive ELA curriculum, Open Court Reading.
Using an anthology of narrative and non-fiction stories, students are learning how to synthesize information, develop complex thoughts and hone the craft of writing and storytelling.
“We really liked (this curriculum) because it is a cohesive program, where kids are going to get the same type of structure and language from kindergarten through fifth grade,” Wills said. “When I piloted it last year, the stories were very engaging and my students found them really interesting.”
During his presentation, Fritsma helped the students make connections between real-world weather science to their in-class reading lessons about tornadoes and storm chasers.
“We read about what kind of vehicles storm chasers use and what kind of equipment they keep inside,” third-grader Landon Carter said.
Third-grader Liv Meredith added: “Storm chasers have to use their own money to pay for their materials.”
Wills said the new curriculum also works well alongside their existing science curriculum.
“We’re studying weather right now and in this reading unit, our kids read a story about tornadoes, so it’s tying everything together,” she said. “When that story comes up, they’re going to be able to draw back to today and what they learned from a storm chaser.”
Other upcoming Open Court units feature stories about ecosystems, the history of the United States and people and cultures around the world.
Wills added: “At the end of our reading and science units, we’re going to do a big research project where kids will get to choose a type of extreme weather they want to learn more about and present on what they find.”
After Fritsma’s presentation, Liv said she wants to become a storm chaser one day.
“You have to be good at reading, science and math to be a good storm chaser,” she said. “You use science to know the weather developing in forecasts.”
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