Topic: Climate Zones

Climate Zones of Brazil

Post date 29 September 2025

The 30th United Nations Climate Change Conference, or Conference of the Parties of the UNFCCC, COP30, will be taking place in Brazil this year.

In this resource, students will use climate graphs taken from Copernicus’ ERA explorer, to determine which climate zone three cities in Brazil are in; Belém, Quixeramobim and Porto Alegre.

The cities have been chosen to represent Tropical, Dry and Temperate climate zones respectively.
The worksheet is adaptable so that you can choose which parts are appropriate for your class.
Learning Objectives include:

To practice identifying climate zones
To practice data skills such as addition, mean and sum as well as interpreting graphs.
To be able to construct a climate graph.

Image: Adam Peterson Wikipedia

Köppen climate types of Brazil CC BY-SA 4.0

Geography Resources for COP29

Post date 16 October 2024

COP29 will take place in Azerbaijan in November 2024.

Adapt these ideas to support your teaching in the weeks leading up to and during the conference to engage your students with the negotiations and where they are taking place:

Priorities for COP29 include:

Climate finance to developing countries to support climate change mitigation and adaptation.
Encouraging countries to commit to more ambitious greenhouse gas emission reduction targets by 2035
Developing a global carbon market
Greening education

Azerbaijan in context

Using google maps, explore where Azerbaijan is, who its neighbours are, how big it is (how many times the size of Wales), it’s in Eurovision, but is it in Europe?
Azerbaijan’s population pyramid
Azerbaijan’s GDP
Azerbaijan contains 9 climate zones. What are the main factors that determine the local climate?
Sources: https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org/country/azerbaijan/climate-data-historical https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Climate_of_Azerbaijan https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Azerbaijan_topographic_map-az.svg
Construct or interpret climate graphs for one or more places/ climate zones in Azerbaijan using the information at https://en.climate-data.org/asia/azerbaijan-112/
Contour drawing practice – the sketch map below has selected November temperatures for Azerbaijan. Draw the 10°C contour. (Click on image for an easy to print pdf)

Data sources: Google Earth, https://weatherandclimate.com/ and https://en.climate-data.org/ November mean temperatures (°C)

Climate change and climate justice in Azerbaijan

Explore the Global Carbon Atlas (some sample screenshots are below)

Graphical/ Numerical skills:

What are Azerbaijan’s total emissions/ emissions per person/ emissions per GDP like compared to other countries? (use the graphs to ask specific questions such as how much more greenhouse gasses did the UK emit per person from fossil fuels in 2022 than Azerbaijan?)
How have Azerbaijan’s emissions changed over time?
What happened in the early 1990s?

Source: Global Carbon Atlas

Climate change in Azerbaijan

Use https://showyourstripes.info/ or the IPCC’s Interactive Atlas to see how the climate of Azerbaijan is changing relative to the whole world or to the UK.

Source: Showyourstripes.info Ed Hawkins/ University of Reading

Climate Change Risk in Azerbaijan

Explore https://climateknowledgeportal.worldbank.org/country/azerbaijan/heat-risk and https://drmkc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/inform-index/INFORM-Climate-Change/INFORM-Climate-Change-Tool
https://drmkc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/inform-index/INFORM-Climate-Change/Results-and-data
Also
https://drmkc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/inform-index/INFORM-Risk/Country-Risk-Profile
https://drmkc.jrc.ec.europa.eu/inform-index/INFORM-Risk/Risk-Facts-Figures

How vulnerable is Azerbaijan to climate change? What impact of climate change (sea level change, river flooding, drought, disease or conflict) poses the greatest risk to Azerbaijan?

Source EU/ Inform Climate Change Tool

Climate Justice

Climate justice recognises the fact that the people and countries most vulnerable to climate change are often not the ones who have done the most to cause it.
Thinking about Azerbaijan’s greenhouse gas emissions, GDP and vulnerability to climate change, write a paragraph to justify this definition of climate justice.

Possible extension – Azerbaijan’s climate mitigation action is rated ‘critically insufficient’ by the Climate Action Tracker. How does this relate to the concept of climate justice?

Other useful sources of information:
https://www.adb.org/publications/climate-risk-country-profile-azerbaijan
https://unfccc.int/sites/default/files/NDC/2023-10/Second%20NDC_Azerbaijan_ENG_Final%20%281%29.pdf

IPCC 2021 – Changing Climate Zones

Post date 5 January 2022

According to the IPCC report for Policymakers “Changes in the land biosphere since 1970 are consistent with global warming: climate zones have shifted poleward in both hemispheres, and the growing season has on average lengthened by up to two days per decade since the 1950s North of the Tropic of Cancer”¹

Complete the table below on the positives and negatives of the changes described above

Summary of changes to the Biosphere from the report²

Warming contributed to an overall spring advancement in the Northern Hemisphere.
There are increases in the length of the thermal growing season over much of the land surface since at least the mid-20th century. The thermal growing season is the length of time in a calendar year when temperatures are warm enough for agricultural activity.
Over the Northern Hemisphere as a whole, an increase of about 2.0 days per decade is evident for 1951–2018 with slightly larger increases north of 45°N.
Over North America, a rise of about 1.3 days per decade is apparent in the United States for 1900–2014 with larger increases after 1980.
Growing season length in China increased by at least 1.0 days per decade since 1960 .
Peak bloom dates for cherry blossoms in Kyoto, Japan have occurred progressively earlier in the growing season in recent decades. In 2021, peak bloom was reached on 26 March, the earliest since the Japan Meteorological Agency started collecting the data in 1953 and 10 days ahead of the 30-year average.³
Grape harvest dates in Beaune, France have also been earlier. Using harvest data for Beaune stretching back nearly 700 years it has been noted that from 1354 to 1987, grapes were on average picked from 28 September whereas during the last 31-year-long period of rapid warming from 1988 to 2018, harvests began 13 days earlier.⁴

2. Map the changes listed above on the appropriate regions on the world map below:

Source – https://equal-earth.com/

Changes in dates for various plants, crops and regions

Image source: Adjusted from IPCC ¹

Add straight lines of best fit to each graph.
What has happened to the date of the grape harvest in France? Use data to describe the change.
Which graph shows the greatest change?
Which graph shows the smallest change?
How might these changes affect insect, bird and land animals? You could research these and consider migration, harvesting, hibernation and flowering times.
How might these changes affect farmers and food supply?

The change in growing season in the USA

Study the graph⁵ below:

Complete the table below using information from the graph. Use the nearest WHOLE NUMBER available.

Explain which location has the greatest change in its growing season. Use data from the table above in your response.
Make a list of advantages that this shift in growing season will bring to the USA.

Sources:
1. IPCC, 2021: Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Masson-Delmotte, V., P. Zhai, A. Pirani, S.L. Connors, C. Péan, S. Berger, N. Caud, Y. Chen, L. Goldfarb, M.I. Gomis, M. Huang, K. Leitzell, E. Lonnoy, J.B.R. Matthews, T.K. Maycock, T. Waterfield, O. Yelekçi, R. Yu, and B. Zhou (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press. In Press. P.7. Accessed 28^th November 2021 at Sixth Assessment Report (ipcc.ch)
2. IPCC, 2021: Climate Change 2021: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of Working Group I to the Sixth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change [Masson-Delmotte, V., P. Zhai, A. Pirani, S.L. Connors, C. Péan, S. Berger, N. Caud, Y. Chen, L. Goldfarb, M.I. Gomis, M. Huang, K. Leitzell, E. Lonnoy, J.B.R. Matthews, T.K. Maycock, T. Waterfield, O. Yelekçi, R. Yu, and B. Zhou (eds.)]. Cambridge University Press. In Press. P.517. Accessed 28^th November 2021 at Sixth Assessment Report (ipcc.ch)
3. Associated Press (author unknown), 2021. Climate crisis ‘likely cause’ of early cherry blossom in Japan. [online] the Guardian. Available at: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/mar/30/climate-crisis-likely-cause-of-early-cherry-blossom-in-japan [Accessed 28 November 2021]
4. Mercer, C., 2021. Burgundy harvests getting earlier as vineyards heat up, says study – Decanter. [online] Decanter. Available at: https://www.decanter.com/wine-news/burgundy-harvests-earlier-study-423807/ [Accessed 28 November 2021].
5. US EPA. 2021. Climate Change Indicators: Length of Growing Season | US EPA. [online] Available at: https://www.epa.gov/climate-indicators/climate-change-indicators-length-growing-season [Accessed 28 November 2021].

Global Atmospheric Circulation and Precipitation

Post date 10 March 2021

Visit https://svs.gsfc.nasa.gov/4285 and play the animation showing most currently available global precipitation data.
Look at the map below. Circle any patterns of rainfall that you see.

3. What is the type of land is below these rainfall patterns? (Green is forest, brown is desert).

4. In what latitude bands are these rainfall patterns?

Use these terms to fill in the blanks below for Questions 5-8: Hadley, cloud, humid, Sun, cloud, rainfall, low, ground, Ferrel, fronts, Equator, Hadley, poles, rainfall.

5. Rainfall occurs when ______ air cools down. Air cools when it rises, or when it moves away from the _______.

6. The Atmospheric Circulation is driven by the _____. In the Tropics, the Sun warms the _____ which in turn warms the air above. hot air rises, leading to _____ and _______. This drives the ________ cells.

7. Colder air sinks at the poleward edge of the _______ cells and over the __________. Sinking air has no _______ or __________.

8. In the _______ Cells, rainfall is mainly associated with ____ pressure systems (depressions). Rainfall is mainly on the ________.

9. Complete the following table (Look at the map for help):

	Tropics	Sub Tropics	Poles
Skies	Clear/ Cloudy	Clear/ Cloudy	Clear/ Cloudy
Rain (or snow)-fall	Dry/ Wet	Dry/ Wet	Dry/ Wet
Pressure	High/ Low	High/ Low	High/ Low

10. Sketch what you think the Hadley Cell looks like in December and June by the images of the Earth below. Hint: the Equator and Tropics of Cancer and Capricorn are shown on the map.

Visit https://earth.nullschool.net/#current/wind/surface/level/overlay=precip_3hr/orthographic to see today’s rainfall patterns. Click on ‘Earth’ and then choose in the Overlay settings ‘3HPA’ to see the rainfall patterns together with surface wind speeds. Change in the settings the ‘Control’ to change the date and see rainfall patterns over time. Compare January and July rainfall patterns.

11. In the Tropics, how does the latitude of highest rainfall change between January and July? ___________________________________

12. How does this relate to the sketches you drew above? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Extension question: Why do you think you are asked to look at rainfall in January and July, rather than December and June? ___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Climate Zones

Post date 10 March 2021

Climate Zones

Background Information:

Our planet has several climatic zones; their classification is based on the temperature and precipitation over the seasons. The climatic zones can be simplified into:

Polar and Mountains – very cold and dry all year

Cool Temperate – cold winters and mild summers

Warm Temperate – mild winters, dry hot summers

Arid or Desert – dry, hot all year

Tropical – hot and wet all year

The climate of an area is affected by several factors: latitude (distance to the Equator), terrain, altitude (height) and how far from the sea or ocean it is.

Materials:

Coloured pencils

Plasticine (white, blue, green and black)

A small ball

A lamp

Suggested activities:

Discuss the idea of different regions of the world experiencing different climates. Make a mind map using ideas from pupils about climate zones and the factors that may affect the climate of a region.

Colour in the climate map below and colour it in according to the key.

N.B. Pupils may find the subsequent tasks easier if a logical colouring code is used like the one shown. Where hotter regions are highlighted in warm colours and cooler regions in cool colours, for simplicity the polar & mountain climate zones can stay white.

With the map coloured, pupils should look for patterns in the locations of the climate zones. Start by looking at the proximity to the equator and altitude with younger pupils. Explain that climate is in part affected by the absorption of heat from the sun. Different objects absorb heat at different rates (water is slower to heat and cool, land is much faster).

References/Resources:

Climate Zones: Internet Geography

Climates of the World: (Climate Zones) – detailed climate information for individual countries and areas within countries.

Practical Activities:

1. Modelling the Earth

You will need:

– Blue plasticine

– A small ball

– A heat lamp

Method: Make a model of the earth by covering a small ball with plasticine. Put the heat lamp a fair distance away from the ball – maybe 1m. Shine the heat lamp on the plasticine for a few minutes. Feel the difference in temperature between the ‘equator’ and the ‘poles’.

Results: The areas of the ball facing the lamp should feel much warmer than the areas pointing away – either the ‘poles’ or the ‘night’ side of the ball. When the surface of the Earth isn’t at right angles to the Sun, the Sun’s energy is spread over a wider area and it doesn’t heat up as much. This is the cause of much of the Earth’s weather. As the Earth orbits around the Sun, the Sun moves from being at right angles to the Tropic of Cancer to be overhead at the Tropic of Capricorn. This gives us seasons.

2. Modelling the Earth

You will need:

– White, blue and dark green plasticine
[Hint: Mixing some black with the green plasticine makes
a dark green that gives really good results]

– A small ball

– A sunny day

Method: Make a flat model of the earth by covering a piece of cardboard with white (Polar regions), blue (sea) and dark green (land) plasticine. Leave the map out in the Sun for 10 minutes. Feel the difference in temperature between the white and dark green areas.

Results: The darker areas should feel much warmer than the white poles. The colour of the area of land affects the ability to absorb light. Whiter regions (like the poles and mountains) reflect light and darker regions (like vast areas of tropical rainforest) absorb light and get warmer.

Global Atmospheric Circulation

Post date 26 November 2020

Use this Global Atmospheric Circulation practice exercise.

Changes to the Global Atmospheric Circulation as the climate changes.

Climate Change Resources

Post date 19 November 2020

Summary of Weather and Climate Links in the 2014 KS2 National Curriculum

		Curriculum Links
Year 4	Scheme of Work	Plants	Literacy
Year 3/ 4	Scheme of Work	Climate zones
Year 5/6	Scheme of Work	Climate zones	Science – Light, Fossils

General Resources

Diamond Ranking sheet

Acknowledgements

The Climate Change Schools Resources were developed by the Climate Change Schools Project, based at the then Science Learning Centre in Durham and led by Krista McKinzey. A large number of teachers and schools in North East England were involved in their development.

They have subsequently been updated by the Royal Meteorological Society.

11. Hot Deserts

Post date 19 November 2020

Weather and Climate: a Teachers’ Guide

Pathway: Climate

Climate Zones – Past Climate Change – Polar Climate – Hot Deserts

Lesson overview: In this lesson we look at the characteristics and locations of hot deserts and the adaptations of animals and vegetation found there.

Hot deserts have less than 250mm precipitation per year and daytime temperatures that may approach 50^oC. Hot deserts cover 14.2% of the Earth’s surface, their distribution largely determined by the global atmospheric circulation. Physical factors such as altitude or latitude determine deserts with the most extreme values of precipitation/temperature. Their characteristics and distribution will change over long periods of time due to the Milankovitch cycles and Continental Drift. Climate change is projected to have complex effects and the size of arid regions is expected to grow. The plants and animals that live in the deserts around the world have adapted to cope with the extreme climate.

Learning objectives:

To be able to describe the characteristics and location of at least one hot desert.
To understand why hot deserts are hot and dry.
To be able to draw and interpret a climate graph of a hot desert.
To understand animal and plant adaptations to the hot desert climate.

Key Teaching Resources

Hot Deserts PowerPoint
Hot Deserts PowerPoint (easier)
Hot Deserts Worksheet
Hot Deserts Making Plants and Animals
Hot Deserts Making Plants and Animals – Info sheet
Hot Deserts homework

Teacher CPD/ Extended Reading

Read

Hot Deserts_More for Teachers

Or watch

Alternative or Extension Resources

Using GIS to investigate temperature extremes

Weather and Climate: a Teachers’ Guide

12. Changing Global Climate

13. UK Climate

14. Changing UK Climate

Post date 19 November 2020

Weather and Climate: a Teachers’ Guide

Pathway: Climate

Atmospheric and Oceanic Circulation – Climate Zones – Past Climate Change – Polar Climate

Lesson overview: In this lesson we investigate why polar climates are so extreme and how it can be too cold to snow in Antarctica.

The extremes of Polar weather – the lowest temperatures on Earth and little precipitation – vary significantly throughout the year. Antarctica has the harshest conditions, recording an annual mean low of nearly -60^oC due to its elevation and distance from the sea. Low levels of precipitation define Polar regions as deserts and it can be too dry to snow. The effects of climate change are amplified in these regions through feedback mechanisms which in turn affect global climate.

Learning objectives:

To understand why it is cold in Polar regions.
To understand why our Polar regions are classified as deserts.
To be able to calculate mean temperature and total precipitation and interpret a climate graph

Key Teaching Resources

Polar Climate PowerPoint
Polar Climate PowerPoint (easier)
Polar Climate Worksheet
Polar Climate Worksheet (easier)
Beast from the East homework

Teacher CPD/ Extended Reading

Read

Polar Climate – More for Teachers

or Watch

Alternative or Extension Resources

Using GIS to investigate temperature extremes

Drawing polar climate graphs to look for evidence of climate change

Changing polar climate (advanced)

Impacts of polar climate change (advanced)

Comparing Arctic and global temperatures – data skills exercise – worksheet or Excel