New
New
Year 2

The world's cold places

I can explain what affects temperatures locally and why it is cold at the North and South Poles.

New
New
Year 2

The world's cold places

I can explain what affects temperatures locally and why it is cold at the North and South Poles.

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Lesson details

Key learning points

  1. Locally, air temperatures are affected by factors such wind direction and speed, shelter and shade.
  2. Globally, as Earth orbits the sun, temperatures are affected by where a place is and time of year.
  3. In the Northern Hemisphere winter, the North Pole is tilted away from the sun and is darker and colder as a result.
  4. While places in the Northern Hemisphere experience winter, the opposite happens in the Southern Hemisphere.

Keywords

  • Temperature - Temperature is the degree of hotness or coldness of a place.

  • Axis - An axis is an imaginary straight line through Earth which rotates around it.

  • Thermometer - A thermometer is an instrument which is used to measure temperature.

  • Hemisphere - A hemisphere is half of Earth, usually divided into the Northern or Southern Hemispheres by the Equator.

  • Solar energy - Solar energy is the light and heat that come from the sun's rays.

Common misconception

It is winter at the same time of year all around the world.

It is winter at the North Pole when it is summer at the South Pole.

Use a torch and a globe to show how light spreads over a wider area at the poles and a more concentrated area at the Equator.
Teacher tip

Licence

This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2024), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).

Lesson video

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6 Questions

Q1.
Where does the Earth get heat from?
people
inside the earth
Correct answer: the sun
fires
Q2.
What is a continent?
Correct answer: a large area of land
a large area of ocean
another name for a country
an island
Q3.
What is an ocean?
a lake
another name for a sea
Correct answer: a large area of salt water
a large area of land
Q4.
What does a thermometer measure?
Correct answer: temperature
rainfall
wind speed
wind direction
Q5.
Which area is bigger: local or global?
local
Correct answer: global
Q6.
Which of these is not a season?
summer
winter
spring
Correct answer: polar
autumn

6 Questions

Q1.
What is the Earth tilted on?
a pole
Correct answer: an axis
the equator
the hemisphere
Q2.
Which of these does not affect temperatures locally?
shade
shelter
wind speed
Correct answer: seasons
wind direction
Q3.
True or false: The Earth is tilted on an axis and this creates the seasons.
Correct answer: true
false
Q4.
When is the North Pole tilted towards the sun?
November - March (UK winter)
All year round
Correct answer: May - September (UK summer)
Never
April
Q5.
When is it winter in Antarctica?
Correct answer: May - September (UK summer)
November - March (UK winter)
all year round
never
November
Q6.
What imaginary line runs around the middle of Earth?
axis
poles
Correct answer: equator
prime meridian