Texas has extremely variable weather ranging from intense droughts to raging floods, with record high temperatures over 120°F and lows below freezing. Native American tribes, farming, cattle grazing, and dust storms have all been heavily impacted by the diverse and sometimes extreme weather conditions in different regions of Texas. Flooding, tornadoes, hurricanes, and drought have caused major problems that Texans have attempted to control and mitigate through improved forecasting, dams, irrigation, and adjusted land management practices.

2. There‟s a saying in Texas, „If you don‟t like
the weather, just wait a while it will change.‟
The weather in Texas is as diverse as the
land and it’s people. Texans can go from
intense drought one day to raging floods the
next. Everything is bigger in Texas, and that
includes the weather.

3. Climate
K W H L
What do we want to How will we find out What have we
What do we know?
learn? what we want to learn learned?

4. Texas Regions

5. Weather Extremes
Lowest Temperature ever recorded :
Tulia, Feb 12, 1899 -23 degrees
Seminole, Feb 8, 1933 -23 degrees
Highest Temperature ever recorded:
Seymour, Aug 12, 1936 120 degrees
Monahans, June 28, 1994 120 degrees

6. Weather Impacts People in Texas
How did weather affect these Native American
tribes?
Apache Caddo Jumano
Karankawa Tonkawa Wichita

7. Drought
How did farming How did the How did cattle
techniques condition of the grazing affect
affect the land? topsoil affect the the land?
land?

8. Dust Bowl
Explain the following expressions:
• Black Blizzard –
•Great Plow up –
Texas Dust •Grab a root and growl –
Storm

9. Floods in Texas
Causes of flooding
Effects of flooding
Ways to prevent/control
flooding

10. Dams

11. Tornadoes in Texas
Texas is known as
the “tornado capital
of the United
States”, why do you
think this is so?

12. Hurricanes in Texas
Tornadoes Hurricanes

13. Forecasting Weather in
Texas
Day 1 Day 2 Day 3 Day 4 Day 5
Precipitation
Temperature
Wind speed
Barometer
Observe trends in the weather where you live. Record observations
on the table. What assumptions can you make about the weather
after these observations?

14. Resources
Crowe, K. , Wild Texas weather educator guide. Retrieved from
http://www.thestoryoftexas.com/education/pdfs/WTW%20education%20guide.pdf
Aivazian, A., (2003). What is climate? Retrieved from
http://classzone.com/books/earth_science/terc/content/investigations/es2101/es21
01page02.cfm?chapter_no=investigation
Texas Archeological Research Laboratory and the Department of Anthropology,
Texas State University, (2010, December). Texas beyond history. Retrieved
from http://www.texasbeyondhistory.net/prehistoric/index.html

15. Resources (cont.)
Texas State Historical Association. (n.d.). Texas almanac. Retrieved from
http://www.texasalmanac.com/topics/environment/extreme-weather-records
Fuchs, B., (2011, June 22). U.S. drought monitor. Retrieved from
http://www.drought.unl.edu/dm/DM_south.htm
Public Broadcasting System. (n.d.). American experience. Retrieved from
http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/films/dustbowl/
National Weather Service., (n.d.). Flooding ahead turn around don‟t drown. Retrieved from
http://www.weather.gov/os/water/tadd/images/NSC_FinalVersion1-4.pdf
Public Broadcasting System., (2000). Building big dams. Retrieved from
http://www.weather.gov/os/water/tadd/images/NSC_FinalVersion1-4.pdf

16. Resources (cont.)
National Weather Service., (2010, May 17). Top ten deadliest tornadoes in TX (since 1900). Retrieved
from http://www.srh.noaa.gov/ama/?n=top10_tornadoes
USA Today., (n.d.). Texas hurricane history. Retrieved from
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/hurricane/history/whtexas.htm
The Weather Channel., (n.d.). The weather channel for kids. Retrieved from
http://www.theweatherchannelkids.com/form/form_build_forecast_action.cfm