Original Project
Weather and Climate II: Seasonal Differences
Item CL010002: When warm air blows into a classroom and the air is the same temperature as the air inside the room, the air coming in will neither rise nor sink because it is the same temperature as the air around it.
A teacher opens a window, and warm air from the outside blows through the window and into the classroom.
If the air in the classroom is the same temperature as the air entering the room, what will happen to the outside air as it enters the classroom?
- The air coming in will rise even though it is the same temperature as the air around it because warm air always rises.
- The air coming in will sink because it is not warmer than the air around it.
- The air coming in coming in will not rise or sink because it is the same temperature as the air around it.
- Whether or not the air rises, sinks, or stays at the same height as where it entered depends only on whether there is wind and not on the air temperature.
- Distribution of Responses
- Students Responding Correctly
| Group | Correct | Total | Percent |
|---|---|---|---|
| Overall | 959 | 2310 | 42% |
| Grades | |||
| 6–8 | 473 | 1246 | 38% |
| 9–12 | 484 | 1054 | 46% |
| Gender | |||
| Male | 450 | 1126 | 40% |
| Female | 476 | 1090 | 44% |
| Primary Language | |||
| English | 842 | 1967 | 43% |
| Other | 79 | 240 | 33% |
- Notes
- NGSS does not include the idea that cold air sinks and warm air rises or why that occurs. It does address the role that density and temperature differences play in creating ocean currents, which is an analogous process (see Framework statement MS ESS2.C on p. 185).