Climate Change Reading Comprehension

Printable Reading Passage with Interactive Review Questions. Read and test comprehension online or print and use offline as a worksheet. For 5th Grade and up.


What's the Difference Between Climate and Weather?


Look outside. Is it sunny, cloudy, windy, about to rain or snow? These conditions describe weather - something happening in a particular place at a particular time.

Climate is a pattern of weather that occurs over a long period of time - 30 years or more, or even centuries.

Different areas of the world have different climates. Climate depends on how far away you are from the equator, how near you are to the sea and how far you are above sea level.

One of the driest climates on Earth is the Atacama Desert in Chile where it has only rained a few times in the last 30 years. On those few days when it does rain, the weather is rainy, but the climate doesn't change. It's still a dry climate.

Meteorologists study weather patterns to predict the weather in the short term. They prepare us for hurricanes, tornadoes, blizzards and heat waves.

Climatologists, scientists who study climate, look at weather patterns over many years. They study the effects of climate on the land and the sea, as well as on humans, animals and plant life.

Weather can change in just a few hours, but climate takes many many years to change, even when it's changing fast like it is now.

In the last 100 years, increased carbon dioxide entering the Earth's atmosphere has caused the planet to warm up faster than it naturally would. This global warming is causing world climates to change and extreme weather and storms to occur more often.

Source: wordville.com/ReadingComp/ClimateWeather.html What's the Difference Between Climate and Weather?
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You look outside and it's raining. That describes
climate
weather
neither
weather The Atacama desert is the driest place on earth. That describes its
climate
weather
neither
climate People who study climate are
climatologists
meteorologists
paleontologists
climatologists Meteorologists study
climate change
meteors
weather
weather It is usually cold in Maine in winter and warm in summer. That describes its
climate
weather
neither
climate There has been a week-long heat wave. That describes
climate
weather
global warming
weather There is a forest fire nearby. That describes
climate
weather
neither
neither What causes global warming?
a long heat wave
the earth's core heating up
the build-up of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere
the build-up of carbon dioxide in the earth's atmosphere Climate is
the pattern of weather over a long period of time
the weather for the day
the change in weather throughout the week
the pattern of weather over a long period of time Which of these is an example of weather?
average rainfall
yearly snowfall
thunderstorm
thunderstorm

©Courseware Solutions   Wordville.com for Fun English Language Arts Learning



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