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PPT
Curated OER

Water, Oceans and Atmosphere

For Teachers 7th - 10th
There are some really nice diagrams and facts regarding the atmosphere and regulation of energy levels in this PowerPoint. It would be wise to double-check some of the details, but these slides would provide a nice visual recap of...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

How Does the Earth's Energy Budget Relate to Polar Ice?

For Teachers 5th - 7th
Learners use satellite data to see how radiation budget relates to the ice that is present in the North.  In this energy lesson students correlate data to see a relationship. 
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Investigating the Climate System - Clouds

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Here is a fabulous lesson on the Earth's radiant energy system. This amazing, 31-page document is chock-full of great activities, worksheets, lab sheets, quizzes, rubrics, and assessments. Learners model and explain cloud formation,...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Earth's Energy Budget - Seasonal Cycles in Net Radiative Flux

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students attempt to understand seasonal variation by viewing images of the energy received by the earth. In this weather lesson, students view images from NASA of the influx of energy from the sun and make predictions about resulting...
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Lesson Plan
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Chicago Botanic Garden

Climate and Forest Ecosystem Services

For Teachers 10th - 12th Standards
Forests, through sequestration, capture excess carbon dioxide in our atmosphere and store it, aiding in climate change. The third installment in a four-part series on how climate impacts forests explores carbon sequestration....
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Activity
Colorado State University

What Makes a Gas, a Greenhouse Gas?—The Carbon Dioxide Dance

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Investigate a heated topic in environmental science. Scholars team up to play the parts of gas molecules in the atmosphere. As the teacher moves about, acting as the electromagnetic wave, learners react as their molecules would to the...
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Activity
It's About Time

Environmental Impacts and Energy Consumption

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
As scientists prove environmental impacts of using coal as an energy resource, do you think Santa regrets giving out so much of it? Through a demonstration of acid rain, pupils learn what makes it, where it occurs, the impact of it, and...
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Website
American Museum of Natural History

What is the Greenhouse Effect?

For Students 6th - 12th
Without the greenhouse effect, Earth would not be inhabitable. A thorough online resource describes the greenhouse effect and how it occurs. The source highlights the different types of gases that work together to absorb the sun's...
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Activity
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NOAA

Communicate!: Create a Unique Message About Climate Change

For Students 6th - 8th Standards
Scholars use their communication skills to express their take on climate change in the ninth installment of the 10-part Discover Your Changing World series. They create ways to deliver their messages on a specific aspect of climate by...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Water in the Biosphere

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Environmental explorers examine the campus and take note of living organisms. Introduce them to the biosphere and the questions of the day: How much water can be found in the biosphere? A slide show helps you along, and even contains a...
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Activity
It's About Time

The Electromagnetic Spectrum and Your Community

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Do you have blossoming astronomers who seek to understand the electromagnetic spectrum? Assist them with exploring electromagnetic radiation and the electromagnetic spectrum as the class conducts various activities to demonstrate...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

An Environmental Puzzle: The Carbon Cycle

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Middle school science stars examine fuels and energy with a variety of activities. They begin with a KWL chart, read an informative passage, and then complete a puzzle. The puzzle itself is included. Cleverly, each piece corresponds to a...
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Worksheet
Curated OER

In the Eye of the Hurricane

For Students 9th - 10th
In this science worksheet, students read about temperature and thermal energy in a hurricane. Students also draw their own hurricane and label 5 different parts.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Heat Transfer In The Atmosphere

For Teachers 6th - 8th
For this science worksheet, students find the meaning of radiation, conduction, and convection and how they operate in the global atmosphere.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Energy Efficiency Ambassadors

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students compare two products that provide the same function but require different amounts of energy.   In this energy efficiency lesson students research and demonstrate energy efficiency in action and how it applies to...
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Lesson Plan
Colorado State University

What Is a "Model"?

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Model the transfer of energy during a typical 24-hour period. Young scholars use a game-like approach to learning the patterns of heat transfer through the day and night. Groups of four exchange different tokens as the energy...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Comparing Light Bulbs

For Teachers K - 8th
An average home produces twice as many emissions as an average car. Teach your class how to reduce energy consumption by replacing standard incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent light bulbs. Perform an experiment to compare...
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Activity
It's About Time

The Sun and Its Effects on Your Community

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Why is the sun round? Examine this question, and others, with your pupils while teaching them how to live in a more earth-friendly environment. Pupils explore Sun composition and discuss how solar wind, sunspots, and solar energy affects...
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Unit Plan
Texas Commission on Environmental Quality

Environmental Sciences

For Teachers K - 8th Standards
Whether you are teaching environmental science in junior high or studying recycling in kindergarten, there is something for all in this set of lessons designed for environmental education. The 110-page packet comes with tips for...
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Lesson Plan
McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center

Global Warming in a Jar

For Teachers 4th - 8th
This well-organized lab activity introduces earth science pupils to the greenhouse effect. They will set up two experiments to monitor temperatures in an open jar, a closed jar, and a closed jar containing water. Ideally, you would have...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Einstein's Gravity

For Teachers 11th - 12th
Assist your high school class with researching and applying the principles of gravity so they may further understand why Einstein is so widely recognized, even today. Individuals compare and contrast two different models that demonstrate...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Simulating the Greenhouse Effect in a Terrarium

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students identify what factors effect global warming and how the greenhouse effect occurs.  In this environmental lesson students view videos then complete an experiment using a terrarium to observe greenhouse gas.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Heating the Atmosphere

For Teachers 5th - 8th
Students construct a thermograph for maximum and minimum temperatures for the 2-week period. They illustrate how the earth's atmosphere is heated by convection and conduction currents and evaporation of water.
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Worksheet
Curated OER

Energy from the Sun

For Students 7th - 9th
In this energy activity, students complete a chart on the three types of heat transfer and their causes. Then they explain why all of the radiation directed at Earth does not reach the surface. Students also explain the factors in the...