Curated OER
Steinbeck and Ecology
Does The Grapes of Wrath hold as much relevance today as it did in the 1930s? Use this presentation to introduce John Steinbeck and one of his greatest novels. The author of this presentation encourages a connection between the Dust Bowl...
Wild BC
Greenhouse Gas Line-Up
Discuss different sources of energy and how much greenhouse gas each might emit. The six sources are then ranked according to emissions from greatest to least. Finally, the true cumulative emissions are revealed to show the class how...
Curated OER
Breaking the Ice: Who Controls the Northwest Passage?
High schoolers consider the global climate issue. In this Northwest Passage lesson, students examine who has sovereignty of the passage and discuss the importance of the Law of the Seas and its impact on the global climate issue. High...
Curated OER
What are the Challenges?
Students discuss energy. In this energy challenges lesson, students read about greenhouse gas emissions and global climate change. Comprehension questions from the reading are provided.
Curated OER
Puzzle it Out
Students study the Earth's climatic system and construct a puzzle that names all of the pieces of the components involved. In this Climate lesson, students draw a picture on a puzzle piece depicting a specific component. Students then...
Curated OER
Climate Chaos Week
Pupils research the pros and cons of wind farm technology as an alternative source of energy. The class is divided into two groups that should formulate a debate on each side of the argument. Groups use a debate guide to help develop...
Curated OER
Climate And the Greenhouse Effect
Learners demonstrate the greenhouse effect. They recognize that relatively small changes to our environment can stimulate significant climate changes. They determine that the "scientific method" is a process of testing hypotheses and...
Curated OER
Dark Skies: Volcanic Contribution to Climate Change
Students examine how volcanic eruptions affect global climate. They listen to first-hand accounts of the effects of a large volcanic eruption and illustrate a landscape to show understanding. They experiment with the loss of light and...
Curated OER
Weather, Sea Level Rise and Climate Change
Students compare the carbon dioxide content of four different samples. In this chemistry lesson, students research the causes of global warming. They explain how humans contribute to rising global temperature.
Curated OER
Graphing Sea Ice Extent in the Arctic and Antarctic
Students graph sea ice data and predict long term trends in the data. In this climate change lesson, students use sea ice data from the Arctic and Antarctic to construct line graphs. They use their graphs to predict the effects of global...
National Wildlife Federation
Ghost Town
Around 93 percent of the reefs on Australia's Great Barrier Reef have been bleached, and almost one quarter of them are now dead. Scholars research the sea temperatures, especially around the areas with coral reefs, to make connections...
Towson University
Looking Backwards, Looking Forward
How do scientists know what Earth's climate was like millions of years ago? Young environmental scholars discover how researchers used proxy data to determine the conditions present before written record. Grouped pupils gain experience...
Space Awareness
Global Warming of the Atmosphere
Scientists know the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere today is higher than at any point in the last 800,000 years. Scholars learn about the amount of thermic radiation absorbed by air and what happens to the rest of the...
Global Change
The Carbon Cycle and its Role in Climate Change
So how does the carbon cycle work? Kids participate in a hands-on activity that allows them to understand the chemistry behind climate change and global warming. They act out the process of photosynthesis by labeling themselves as...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
What is My Carbon Footprint?
Here is a lesson that walks youth through an online carbon footprint calculator produced by the University of California, Berkeley. Once learners finish inputting information, they compete a worksheet with the results. This is simple,...
US Department of Energy
Thermal Expansion of Water: Rise of Sea Level
Using bunsen burners, Erlenmeyer flasks, thermometers, hollow glass tubes, stoppers, and rulers, learners experiment with and measure how water expands when heated. The activity connects the expansion of water when heated to global...
US Environmental Protection Agency
Getting to the Core: The Link Between Temperature and Carbon Dioxide
Polar ice samples provide scientists with valuable information about the condition of the atmosphere for hundreds of thousands of years in the past. Of particular interest is the amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere and its...
Chicago Botanic Garden
GEEBITT (Global Equilibrium Energy Balance Interactive TinkerToy)
Students use the GEEBITT excel model to explore how global average temperatures are affected by changes in our atmosphere in part two of this series of seven lessons. Working in groups, they discuss, analyze graphs, and enter data to...
Curated OER
Scientific Investigation of Sea Ice Thickness
Young scholars study the importance of global ocean currents, sea water chemistry, and cultural issues surrounding sea ice. In the field, students travel to the floe edge with their teacher and an elder to drill holes in the ice and...
Curated OER
How can deep-water corals be used to determine long-term patterns of climate change?
Students explore the concept of paleoclimatological proxies. In this paleoclimatological proxies lesson plan, students explain isotope ratios in deep water coral samples. Students write a paragraph about global climate change as it...
Curated OER
Annotated Example of Socratic Questioning: Climate: Global Warming
Students compare and discuss short-term and longer-term global temperature data. They evaluate data from three sets of graphs and then participate in a structured whole class Socratic discussion on the possible causes of climate change.
Curated OER
Lesson Plan: Global Warming
Students explore the concept of global warming. In this climate change lesson, students explore the provided links to PBS NOW sources and research the greenhouse effect and the effects of global warming. Students support their stances on...
Curated OER
Tread Lightly: Our Changing Climate
Students examine the concept of climate change. In this environmental studies lesson, students research Internet and print sources regarding global warming and discuss their research findings as well as their impressions.
Curated OER
On the Rise . . . Sea Level and Global Warming
Ninth graders conduct an experiment to determine how melting sea ice affect sea level. In this earth science lesson, 9th graders explain the environmental consequences of rising sea level. They relate this lesson to global warming.