Lab 3: Normal Climate Patterns. EarthLabs for Educators and Policy Makers. Grades 9-12. http://serc.carleton.edu/earthlabs/drought/3.html. This lesson is a fundamental piece in the overall drought unit. It can also serve as a stand-alone lesson on climate patterns. Rather than presenting a general definition of climate, it develops student's understanding by having them make in-depth examinations of historical climate patterns using both graphical and map image formats.

 

Climate Change Education Modules. http://www.esrl.noaa.gov/gmd/education/lesson_plans/. Grades K-12. These seven activities were designed to facilitate as well as enhance teacher instruction on a variety of topics under the larger heading of "Greenhouse Gases and Earth's Changing Climate." Topics range from the simplistic to the more complex- from Dr. Seuss' "The Lorax" to computation activities focusing on the formation of CFCs and the Rule of Ninety. Each group of activities is preceded by a Teacher Background section intended to provide a thorough yet condensed version of the science incorporated within the teaching activity.

 

Reading 1: What Is Climate and How Is It Changing? Climate Change: Connections and Solutions, Facing the Future. Grades 6-12. http://www.facingthefuture.org/Curriculum/ClimateChangeGrades68/tabid/453/Default.aspx. Scientific concepts and past and current trends related to climate change.

 

Your Climate, Your Future by World Wildlife Federation. Grades 9-12. http://www.worldwildlife.org/what/globalmarkets/Climate%20Change/Climate%20Cirriculum/item5944.html. An interdisciplinary approach to incorporating climate change in your classroom. The WWF Climate Change Team has developed a comprehensive educational curriculum that will elevate students' knowledge of the issue and spur dialogue about what each of us can do to make a difference. The curriculum is divided into fifteen lessons which include handouts, a glossary of terms and additional resources for ongoing discussions and research.

 

Teaching About Climate Change: Cool Schools Tackle Global Warming by Green Teacher. Grades K-12. http://www.greenteacher.com/tacc.html. This anthology offers a framework for teaching fundamental concepts and a variety of activities that can be undertaken in school, at home or in the community. Teachers will find practical ideas for making the intangibles of climate change more concrete to students, including experiments that demonstrate the greenhouse effect, school energy and waste audits, and hands-on explorations of energy and transportation alternatives.

 

Tips and Tricks for Teachers by NASA. Grades K-12. http://climate.nasa.gov/education/TipsandTricks/. This three-page, interactive PDF file gives step-by-step instructions for six ways to use NASA’s web site in your classroom. Also includes applicable National Content Standards.

What's Up with the Weather? PBS. Grades 5-8. http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/nova/teachers/programs/27gw_warming.html. NOVA and FRONTLINE join forces to investigate the science and politics of one of the most controversial issues of the 21st century: the truth about global warming. Topics include climate background, the potential impacts of climate change, and the relationships between our actions and the global climate. Also includes a classroom activity on finding trends in raw temperature data.

An Inconvenient Truth: A Global Warning by Paramount, Hollywood, CA. (2006). Grades 9-12. Former Vice President Al Gore explains the facts of global warming, present’s arguments that the dangers of global warming have reached the level of crisis, and addresses the efforts of certain interests to discredit the anti-global warming cause. Between lecture segments, Gore discusses his personal commitment to the environment, sharing anecdotes from his experience.

Climate Classroom. National Wildlife Federation. http://www.climateclassroom.org. The National Wildlife Federation's Climate Classroom is designed to help parents and teachers talk to students of differing ages about global warming. Its features include information for parents, students, and teachers. The site features proposed educator guidelines, lesson plans, age-adapted sources of useful curricula, a downloadable slide presentation with presenter's guide, and more.

Windows to the Universe by the National Earth Science Teachers Association. http://www.windows2universe.org/earth/Water/co2_cycle.html. This web site contains detailed, yet understandable explanations of natural phenomena and includes many teaching resources.

10 Things You Never Knew About Earth by NASA. http://climate.nasa.gov/EarthDaySlideshow/index.cfm. Discover some amazing and little-known facts about our planet.

Climate Kids: NASA’s eyes on the Earth. http://climate.nasa.gov/kids/index.cfm. NASA’s climate change site for kids provides information on climate change basics, news stories related to climate change, and educator resources. The site also has interactive games under the Earth Now section and short videos throughout the site.

United States Global Change Research Program. http://www.globalchange.gov/. This web site is a well-organized resource for information on the many facets of climate change. Users can examine climate change impacts by region (including the Great Lakes), sector (such as ecosystems and society), and agency (how the United States federal agencies are related to climate change issues).

EPA Climate Change Kids’ Site. http://www.epa.gov/climatechange/kids/. The Environmental Protection Agency’s Kids’ Site provides information on climate change and climate change impacts for children. The site also includes educator resources (see bottom of the page), including tips for teaching climate change.