Curated OER
Paleoclimate of the Hudson Valley
Students recognize how the climate of the Hudson Valley has changed since the last glaciation and be able to explain these changes. They reconstruct the paleoclimate of the Hudson Valley.
It's About Time
Paleoclimates
How do scientists know what the Earth was like in the past? This second installment of a six-part series focuses on paleoclimates and provides an overview of how geologists determine information about past climates using fossil pollen,...
Center Science Education
Paleoclimates and Pollen
Demonstrate for your earth scientists how plant pollen of the past has become part of sedimentary deposits, providing clues about ancient climates. Then give them simulated sediment layer samples to analyze for different types of paper...
Howard Hughes Medical Institute
Paleoclimate: A History of Change
Earth's climate changed drastically throughout the history of the planet, so why do scientists blame humans for recent changes? Observe data covering the history of the planet that proves the natural climate change patterns. Then, learn...
Curated OER
Paleoclimates and Pollen
Students analyze soil for types of pollen to determine the probably climate conditions. In this earth science activity, students make conclusions on what a climate is like based on soils samples. Students use a model soil...
Curated OER
Writing about the climate
Young scholars research the contributing factors to the Earth's paleoclimate. They determine the relevant climate data and use it to construct a science argument. In the process, they access data, capture images of the data plots, and...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Historical Climate Cycles
Ice core samples give scientists access to climates of old—those from more than 800,000 years ago. Through an analysis of various temperature graphs from ice cores, tree rings, and weather stations, scholars compare historical climates...
Curated OER
Natural Records of Change: Working with Indirect Evidence of Past Climates
Students take part in a dice game to better explain the differences between direct and indirect evidence. They apply this knowledge to how scientists have used both types of evidence to determine how climate has changed over time.
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
Climate Analysis Using Planktonic Foraminifera
Students manipulate scientific data, plot the data and then interpret their results. They should recognize that the climate likely continue to change in the future. This activity ties in well with a discussion on current climate change.
Curated OER
Glacial Geology in the Field
Students examine the origin of glaciers, how glacial sediments are deposited, and what sedimentary records of glaciation provide about source and process of glaciers in a field lab.