National Wildlife Federation
When It Rains It Pours More Drought and More Heavy Rainfall
Which is worse — drought or flooding? Neither is helpful to the environment, and both are increasing due to climate change. The 16th lesson in a series of 21 covers the average precipitation trends for two different climates within the...
Curated OER
Floods and Flash Floods
Junior geologists, hydrologists, or meteorologists simulate what happens during the flooding of a river and demonstrate factors that contribute to flash flooding. This outstanding resource provides a vocabulary list, online resources,...
Curated OER
Defining Drought
High schoolers examine the hydrologic impacts of drought. Humans can change the course of the water cycle, to some extent, to meet their needs, but can they do so without imposing risks on the plants and animals?
Curated OER
Defining Drought
High schoolers examine the hydrologic impacts of drought. They look at drought from a variety of prespectives. Students first focus on the scientific definition of drought, including weather patterns, water cycles, water requirements by...
Curated OER
Exploring Weather Disasters
Students examine the impact of floods, hurricanes, tornadoes, and droughts. They conduct Internet research on various weather websites, complete a Weather Disaster Information sheet, save images of weather disasters on Google Images,...
National Wildlife Federation
Hot, Hotter, Hottest: Extreme Weather's Impact on Our Resources
How dry is it? It's so dry, the river only runs twice a week! Through an analysis of maps and discussions, pairs learn about droughts across the United States in the ninth of 12 lessons. They then read about, answer questions, analyze...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Climate Change Impacts on Ecosystem Services
The fourth activity in a series of five has classes participate in a jigsaw to learn about global impacts of climate change and then share their new information with a home group. Groups then research impacts of climate change (droughts,...
Curated OER
El Nino
Explore the properties of water and the affects of El Nino. Middle schoolers will learn about the devastation an El Nino can cause as well as the definition of El Nino. Additionally, they will discover the cause of El Nino along with the...
Curated OER
Investigating the Climate System WEATHER
Young scholars research, interpret, and become able to explain general characteristics of weather in tropical regions. Students observe and compare tropical and mid-latitude weather patterns.
Curated OER
Severe Weather
Fifth graders identify the causes and effects of several different kinds of
severe weather phenomenon. They read an excerpt from John Muir's book The Mountains of California and research one of the following severe
weather phenomena...
Curated OER
When Nature Strikes: Natural Hazards Safety
Young scholars observe the impact of natural disasters on humans, and become aware of the dangers of environmental hazards such as flash floods, tornadoes, and hurricanes.
Curated OER
Too Much...Or Not Enough?
Students discuss and define flooding. They identify areas in northeast Florida that may flood. Students examine droughts and explain the conditions that cause them. They examine the need for growth management in the state of Florida.
Curated OER
The Day the Water Ran Out
Students explore ecosystems by researching desert characteristics. In this drought lesson plan, students identify the potential impacts of a drought on their home state and interview people who are familiar with water studies. Students...
Curated OER
A River Runs Through It
Students evaluate and interpret flood data from Central Texas. They list the tributaries that feed into the Guadalupe River and explain why is it important to include the tributaries in a discussion of the river, especially a discussion...
Curated OER
A Childhood View of the Great Depression in Arkansas
Eighth graders identify the causes for the Great Depression of 1929 and see the effects of the depression, the Great Flood, and the drought in Arkansas through the eyes of a child.
Curated OER
Ecosystems-The Essential Connection
Young scholars develop their abilities to solve problems both in school and in a variety of situations similar to that they have encountered in life. They define the term ecosystem in nature by comparing them to familiar organizational...
University of Wisconsin
Bimodel Botany Bouquet
Gardeners are given an individual plant specimen from a bouquet of local rain garden plants. They group up by their plant type and then make observations together, name the plant, and introduce it to the rest of the class. You then share...
Curated OER
Weather Anomalies
Ninth graders participate in a simulation of a select scientific team from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA).
Curated OER
It's Really Heating Up in Here!
Students create and observe a greenhouse effect model and discuss the implications of global warming theory for engineers, themselves and the Earth. They discover that Global warming is becoming an increasing concern as we learn more...
Curated OER
World Hunger - Causes And Solutions
An online Sim City type game from the BBC website guides students to complete a World Food Programme mission. They investigate the causes and of hunger in different parts of the world and then research a particular region's hunger...
NASA
Observing Monsoon Weather Patterns with TRMM Data
Follow a fabulous slide show on how monsoons form and how satellite technology is being used to observe the phenomena, explaining why they occur. Afterward, visit the TRMM (Tropical Rainfall Measuring Mission) website to access actual...
Curated OER
Two Rivers Ran Through It
Sixth graders discover the problems that early Mesototamian farmers faced while developing agriculture in the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers. They design a working model that solves those unique challenges.
Curated OER
Blame It On El Nino
Learners study the weather phenomenon El Nino is and what causes it, and recognize how remote sensing technology can detect and predict El Nino. Students discover how El Nino affects weather conditions throughout the globe through research.
Teach Engineering
Flow Rates of Faucets and Rivers
Go with the flow and use a helpful resource. A set of two activities has learners investigate flow rates. They first determine the flow rate of a faucet by measuring how long it takes to fill a bucket. Using the results, they make a...