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...
Ventura County Air Pollution Control District
Effects of Global Warming
Your learners have probably heard of climate change, but do they really understand what it is? Study the history, details, and future implications of global warming and the greenhouse effect with a set of activities designed for an...
University of New Orleans
Rock Cycle and Rocks Lab
Science rocks! Explore three types of rocks and the rock cycle with an igneous rocks experiment. Pupils discuss textures, composition, and learn how melts are formed from the Earth's crust. They weigh materials using a scientific scale...
Curated OER
Layering the Air
Students study the layer of the atmosphere. In this instructional activity on the atmosphere, students discuss the composition of the air around us and how the atmosphere was formed. Students create a scale model of the layers of the...
Curated OER
Atmosphere Molecules
Students use foam packing pieces to represent molecular positioning inside the four layers of earth's atmosphere. This lesson help students visualize that molecules become thinner as one ascends higher in the atmosphere.
Curated OER
The Measurement of All Things: Atmospheric Detectives
Students identify the characteristics of aerosols. Using remote sensing, they participate in an experiment in which they determine how the sun's radiation and elements in the atmosphere interact with one another. They also research the...
Curated OER
Behavior of Gases
In this gases instructional activity, students determine the volume and pressure of gases that undergo certain changes. This instructional activity has 6 problems to solve.
Curated OER
Energy Worksheet #1
A graph of Earth's average monthly temperatures from 1990 to 1994 is posted across the top of the page for meteorology masters to analyze. Five multiple choice questions are asked regarding temperature variation. This does not have to be...
Curated OER
How Much Oxygen Is In The Air?
In this science worksheet, students take a close look at the composition of air while focusing on the content of oxygen. They use clay to model the amounts.
Curated OER
Predicting the Future
Students examine how scientists predict the effects of global climate change. In this environmental science lesson, students participate in a discussion about using computer generated data to create climate predictions. Students examine...
California Academy of Science
Ocean Acidification Mock Conference
In a comprehensive role playing activity, teens play the parts of different stakeholders in the realm of acidic oceans. They research, debate, and create a presentation from the perspective of either ocean organisms, the fishing...
Curated OER
Atmospheric Processes -- Convection
Students work together to discover how temperature changes can affect the density of water and air. They make predictions on what they believe is going to occur. They answer questions to complete the lesson.
US Department of Energy
Sunlight and Evaporation
Here is a simple inquiry experiment designed to demonstrate that the energy from sunlight can evaporate water. Young scientists follow provided procedural steps to construct a model of our atmosphere using a bowl, a cup, water and...
Texas State Energy Conservation Office
Global Climate Change
Here is an extensive reading resource that addresses our climate change crisis. It thoroughly explains the greenhouse effect, related Earth cycles, and the history of climate change. Use it as part of the intended unit, published by the...
PBS
Earth’s Energy Budget
Is Earth's energy flow a little off balance? Explore our energy budget using a click-through interactive. Scholars discover the many factors that move solar energy around the planet and why the system is no longer in equilibrium.
Curated OER
Nitrogen Cycle-Stream Side Science
A thorough background and nitrate sampling lab sheet are provided to share with your young scientists. After discussing the nitrogen cycle with the class, you will break them into small groups and show them how to use their inquiry...
Chicago Botanic Garden
Are You Bigfoot?
Scholars independently explore several websites to calculate their ecological footprint. Using their new found knowledge, they answer six short-answer questions and take part in a grand conversation with their peers about how...
Curated OER
Is the Earth Warming? a Test of the Effect of Increased Carbon Dioxide on the Thermal Properties of Air
Pupils investigate the environmental and economic effects of increased carbon dioxide (CO2) content in the atmosphere.
Baylor College
Moving Air
In lab groups, young scientists place aluminum cans with a bubble-solution cap into different temperatures of water to see what size of bubble dome forms. As part of an atmosphere unit in preparation for learning about convection...
National Wildlife Federation
Conceptualizing Module II - Putting It All Together
"Creativity is just connecting things." - Steve Jobs. After weeks of researching climate change, the ninth lesson in a series of 21 combines the data and analysis to address essential questions. It covers natural phenomenon, human...
Curated OER
Earth's Atmosphere II
In this Earth's atmosphere worksheet, students use the chart shown to determine which information is given for each gas. Then they write the names of the layers of the Earth's atmosphere and describe which layer the temperature rises and...
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
Amounts of Dissolved Oxygen in Various Bodies of Water
Students test water to determine the dissolved oxygen content while displaying the proper use of testing instruments while visiting water testing sites. They determine if the amount of dissolved oxygen is appropriate for the tested...
Curated OER
Water and Ice
Learners participate in various air experiments to understand that air is all around us. In this states of matter lesson, students focus on the role of air in the water cycle. Learners understand that air is densest near the ground....