Up it goes! Groups must design and build a windmill able to lift a weight. The packet includes discussion points to use prior to the build that cover topics such as variables, fairness, and the design process.

What impact do humans have on greenhouse gas emissions? What are the natural causes of these gasses? Thanks to the carbon cycle, carbon dioxide eats away at the earth's atmosphere with the intensified help of humans. Young scientists...

Sometimes, the best solution to a problem can be found by walking in someone else's shoes. Here, scholars use character cards to take on the roles of people around the world. They determine how their character's...

Purifying air and water, providing soil in which to grow crops, and moving water through its natural cycle are all services an ecosystem provides that benefit humans. Lesson four in a series lets learners explore and discuss the value of...

The last activity in the series of four has individuals determine steps they can take to reduce their carbon footprints and then analyze their schools' recycling programs. Through a sustainability audit, they identify how and where their...

Unplugging from technology for one day per week will decrease your carbon footprint—are you up to the challenge? Part two in a series of three allows individuals to explore their personal carbon footprints. By first taking a quiz at home...

How big is your footprint? Activity three culminates the series by having groups complete carbon footprint audits with people in their schools and/or around the districts. Groups then gather their data, create a presentation including...

You know global warming is real when your squirrel feeder is full of popped corn instead of kernels! Activity two in a series of five allows learners to explore climate change through the eyes of another. After briefly analyzing their...

You can lower your ecological footprint by recycling! Lesson four in this series of five has individuals, through the use of a computer, calculate their ecological footprints. Through discussions and analysis they determine how many...

Ecosystems provide many things humans not only use but also need in order to survive. The last instructional activity in the series of seven introduces scholars to the idea of ecosystem services, that ecosystems provide humans with many...

Plastic math? Have young learners count and name the number of plastic items in their centers. Kindergartners match sight word cards to the number of plastics in a given group, while learning that plastics come in all different shapes,...

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...

Part three in the series of seven has pupils discussing the different greenhouses gases, learning about the carbon cycle, and then watching a short video about the carbon cycle. Based on their knowledge, individuals complete a greenhouse...

How many people really recycle recyclables and how do they feel about it? High schoolers create a survey to find out. Once they agree on what questions to include, they each interview four people outside of the classroom....

Young scholars review the garbage/landfill graphs included with the instructional activity. They discuss the information on the graphs and discuss which garbage products come from their homes. Students collect examples of over packaging...

Are you looking for ways to enhance a persuasive writing or speech unit? Use this lesson to prompt your young writers to investigate a school recycling program. After conducting research, they present a persuasive, well-organized speech...

Students describe environmental interrelationships using list of criteria. They are able to explain organism interaction, based on definitions provided. Also, students can use references and worksheets, to describe effects of pollution...

Young scholars brainstorm about the kinds of things that they use at home and school each day. They consider the types of materials out of which these things are made. Keep a list of their repsonses on a large sheet of paper or on the...

Ninth graders research, analyze, and orally defend an issue related to the use of geologic resources. They defend their position in written form by composing a letter to an appropriate source.

Students determine if the sterilization of topsoil is beneficial to seed germination and plant growth. They grow plants alongside control groups, make and record observations of plant growth and measure plant biomass.

Fifth graders design an "ecologically sound" city. They write laws for the city to help make all citizens aware of their ecological responsibilities and propose alternative power sources for light and heat.

Students participate in a scavenger hunt to find different types of trash items around different environments. They distinguish between man-made litter and natural materials.

Students write stories about recycling and illustrate them. They examine various containers and determine whether or not they are recyclable. They make a chart about the containers and visit a recycling center.

Learners research what kind of problems force a city or town to decide to remove trees. Students research what controversy has occurred in other cities or towns. Learners interview those responsible for such decisions in your city or...