Planning a
unit on Global Warming?
"The
Goldilocks Planet - temperatures have to be just
right . . ."
 |
In every
corner of the globe - on land and in water, in melting ice and
disappearing snow, during heat waves and droughts, in the eyes
of hurricanes and in the tears of refugees - the world is
witnessing mounting and undeniable evidence that nature's cycles
are profoundly changing.
I have
learned that, beyond death and taxes, there is at least one
absolutely indisputable fact. Not only does human-caused
global warming exist, but it is also growing more and more
dangerous, and at a pace that has now made it a planetary
emergency.
Al Gore,
An Inconvenient Truth - the Planetary Emergency of Global
Warming and What We Can Do About It, 2006.
|
|
Also see our
Hurricane Katrina
resources. Having entered a new
hurricane season, this topic is timely.
If you have not done so yet, please see
the film An Inconvenient
Truth and get the book by the same title. |
Global
warming is an important unit theme that can be adjusted
to any grade level, from kindergarten to graduate
school, and can be taught through a myriad of courses
Connections to the disciplines (and standards) can be
made through language arts, the sciences, mathematics,
social studies, and the arts. A unit based on the
theme of global warming may include:
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Meteorology
-
Climatology
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Geology
-
Geography
-
Oceanography
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Paleo-archaeology
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Paleo-meteorology
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Astronomy
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Horticulture
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Agriculture
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Biology
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Chemistry
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Physics
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Statistics
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Trigonometry
-
History (U.S., and World)
Multiple literacies
required to succeed in the 21st century are easily
taught as well. These include not only the basic
literacies as commonly known: reading, writing and
math, but other literacies such as visual literacy,
aural literacy, ecoliteracy, financial literacy,
emotional literacy, civic literacy, multicultural
literacy, and media literacy.
If you are
planning an interdisciplinary unit, depending on your
focus, you could begin with a basic overview of the
planet Earth and its systems.
Younger children
could learn the basics about plants, animals, water,
air, the solar system, seasons, and the impact of humans
on the environment. They could learn about saving
and recycling, and could even design and produce a
public service announcement for the community, plant a
garden, design a web site, etc.
Resources:
Here are
some web sites your students can use to research global
warming and possible actions to be taken.
An Inconvenient
Truth
An Inconvenient Truth Printable Poster with eight excellent activities
for your students
TeacherVision has many excellent lesson ideas, resources and links for
Global Warming
Ten Things to Do
Global
Warming Kid's Site, by Environmental Protection Agency
The EPA
also has many more resources, including:
EPA Global Warming Page
Greenhouse Warming Calculators
Case Studies
Maps
Outreach Materials
Position Papers
Other web
sites:
NPR Global Warming Page
Wikipedia Global Warming
Union of Concerned
Scientists
Natural Resources Defense Council
NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NewScientist.com
Discovery Channel: Global Warming
Global Warming
International Center
American
Institute of Physics - Climate Change: Discovery of
Global Warming
AskQuestions.org
Ten Things to Do
Global
Warming Kid's Site, by Environmental Protection Agency
The EPA
also has many more resources, including:
EPA Global Warming Page
Greenhouse Warming Calculators
Case Studies
Maps
Outreach Materials
Position Papers
Other web
sites:
NPR Global Warming Page
Wikipedia Global Warming
Union of Concerned
Scientists
Natural Resources Defense Council
NOAA - National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
NewScientist.com
Discovery Channel: Global Warming
Global Warming
International Center
American
Institute of Physics - Climate Change: Discovery of
Global Warming
AskQuestions.org
Global
Warming