Join our Mailing List
For Educators
For Scientists
For Students
Lifelong Learners

What Makes Cities Hotter?

What Makes Cities Hotter?

In this lesson, students explore reasons why temperatures in particular Colorado cities are rising.

Context for Use

This is the second lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Middle School Climate Unit.

Sun flare refracting through leaves.

Credit: Colorado College research shows urban heat islands in Colorado Springs - KOAA News.

Program
Climate and Resiliency Education
Resource Type
Lesson
Topics
    Colorado-Based
    Climate Change
    Climate and Weather
    Atmospheric Science
    Energy Balance
    Earth’s Systems
Middle School
Instructional Time
60 minutes
NGSS Disciplinary Core Idea(s)
ESS3C: Human Impacts on Earth Systems
Published Date

What Students Will Do

Students will learn what changes in land use are happening and how changes in surface color affects temperatures in cities.

Materials

Climate Resiliency MS2 - Teacher Guide
MS2 - Teacher Guide (Google Doc)
Climate Resiliency MS2 - Slides
MS2 - Google Slides
Climate Resiliency MS2- Student Activity Sheet
MS2 - Student Activity Sheet (Google Doc)
Climate Resiliency MS2 - Data Sheet
MS2 - Data File (Google Doc)
Climate Resiliency MS2 - Data

Description

  1. (10 minutes) Consensus Building Discussion: Remind students what they learned in previous lesson.
  2. (15 minutes) Sharing Initial Ideas Discussion: Generate ideas for this lesson.
  3. (25 minutes) Data analysis: Look for patterns in temperature, precipitation, and population data in Colorado cities.
  4. (5 minutes) Building Understanding Discussion: Debrief on data analysis.
  5. (5 minutes)  Brainstorm: Generate ideas for next steps in the investigation.

Additional Resources

Climate Central Report
NOAA NCEI Weather Data
NOAA Climate Data
Census of Population and Housing

Similar Resources

Trelynn Watkins, 10, laughs as she plays in the Julia Primrose Fountain.
What’s Up With The Rising Temperatures in Colorado Cities?
Middle School Lesson 1
A satellite image is shown over the same image in infrared, showing that the paved sidewalks and roads retain more heat than homes and vegetation.
Why Are Growing Cities Hotter?
Middle School Lesson 3
A surface temperature anomaly or trend map by NASA.
Are Other Parts of the World Getting Hotter?
Middle School Lesson 4
A wall full of colorful post-it notes.
Why Are Cities Getting Hotter?
High School Lesson 1
A large truck dumps trash into a landfill.
How Can We Decrease Our Impact on the Earth’s Climate at our School?
Design Challenge 1
A trash can overflowing with food.
How Does Our School Food System Create Greenhouse Gas Emissions?
Design Challenge 2
Illustration of two people high-fiving in a work environment

Get involved and stay up-to-date with CIRES CEEE.

Join Our Mailing List Donate to CIRES CEEE Get Involved