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Lesson Plans & Activities

Peer-reviewed, classroom-ready NGSS-aligned lesson plans, activities, data puzzles, virtual field trips, and design challenges covering environmental hazards, climate change, mental health, Earth systems, community resilience, and more.  

Lesson Plans & Activities

Cartoon graphic of young people embracing with a speech bubble that says "Earn the We are Water Patch!" and the We are Water logo
Watershed Stewardship Patch Activity

Earn a We Are Water Patch by becoming familiar with your local watershed!

 We can be good watershed stewards by taking positive actions that will help to ensure the watershed’s healthy functions. In this activity, students learn how to be good watershed stewards and become familiar with their local watershed through observation, positive action, and community engagement.
Scout Patch/Badge
STEAM Activity
Action Project
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
We are Water with birds and a sun: connecting communities
Cartoon graphic of young people embracing with a speech bubble that says "¡Obtén el Parche de Somos el Agua!" and the Somos el agua logo
Actividad del parche sé protector de la cuenca | Watershed Stewardship Patch Activity

Earn a We Are Water Patch by becoming familiar with your local watershed!

 We can be good watershed stewards by taking positive actions that will help to ensure the watershed’s healthy functions. In this activity, students learn how to be good watershed stewards and become familiar with their local watershed through observation, positive action, and community engagement.
Scout Patch/Badge
STEAM Activity
Action Project
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
We are Water with birds and a sun: connecting communities
Cartoon graphic of a camera with the text "Stop Motion Animation Workshop"
Stop Motion Animation

Learn how to create a short (<1 minute) stop-motion animation of a story!

 This short sequence of tutorials is designed to be completed in two sessions. Each part is about 1.5 – 2 hours long. You may want to leave time between sessions for students to make their pieces. Depending on how intricate their story is, they may need more time for cutting out shapes, making “characters,” etc.
Lesson
STEAM Activity
Action Project
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
University/College
Out-of-school/Non-formal
We are Water with birds and a sun: connecting communities
Aerial view of a Waffle Garden which includes segments of gardens dedicated to different plants as well as roads
Waffle Garden Take & Make Kit

This Take & Make Kit will help you understand ancient Indigenous agricultural techniques, including science and math skills that are still effective in modern times!

 Indigenous peoples of the American Southwest, including the Diné (Navajo), A:shiwi (Zuni), Zia Pueblo, and Laguna Pueblo, have been using a time-tested agricultural method known as a waffle garden to successfully grow crops in the semi-arid environment for generations. In this activity student's will reflect upon and learn about Indigenous relationships with water and the land to help them understand diverse methods of using water in dry climates.
STEAM Activity
Action Project
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
Out-of-school/Non-formal
We are Water with birds and a sun: connecting communities
Aerial view of a Waffle Garden which includes segments of gardens dedicated to different plants as well as roads
Un jardín de forma de wafle | Waffle Garden Take & Make Kit

This Take & Make Kit will help you understand ancient Indigenous agricultural techniques, including science and math skills that are still effective in modern times!

 La gente indígena del suroeste de los Estados Unidos, incluyendo los Diné (Navajo), A:shiwi (Zuni), Zia Pueblo y Laguna Pueblo, han utilizado durante generaciones un método agrícola de probada eficacia conocido como Un jardín de forma de wafle para cultivar con éxito en el entorno semiárido. En esta actividad, los estudiantes reflexionarán y aprenderán sobre las relaciones indígenas con el agua y la tierra para ayudarlos a comprender diversos métodos de uso del agua en climas secos.
STEAM Activity
Action Project
Elementary School
Middle School
High School
Out-of-school/Non-formal
We are Water with birds and a sun: connecting communities
Hazard Mitigation Planning Meeting. A group of nine adults gather around a wooden table littered with papers while discussing mitigation strategies. In the background is yellow walls with wooden shelves and drawers with plants and books on them
Communicate Existing Plans

This is a guide that can be used for a pathway for the Community Resilience Expo. 

 In this sub-unit, students will learn more about their community’s resilience plans, choose a specific topic to focus on, and develop a product to communicate the plan to their peers and/or their community.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
heartforce placeholder
Four students gather at a table with books, strategizing and thinking. In the background is windows to a bright sun and green blurred trees
Design a Resilient Future

This is a lesson that can be used to get ideas and prepare for the Community Resilience Expo. 

 In this lesson, students will work in small groups to develop an idea to increase community resilience, utilizing Design Thinking. 
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
heartforce placeholder, Logo with the words "CLIMATE MENTAL HEALTH" in an arch. "CLIMATE" is in blue, "MENTAL" in red, and "HEALTH" in green. In the center, a person sits on top of a globe holding a green sign with a red heart. On the left, another person holds a protest sign that reads "There is no planet B." On the right, a person sits cross-legged reading a book. Another small figure holds a megaphone
A large truck dumps trash into a landfill with a blue sky in the background.
How Can We Decrease Our Impact on the Earth’s Climate at our School?

This is the first lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Design Challenge Unit which was designed to follow the middle or high school Climate Resiliency Education units.

 In this design challenge lesson students explore the Denver Public School District’s solid waste plan and discuss how their school can save or decrease emissions by reducing solid waste at our school.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
A trash can overflowing with food such as lettuce, tomato, bread, banana, and a milk jug with a blue lid.
How Does Our School Food System Create Greenhouse Gas Emissions?

This is the second lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Design Challenge Unit which is meant to follow the middle or high school Climate Resiliency Education units.

 In this design challenge lesson, students examine their school food system and develop an investigation about food waste in order to know what should change.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
A grocer checks milk on a shelf at a grocery store, the milk jugs have different colored caps of light blue, dark blue and red.
How Can We Understand Waste and Emissions in Our School's Food System?

This is the third lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Design Challenge Unit which is meant to follow the middle or high school Climate Resiliency Education units.

 This lesson outlines for students how to design and carry out an investigation to audit their school’s food waste system.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
A group of students using laptops at desks all pushed together to form one collaborative workspace.
How Can We Reduce Emissions Associated with Food Waste in Our School?

This is the fourth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Design Challenge Unit which is meant to follow the middle or high school Climate Resiliency Education units.

 In this activity students utilize the data that is collected and propose solutions to mitigate food waste in their school.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
A student stands while doing a presentation.
How Can We Present Solutions for Food Waste and Emissions at School?

This is the fifth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Design Challenge Unit which is meant to follow the middle or high school Climate Resiliency Education units.

 This lesson provides guidance for students to create and practice a presentation about their design challenge results that they developed in the previous lessons and how to present it to the school administration.
Lesson
Design Challenge
Action Project
Middle School
High School
Close-up of people setting up a professional video camera, with one person adjusting controls and another holding cables
Filmmaking: Pre-Production

This is the first part of a 3-part unit on the filmmaking process for both formal and informal education settings.

 This lesson has students explore science content, decide on the topic for their film, and do all the preparatory work before filming begins.
Lesson
Action Project
Middle School
High School
Out-of-school/Non-formal
locc logo
Person in a pink plaid shirt operating a video camera on a tripod in an open field with mountains in the background under a clear blue sky.
Filmmaking: Production

This is the second part of a 3-part unit on the filmmaking process for both formal and informal education settings.

 In this lesson, students film interviews with content experts as well as additional B-roll footage, and film mentors help students find existing footage and media to supplement their films. 
Lesson
Action Project
Middle School
High School
Out-of-school/Non-formal
locc logo
Group of students filming an interview indoors; one person holds a boom microphone, another operates a camera, while a man sits in front of them speaking, with a large world map on the wall behind
Filmmaking: Post-production

This is the third part of a 3-part unit on the filmmaking process for both formal and informal education settings.

 This lesson teaches students about editing films and respecting licensed materials, while also ensuring they receive the support they need to ensure completion of their films. 
Lesson
Action Project
Middle School
High School
Out-of-school/Non-formal
locc logo
Illustration of two people high-fiving in a work environment

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