Lesson Plans & Activities
Ice Core Demonstration: The Past is the Key to the Future
Project EXTREMES lessons were written to be stand alone lessons but can be incorporated into a larger unit.
This lesson has students explore how the gases trapped in ice cores over the last quarter of a century can be used to understand how Earth's atmosphere has changed in the past.
What’s Up With The Rising Temperatures in Colorado Cities?
This is the first lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Middle School Climate Unit.
This lesson introduces why certain cities in Colorado are getting hotter using a video by the Denver Post that describes the pattern.
What Was Earth’s Temperature Like in the Past?
This is the fifth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Middle School Climate Unit.
Students examine what the world’s temperature trend was in the past and whether temperatures have changed recently.
How Does Human Activity Affect the Warming Temperatures on Earth?
This is the sixth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Middle School Climate Unit.
This lesson explores whether human activities release greenhouse gases, like CO2, and whether these activities can cause temperatures on Earth to increase.
How Does an Increase in CO2 Cause an Increase in Temperature?
This is the eighth and final lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education Middle School Climate Unit.
In this lesson, students learn how more CO2 in the atmosphere causes global warming.
Why Are Cities Getting Hotter?
This is the first lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education High School Climate Unit.
During this lesson, students explore the increase in summer temperatures and describe the pattern as it relates to Colorado using a video by the Denver Post.
What is Special About Cities Compared to Rural Places?
This is the second lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education High School Climate Unit.
This lesson explores climate data at local, national, and global levels to determine that temperatures are changing all over the world, and that there are certain locations where temperatures are warming faster than the global average.
Why Are Cities and Other Regions of the World Getting Hotter?
This is the third lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education High School Climate Unit.
This lesson has students investigate how albedo is contributing to temperature increasing in some places, like cities, are increasing at faster rates than elsewhere.
How Do Humans Contribute to the Increase in Global Temperatures?
This is the fourth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education High School Climate Unit.
Students explore the greenhouse effect in this lesson using a computer simulation and develop a model for how it works.
Is it Normal That World Temperatures Are Rising This Fast?
This is the fifth lesson in the Climate Resiliency Education High School Climate Unit.
This lesson explores if it is normal that world temperatures are rising at the currently observed fast pace.
Arctic Feedbacks: Not All Warming Is Equal
This storyline unit consists of 10 lessons, each tied to NGSS Earth's systems standards
In this MS/HS unit, students engage with 360° virtual field trips, authentic Arctic datasets, and app-based labs to construct models and explanations for the unit driving question, "Why might the Arctic be warming four times as fast as the rest of the world?"
Photosynthesis, Respiration, and the Short-Term Carbon Cycle
Project EXTREMES lessons were written to be stand alone lessons but can be incorporated into a larger unit.
This lesson is focused on the short-term cycling of carbon and is designed to put the processes of photosynthesis and respiration within a global perspective.
A Changing Arctic Ecosystem
This storyline unit consists of 8 lessons, each tied to NGSS life science standards
The Arctic is warming more rapidly than anywhere else on Earth. One consequence of a warming Arctic is a dramatic decline in sea ice, an important habitat for many Arctic plants and animals. In this unit students will engage with 360° virtual reality tours, hands-on labs, and authentic Arctic datasets as they gather evidence to construct explanatory models for the unit driving question, "How might the decline in sea ice affect Arctic organisms large and small?"
Data Puzzle: On a Budget
This data puzzle is a stand-alone lesson that is part of a larger collection of data puzzles.
The Arctic is currently warming at a rate faster than the global average, a phenomenon known as Arctic amplification. In this Data Puzzle, students analyze authentic Arctic datasets to construct explanatory models for the following question, "Why might the Arctic be warming faster than other places on Earth?"
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Data Puzzle: Balancing Act
This data puzzle is a stand-alone lesson that is part of a larger collection of data puzzles.
Since the early 2000s, the Greenland Ice Sheet’s mass balance has been consistently negative, meaning more mass is being lost than gained. But this change in mass balance hasn’t always happened at the same rate. What could account for observed changes to the amount of ice in the Greenland Ice Sheet in recent decades?, 
Data Puzzle: Wind Farms of the Future
This data puzzle is a stand-alone lesson that is part of a larger collection of data puzzles.
Transitioning from fossil fuels to clean, renewable energy sources like wind is essential if the US is to reduce its carbon emissions. But where should new wind farms be constructed? In this Data Puzzle, students analyze surface roughness and wind speed data to construct an evidence-based explanation for the following question, "Where in the United States (lands and waters) should new wind turbines be constructed to generate the most energy?"
From Greenland to our Coasts: Exploring Sea Level Change with QGreenland
This unit consists of 3 lessons, each tied to NGSS life science standards
In this unit, students will explore how the Greenland Ice Sheet is changing and why that affects coastal communities worldwide. Students will view authentic Greenland geospatial data and learn how to create flood maps to assess local risk in QGIS.
Drifting North Polar Planetarium
In this MS/HS lesson, students will be transported to the Arctic with the MOSAiC expedition, The Multidisciplinary drifting Observatory for the Arctic Climate, in an immersive classroom and field trip experience.
Active Listening Skills
This activity is one of seven activities in the Climate Mental Health Support Activities.
In this lesson, students will identify emotions they experience as they learn about the impacts of climate change. In pairs, students will practice active listening skills as one student describes their emotions to the partner who applies active listening skills. They then flip roles and the other student describes their emotions while the partner listens.
Introduction to the MOSAiC Expedition
Introduction to the MOSAiC Expedition is one of four activities in the The Drifting North Polar Planetarium Experience that invites students to explore what it was like to participate in the MOSAiC expedition to the North Pole.
In this activity, students will learn about the conditions in the Arctic and the scientists who study them through slides, audio podcast, and a worksheet. Learning will be guided with the driving questions: What is the Arctic? Who studies the Arctic? and Why should we care about the Arctic?
Letters to the Arctic
Letters to the Arctic is one of four activities in the The Drifting North Polar Planetarium Experience that invites students to explore what it was like to participate in the MOSAiC expedition to the North Pole.
In this activity, students put themselves in the shoes of a scientist who works in a fragile and changing environment. Learning will be guided with the driving question: How do scientists feel about the places they study?