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Earth Sciences of Climate for Middle School

A collection of resources for middle school students to learn about the earth science aspects of the climate and climate change. Cover image credit Government of Canada.

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AAAS - Global Climate Change video
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Educational Use
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This video features residents of Shishmaref, Alaska, plus environmental journalist Elizabeth Kolbert and scientist John Holdren, exploring the human impacts of global climate change.

Subject:
Applied Science
Ecology
Environmental Science
Life Science
Oceanography
Physical Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
AAAS
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)
Date Added:
05/15/2012
ADAPTATION: Coral Reefs of Vanuatu
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The coral reefs of the South Pacific island nation of Vanuatu are the backbone of the island's environmental and economic health. Today they face destruction from a silent predator that can rapidly decimate an entire reef. In this video, students learn about how a starfish is destroying the coral reefs of Vanuatu and how the islanders are adapting.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Ecology
Economics
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
LearningMedia
Public Broadcasting Service
Date Added:
08/01/2022
ADAPTATION: Floating Gardens of Bangladesh
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This video begins in the lush deltas of Bangladesh. The host of the video learns how communities are adapting to changing monsoons and dangerous sea-level rise. Floating gardens and floating schools are just the start of some of the country's innovative strategies.

Subject:
Applied Science
Atmospheric Science
Environmental Science
Oceanography
Physical Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
LearningMedia
Public Broadcasting Service
Date Added:
08/01/2022
ADAPTATION: Ice Stupas of Ladakh
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In this video, learn how communities in the arid high-mountain region of Ladakh rely on glacial water to feed streams and water crops during the spring and summer months. Global warming is dramatically reshaping the future of these areas. Meet a Ladakhi teacher and engineer who devised a method to capture and store glacial runoff into magnificent ice pyramids that are used as water resources throughout the summer and during peak agricultural months.

Subject:
Applied Science
Cultural Geography
Environmental Science
Physical Geography
Physical Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Alize Carrere
Public Broadcasting Service
Date Added:
08/01/2022
ADAPTATION: Invasive Carp of Kentucky
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In this video, an entrepreneur is finding new ways to manage the invasive Asian carp problem in the Mississippi and Ohio rivers. Once introduced to help mitigate an algae problem, the carp became invasive. This video highlights how the local community has adapted to the issue, including how they have gained ideas about how to utilize the carp from other cultures to help mitigate the issue.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Ecology
Economics
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
LearningMedia
Public Broadcasting Service
Date Added:
08/01/2022
AK-03 ALASKA: AK-03 Columbia Glacier "Cliff" (Narrated)
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A video from the Extreme Ice Survey in which Dr. Tad Pfeffer and photographer Jim Balog discuss the dynamics of the Columbia glacier's retreat in recent years through this time-lapse movie. Key point: glacier size is being reduced not just by glacial melting but due to a shift in glacial dynamics brought on by climate change.

Subject:
Applied Science
Environmental Science
Geoscience
Physical Science
Material Type:
Lecture
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Extreme Ice Survey
James Balog
Tad Pfeffer
Date Added:
10/27/2014
Acid Oceans
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This video follows biologist Gretchen Hofmann as she studies the effects of ocean acidification on sea urchin larvae.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Ecology
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Material Type:
Lecture
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
American Museum of Natural History (AMNH)
Date Added:
08/17/2018
Acid Test:3 Minute Science of Ocean Acidification
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This short video is an excerpt from the longer video Acid Test: The Global Challenge of Ocean Acidification, produced by the National Resources Defense Council (NRDC). This short version summarizes the science of ocean acidification as well as the social implications.

Subject:
Applied Science
Environmental Science
Oceanography
Physical Science
Material Type:
Lecture
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
National Resource Defense Council
Date Added:
10/27/2014
AdÃlie Penguins
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A short video that discusses how changing climate is affecting the population of AdÃlie penguins.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Ecology
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Material Type:
Lecture
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
NOAA (National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration)
Date Added:
09/24/2018
After the Ice - Part 1: Our Food
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After the Ice: Our Food discusses changes in historic food sources for Arctic Native Americans. Global climate change is altering yearly cycles of both ice coverage and depth in the Bering Sea. Changes in the ice affect the way local native groups hunt in order to feed their community.

Subject:
Applied Science
Cultural Geography
Ecology
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Arctic Research Consortium of the United States
Study of Environmental Arctic Change
Date Added:
06/30/2021
After the Ice - Part 2: Our Land
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This 7-minute video illustrates how the historic homeland for Arctic Native Americans is being affected by climate change. Shorefast ice and pack ice are present for a shorter part of the year. This has profound affects on the way of life in the Bering Sea region, to the point where the community may have to relocate.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Cultural Geography
Ecology
Environmental Science
Life Science
Physical Science
Social Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Arctic Research Consortium of the United States
Study of Environmental Arctic Change
Date Added:
06/30/2021
The American Pika: A climate indicator species?
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Educational Use
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This video provides a detailed description of the habitat of the American Pika and how this organism may serve as a climate indicator species because they have a relatively narrow ecological niche and specialized habitat.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Career and Technical Education
Ecology
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Life Science
Physical Science
Material Type:
Diagram/Illustration
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Earth Initiatives
Niwot Ridge Long Term Research Project
Date Added:
07/05/2021
America's Climate Choices: Advancing the Science of Climate Change
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This video production is a part of a four-panel report from the National Academies' America's Climate Choices project. The video maps out the realm of our accumulated knowledge regarding climate change and charts a path forward, urging that research on climate change enter a new era focused on the needs of decision makers.

Subject:
Applied Science
Atmospheric Science
Career and Technical Education
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Physical Science
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
National Academies
Date Added:
09/24/2018
ArcGIS Living Atlas - Indicators of the Planet
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Living Atlas Indicators of the Planet provide the user with up-to-date data, maps, graphs, charts, animation and other visuals to explore the science of climate and environmental change. 18 indicators from Air Quality to Women in Parliament can be explored.

Subject:
Applied Science
Atmospheric Science
Biology
Career and Technical Education
Ecology
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Life Science
Oceanography
Physical Science
Material Type:
Reading
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
ArcGIS Living Atlas of the World community and partners
ESRI
Date Added:
07/09/2021
Arctic Animals and a Changing Climate
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Learn about the effects of a changing climate on the Arctic ecosystem and four of its well-known mammals: the polar bear, the walrus, the Arctic fox and the beluga whale.

Subject:
Oceanography
Physical Science
Material Type:
Lesson Plan
Provider:
PBS
Provider Set:
Jean Michel Costeau: Ocean Adventures
Author:
Andrea Swensrud
Date Added:
07/16/2012
The Arctic: Our First Sign of Climate Change
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Arctic Sea Ice Concentrations for September (Minimum)
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This animation shows the Arctic sea ice September (minimum) extents from 1979-2016. Accessible from http://nsidc.org/cryosphere/sotc/sea_ice.html

Subject:
Applied Science
Career and Technical Education
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Oceanography
Physical Science
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
National Snow and Ice Data Center
Date Added:
09/24/2018
Are Winters Getting Worse?
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CC BY-NC
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SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students discover how climate change could be making extreme winter weather worse.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This is a great lesson that explains key drivers of winter storms. Students will learn about the polar vortex and lake effect snow and how they influence the jet stream, air circulation, and polar and mid-latitude climates. The cascading effect is worrisome, especially in vulnerable communities. The class activity will inspire students to communicate ways communities could respond to these weather events. The videos, materials, charts, and datasets embedded in the lesson were fact-checked, and this lesson has passed our science review process.

POSITIVES:
-Connecting climate change and extreme winter weather can feel counterintuitive, which will challenge students' critical thinking skills.
-The lesson provides many opportunities for students to share ideas with their peers.
-This lesson can be taught in an environmental science class.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-Advertisements may play before some of the videos.
-Students should be familiar with climate change, the difference between weather and climate, and the various types of extreme weather.
-Teachers should make it clear that on average, global temperatures are rising even if there is sometimes more extreme cold and snowy weather.
-Teachers should make sure students understand that this lesson is not about if anthropogenic climate change is real. Instead, this lesson is looking at the specific connections between climate change and the polar vortex and lake effect snow.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-For students who may need more support in the Investigate section, classes can create their explanations of the polar vortex and lake effect snow together.
-This lesson could be split over two class periods. In the first class, students would complete the Inquire section and the first half of the Investigate section about the polar vortex. In the second class, students would complete the second half of the Investigate section about lake effect snow and the Inspire section.

Subject:
Geoscience
Physical Science
Space Science
Material Type:
Lesson Plan
Provider:
SubjectToClimate
Author:
Effie Albitz
Date Added:
06/30/2023
Are You An Energy Efficient Consumer?
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This activity engages students in learning about ways to become energy efficient consumers. Students examine how different countries and regions around the world use energy over time, as reflected in night light levels. They then track their own energy use, identify ways to reduce their individual energy consumption, and explore how community choices impact the carbon footprint.

Subject:
Geoscience
Physical Science
Material Type:
Activity/Lab
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Marian Koshland Science Museum of the National Academy of Sciences
Date Added:
10/27/2014
As Permafrost Thaws, Scientists Study the Risks
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This article and slide show from the New York Times, features several scientists from the University of Alaska, Fairbanks, who study the effects of thawing permafrost in Alaska.

Subject:
Applied Science
Biology
Career and Technical Education
Chemistry
Environmental Science
Environmental Studies
Geology
Life Science
Physical Science
Material Type:
Reading
Simulation
Provider:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Provider Set:
CLEAN: Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network
Author:
Josh Haner
New York Times
Date Added:
08/29/2012