Climate Literacy Catalog
This collection of web sites was developed in the Fall of 2008 by Mark S. McCaffrey of CIRES Education and Outreach as a "next step" toward a reviewed and annotated collection of "cream of the crop" high quality digital resources that support the Essential Principles of Climate Literacy. Building on experience gained through the development of the Climate Change Collection, the goal of this phase of the effort is to begin to assemble a catalog of online resources that in the near future will be reviewed i) for scientific accuracy and currency by science experts, ii) for ease of use and appropriateness in educational settings and iii) annotated with any suggestions, concerns or ideas for enrichment and extensions to the resource.
Climate Literacy Principles
- Life and Climate Are Linked 6 matches 1. Life on Earth has been shaped by, depends on, and affects climate
- The Nature of Science 11 matches 2. We increase our understanding of the climate system through observation and modeling
- Sun Drives Earth System 15 matches 3. The Sun is the primary source of energy for the climate system
- Complex Interactions 17 matches 4. Earth's weather and climate systems are the result of complex interactions
- Natural Variability and Change 9 matches 5. Earth's weather and climate vary over time and space
- Human Activities and Change 7 matches 6. Evidence indicates human activities are impacting the climate system
- Making Decisions 4 matches 7. Earth's climate system is influenced by complex human decisions involving economic costs and social values
Results 1 - 20 of 34 matches
Climate Modeling part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This site from Carleton College features an introduction to modeling earth�s climate system using STELLA. Topics covered include basic concepts and processes of the earth�s climate system, model ...
Global Warming Facts and Our Future part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This virtual museum website provides easily understood scientific information that helps both policy makers and the public answer important questions about the changing global climate in order to ...
Modeling Earth's Temperature part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity students use the STELLA program to create hierarchies of models of increasing complexity to understand the absorption of solar energy by the Earth and its radiation of that energy ...
CO2 and You part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This lesson has students observe and quantify their household and vehicle energy consumption; explain the relationship between energy consumption, energy production, and its influences on the ...
Water Vapor Protocol part of SERC Web Resource Collection
The purpose of this activity is to measure the total precipitable water vapor (column water vapor) in the atmosphere above an observer's site. Students point a GLOBE/GIFTS water vapor instrument at ...
Carbon Cycle in the Lab: Carbon Products and the Processes That Link Them part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This lab teaches students about the nature of carbon, the different types of compounds it exists in (e.g. charcoal, glucose, carbon dioxide), the biochemical reactions it takes part in ...
The Climate Time Machine Activity: Using Fossil Pollen to Study Climate Change part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity, students use real data on fossil pollen from a lake in Washington State to study climate change. Working in teams, they separate simulated pollen grains from 'sediment samples,' ...
Analyzing Greenhouse Gases and Global Temperature Data Over Time part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity, students plot data on the concentrations of various greenhouse gases in Earth's atmosphere and look for trends. They will learn that greenhouse gases allow the Sun's light to pass ...
The Earth's Orbit part of SERC Web Resource Collection
These eleven activities relate to the results of the motion and position of the Earth in its orbit, investigating both the causes and the effects of changing seasons. It starts simply by trying to ...
Modeling Your Water Balance part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This activity sheet (PDF download) allows students to create a physical model illustrating the soil water balance using glasses to represent the soil column. They use data from the GLOBE Data Server ...
Ice Cores Teacher's Guide part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity, students will learn how and why scientists drill ice cores in Greenland. They will use this knowledge to create an ice core that demonstrates how natural and human factors affect ...
Diurnal Temperature Changes and Water Vapor Content part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity, students will examine data for air temperature and dewpoint temperature for two different days at the same station to understand how moisture in the air affects the diurnal ...
The Melting of the Grinnell Glacier, Glacier National Park part of SERC Web Resource Collection
In this activity, students investigate the retreat of Grinnel Glacier in Glacier National Park, Montana. Using a map, aerial photos, and temperature data, they will estimate and graph its rate of ...
Climate Status Investigations (CSI) part of SERC Web Resource Collection
The Keystone Center's curriculum website has over 65 lessons developed to introduce middle and high school teachers and their students to the topic of climate change and to provide new ways of ...
Climate Status Investigations: CO2 and Mass part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This activity, designed for grades 5-8, poses the question, does CO2 have mass? In this activity, students will use baking soda and vinegar to produce CO2 and trap it in a balloon. After puncturing ...
Plugged in to CO2 part of CLEAN Collection
In this classroom activity, students measure the energy use of various appliances and electronics and calculate how much carbon dioxide (CO2) is released to produce that energy.
Power Source part of CLEAN Collection
In this short activity, students or groups are tasked to make concept sketches that track the source of electrical power as far back as they can conceive. The concept sketches reveal students' prior ...
Evaluating the Effects of Local Energy Resource Development part of CLEAN Collection
This is a semester-long jigsaw project in which students work in teams to explore the effects of energy resource development on local water resources, economics, and society. Students are presented ...
Vostok Ice Core Lab Activity part of SERC Web Resource Collection
This site from Columbia provides a lab activity that introduces students to Vostok ice core data. Students will examine the changes of temperature, carbon dioxide, methane, and dust as a function of ...
The Dating Game part of SERC Web Resource Collection
A classroom activity that simulates radioactive decay using M&M candies. Students explore the concept of half-life and learn about dating techniques while learning about mummified Weddell seals ...
