Understanding the Carbon Cycle: A Jigsaw Approach part of Climate Change:Activities
In this "jigsaw" exercise, each student is assigned one of five geochemical processes in the carbon cycle to research, fully understand, and then explain to others in groups of five. At the end of class ...

Phylogenetics problems part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Coached Problem Solving:Examples
Students receive information about cladistics and apply this phylogenetic approach to two problems, collecting data, determining whether traits are ancestral or derived, and using this information to select the most parsimonious tree.

Estimating Exchange Rates of Water in Embayments using Simple Budget Equations. part of Quantitative Skills:Activity Collection
Simple budgets may be used to estimate the exchange of water in embayments that capitalize on the concept of steady state and conservation principals. This is especially true for bays that experience a significant exchange of freshwater. This exchange of freshwater may reduce the average salt concentration in the bay compared to seawater if it involves addition of freshwater from rivers, R, and/or precipitation, P. Alternatively, it may increase the average salt concentration in the bay compared to seawater if there is relatively little river input and high evaporation, E. Since freshwater input changes the salt concentration in the bay, and salt is a conservative material, it is possible to combine two steady state budgets for a bay, one for salt and one for water, to solve for the magnitude of the water flows that enter and exit the bay mouth. Students will make actual calculations for the inflow and outflow of water to Puget Sound, Washington and the Mediterranean Sea and compare them to actual measured values.

Mass Balance Model part of Mathematical and Statistical Models:Mathematical and Statistical Models Examples
Students are introduced to the concept of mass balance, flow rates, and equilibrium using an online interactive water bucket model. -

Waste Not, Want Not: Food Waste and Recovery for Food Security part of Curriculum for the Bioregion:Activities
In this activity, students learn how our food systems affect the global climate and many other environmental issues and impacts related to food. Topics include carbon-neutral agriculture, farming for food accessibility and cultural relevance, food preservation, and how individuals and communities can reduce food waste while promoting food justice, food security, and equitable access to sustainably produced foods. After exploring two case studies of college students who engage civically to reduce food waste and work toward food justice on their campuses, students choose their own campus-based civic action from a list of options.

Evolution of Whales part of Introductory Courses:Activities
The students read two articles on the evolution of whales and search the web. The students' writing assignment requires them to outline the evolution of whales using major fossil finds. Students start with ...

Investigative Case - "Swampeast Missouri" part of Investigative Case Based Learning:Examples
Students will explore wetland hydrology and biology and decide whether or not to restore a wetland or retain dams and drainage systems.

Carbon Dioxide Exercise part of Interactive Lectures:Examples
Students work in groups, plotting carbon dioxide concentrations over time on overheads and estimating the rate of change over five years. -

Comparing Carbon Calculators part of Teaching with Data:Examples
Carbon calculators, no matter how well intended as tools to help measure energy footprints, tend to be black boxes and can produce wildly different results, depending on the calculations used to weigh various ...

Which Strategy is Best to Ensure the Conservation of Endangered Species? part of Pedagogy in Action:Library:Using Issues to Teach Science:Examples
Students learn about endangered species and actions humans have taken to address the issue of endangered species. The Xpeditions lesson has students think about their experiences with zoos, learn about the reasons ...