Teaching Activities

Arctic Climate Curriculum, Activity 3: Exploring Arctic Climate Data part of Climate Change:Activities
Karin Kirk, Freelance Science Writer and Geoscientist; Anne Gold, University of Colorado at Boulder
Students dig into authentic Arctic climate data to unravel some causes and effects related to the seasonal melting of the snowpack. In particular, students learn about albedo and its relationship to snowmelt. This ...

Grade Level: College Lower (13-14), High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities:Lab Activity, Classroom Activity
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Meteorology:Measurements, Seasonal patterns, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary, Passed Peer Review

How Do Long and Short EM Waves Interact with the Earth's Atmosphere? part of CLEAN Collection

https://www.lsop.colostate.edu/wp-content/uploads/sites/...

Little Shop of Physics
This is a kinesthetic activity that demonstrates how shortwave radiation emitted by the sun and longwave thermal radiation emitted by the earth interact differently in the atmosphere. It allows ...

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12), Informal
Online Readiness: Designed for In-Person
Resource Type: Activities: Activities:Lab Activity
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Meteorology:Atmospheric structure and composition, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Greenhouse effect, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Greenhouse effect, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Met 101: Basic Weather Processes part of CLEAN Collection

https://www.meted.ucar.edu/mobile/moddescription.php?id=...

The COMET Program
This activity is an overview of basic weather processes, starting with incoming solar radiation and how that establishes basic atmospheric processes.

Grade Level: High School (9-12), College Upper (15-16), College Lower (13-14)
Online Readiness: Online Adaptable
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Geoscience:Oceanography:Ocean-Climate Interactions, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Meteorology:Atmospheric circulation, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Atmospheric and oceanic circulation
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Climate: A Balancing Act part of CLEAN Collection

https://explainingclimatechange.com/lesson4/lesson4.html

The King
In this activity students learn how Earth’s energy balance is regulating climate. This activity is lesson 4 in the nine-lesson module Visualizing and Understanding the Science of Climate Change.

Grade Level: High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Greenhouse effect, Natural causes, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Natural causes, Greenhouse effect, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Global Change and Climate:Climate Change, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Climate Change, Climatology :Solar radiation, Global energy balance
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Motions of the Sun Lab part of CLEAN Collection

http://astro.unl.edu/naap/motion3/motion3.html

University of Nebraska Astronomy Applet Project
This Motions of the Sun Lab is an interactive applet from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln Astronomy Applet project.

Grade Level: High School (9-12), College Lower (13-14)
Online Readiness: Online Ready
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Natural causes, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Natural causes, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Climatology :Orbital patterns, Solar radiation, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Amazing Albedo part of CLEAN Collection

http://www.amnh.org/content/download/1709/24545/file/aa_...

This lesson is a lab in which students use thermometers, white and dark paper, and lamps to measure differences in albedo between the light and dark materials. Connections are made to albedo in ...

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Climate sensitivity and feedbacks, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Reason for the Seasons part of CLEAN Collection

http://www.bioedonline.org/lessons-and-more/lessons-by-t...

Nancy Moreno, et. al.
This activity engages learners to investigate the impact of Earth's tilt and the angle of solar insolation as the reason for seasons by doing a series of hands-on activities that include scale ...

Grade Level: Middle (6-8), High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Climatology :Solar radiation, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Orbital patterns
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Solar Water Heater part of CLEAN Collection

https://www.teachengineering.org/activities/view/cub_hou...

Landon B. Gennetten, Lauren Cooper, Malinda Schaefer Zarske, Denise W. Carlson
Student teams design and build solar water heating devices that mimic those used in residences to capture energy in the form of solar radiation and convert it to thermal energy. In this activity, ...

Grade Level: High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Mitigation of climate change, Environmental Science:Energy:Renewable & Alternative Energy, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change, Environmental Science:Energy, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

The Earth's Heat Budget part of CLEAN Collection

https://nagt.org/nagt/teaching_resources/teachingmateria...

Roy Plotnick
Hands-on laboratory activity that allows students to investigate the effects of distance and angle on the input of solar radiation at Earth's surface, the role played by albedo, the heat ...

Grade Level: College Lower (13-14), High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Oceanography, Atmospheric Science:Climate Change, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Natural causes, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Natural causes, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Climate sensitivity and feedbacks, Orbital patterns, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Climatology :Global energy balance
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary

Using NASA NEO and ImageJ to Explore the Role of Snow Cover in Shaping Climate part of CLEAN Collection

https://serc.carleton.edu/eet/albedo/index.html

B. Youngman, C. McAuliffe, R. Freuder, J. Lockwood, K. Ward, D. Herring, H. Riebeek
In this activity students download satellite images displaying land surface temperature, snow cover, and reflected short wave radiation data from the NASA Earth Observation (NEO) Web site. They then ...

Grade Level: High School (9-12)
Resource Type: Activities: Activities
Subject: Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology , Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate:Climate Change:Climate feedbacks, Impacts of climate change, Environmental Science:Global Change and Climate, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Climate sensitivity and feedbacks, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climate Change:Impacts of climate change, Geoscience:Atmospheric Science:Climatology :Solar radiation, Global energy balance
Activity Review: Peer Reviewed as Exemplary