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Climate

Driving Question: How might climate change increase complexity?

Earth’s climate has played a role in how life on Earth has evolved for billions of years. But in the past 250 years, humans have played an outsized role in altering Earth’s climate. What does the future of humanity and the planet look like? The answer has a lot to do with you.

Learning Objectives:

  1. Evaluate how climate change currently impacts humans and our planet.
  2. Explain how climate change might impact our future.

Vocab Terms:

  • climate change
  • emissions
  • fossil fuel
  • global warming
  • greenhouse gases
  • Holocene
STEP 1

Opener: Climate

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page X of the Lesson 7.2 Teaching Guide Locked .

Check out our Causation One-Pager for a quick review of this important historical thinking skill.

We often call natural disasters “acts of God” because they seem to come out of nowhere. But scientists actually know quite a bit about how they happen. Read this next opener to learn more.

STEP 2

The Future of Climate

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page X of the Lesson 7.2 Teaching Guide Locked .

Our online teacher community is a great resource for real time teacher suggestions like this one on video lessons External link !

We hear news about the uncertain future of our climate every day it seems—this video and activity help put things into a Big History perspective.

Climate History External link

Coming Soon!
For billions of years, changes in Earth’s climate have meant changes for life. As our climate changes now, we can look to history to understand how it might affect our future.
STEP 3

Earth’s Changing Atmosphere

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page X of the Lesson 7.2 Teaching Guide Locked .

Looking to differentiate, modify or adapt this assignment? Check out our Differentiation Guide Locked .

Need ideas for teaching the Anthropocene? Check out the blog “Anthropocene: Avoiding an epoch fail External link ”.

Have you ever wondered how scientists can know with such confidence what the climate was like in the distant past? This video provides some answers!

The Atmosphere and Climate External link

Earth’s climate has always experienced natural warming and cooling cycles, but today’s rapid warming is driven by a different factor: human activity.

Key Ideas

As this video progresses, key ideas will be introduced to invoke discussion.
STEP 4

Climate Science Pioneer

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page X of the Lesson 7.2 Teaching Guide Locked .

Learn more about Eunice Foote and her impact on our understanding of climate change in this blog post External link .

Meet the scientific pioneer who was the first to describe the greenhouse effect. Did she get the credit she deserves?

STEP 5

Closer: Climate

Teaching Tools

To teach this lesson step, refer to page X of the Lesson 7.2 Teaching Guide Locked .