Learning Objectives
Participants will:
- Understand the complexity and significance of the evidence of climate change, past and present
- Understand the range of Smithsonian research and study related to climate change
- Practice scientific reasoning and critical thinking skills
Before the Conference Activities
Post your questions on the discussion board on the conference website (coming soon).
Brainstorm words you and your friends or classmates associate with climate change. Use an online tool to create a visualization of your words.
Take a survey and compare your answers to national results. See Climate Change in the American Mind at climatechangecommunication.org.
Research natural cycles and explain how they relate to climate change. See eo.ucar.edu/kids/green.
During the Conference Activities
While watching a session, jot down notes about the scientific problem raised, methods used to investigate it, and what the scientist learned.
Post your comments and questions during the session on the discussion board (coming soon).
Tweet your questions, responses, and ideas using the #SICLimate Twitter hashtag
After the Conference Activities
Compare and contrast sessions – problems, methods, and findings.
Create something – poster, blog, video – sharing evidence that supports your ideas.
Take pictures of positive environmental actions and post on SI Climate Change Flickr site.
Volunteer to serve on a local environmental project. Find out about opportunities. For information go to nationalservice.gov/about/volunteering.
Get a grant to integrate green-related topics and experiences into the classroom, from the NEA.
Suggested Resources
Arctic: A Friend Acting Strangely
Climate Change in the American Mind Report
Climate Change: no Eden, no apocalypse / New Scientist
Climate Literacy: Essential Principles and Fundamental Concepts
Climate Literacy: The Essential Principles of Climate Science
Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change Reports
Key Findings June 2009 US Global Climate Change Program Report
Kids’ Crossing / Living in the Greenhouse
The 7 Biggest Myths About Climate Change / New Scientist
Special Lesson Plan
Don’t miss our special lesson plan based on the work of Dr. Scott Wing, whose
live session takes place on 11 am (EDT), September 30.
In the lesson plan, the class does the work of a team of paleontologists studying a time of rapid global warming 55 million years ago. By examining fossils of leaves from various tree species, and by incorporating the findings into a mathematical formula, the students are able to tell average annual temperatures during this prehistoric time.
