How has the level of carbon dioxide changed over recent years, and what is contributing it? Groups work together to research and present their findings in a creative way. Also built into the lesson is a visit to a sustainable house, but...

A comprehensive activity on product life cycle, energy consumption, and personal carbon footprint is described in this resource. Lead high school environmental science buffs through the complex process of product production and...

Discuss wants and needs with your elementary ecologists and get them to consider what would happen to our natural resources if we all got everything that we want. Learners play a card sorting game and take an ecological footprint quiz on...

This is an exceptional series that you can use in an environmental or engineering unit. There are four lessons: "Sustainable Transportation," "Designing for Safety," "Changing the Landscape," and "Engaging in Policy." Each lesson...

Introduce youngsters to the term ecological footprint. Learners identify ways in which humans affect the environment. They look at the problems associated with the use of natural resources, and focus on ways to preserve natural...

You don't need to tip-toe around an enlightening resource. Young environmentalists learn about ecological footprints in the third lesson of 16. Answering a questionnaire helps them see how their own families and homes affect the...

You can lower your ecological footprint by recycling! Lesson four in this series of five has individuals, through the use of a computer, calculate their ecological footprints. Through discussions and analysis they determine how many...

Pre-assessments are great to help teachers determine what information their classes lack, what misconceptions they have, and how in depth to teach specific concepts. The first in a five-part series is a pre-assessment of middle...

Unplugging from technology for one day per week will decrease your carbon footprint—are you up to the challenge? Part two in a series of three allows individuals to explore their personal carbon footprints. By first taking a quiz at home...

After three eye-opening lessons about our environment, scholars revisit a 10-question survey, reflect on their new-found knowledge, and take action by writing to a representative or creating a public service announcement about climate...

Scholars become experts on the eight major impacts of climate change through a jigsaw and grand conversation. They then research and present what they learned about effects specific to their region.    

Sometimes, the best solution to a problem can be found by walking in someone else's shoes. Here, scholars use character cards to take on the roles of people around the world. They determine how their character's life affects our...

Scholars independently explore several websites to calculate their ecological footprint. Using their new found knowledge, they answer six short-answer questions and take part in a grand conversation with their peers about how our...

Roll up your sleeves and get a little dirty with this elementary and middle school compost lesson. All you need is a large plastic container, a couple old newspapers, some organic waste, and a few hundred worms and you're ready to start...

Motivate young conservationists to stand up and make a change. After learning about the efforts in Cascade Nation Park to reduce carbon emissions in order to preserve the wilderness, students work in groups creating action plans for...

Here is a lesson that walks youth through an online carbon footprint calculator produced by the University of California, Berkeley. Once learners finish inputting information, they compete a worksheet with the results. This is simple,...

Is there a correlation between a country's wealth and the extent of its ecological footprint? What exactly constitutes an ecological footprint, and how does one country stack up against the rest? This is a unique lesson to incorporate...

Written as a reading guide for a particular textbook, this can be used for any ecology course. Just change the title, and you can use the short-answer questions to query learners on population dynamics, carrying capacity, and ecological...

Learners explore the impact of their lifestyle choices on the environment. In this ecology instructional activity, students use the web site provided to calculate their ecological footprint. This data is used to construct a class graph...

Carbon is essential to life; yet, too much carbon will stifle life here on Earth. Our planet hangs in a delicate balance and the increased greenhouse gases threaten to harm the environment. Now that we have recognized human contribution,...

Middle schoolers explore environmental issues by completing a food production class activity. In this carbon footprint lesson, students discuss the types of foods they eat, where they come from and what types of methods are used to...

Stretch young environmentalists' minds with the ten questions in this activity. Though written as a reading guide, most of the questions can follow a lecture on human population dynamics and environmental impact. You will need to provide...