This storyline was developed as a part of the "Community-Centered Climate Action" Professional Learning Course for 3rd-5th grade teachers. It is provided for inspiration but not intended to fully achieve the 3rd, 4th, or 5th grade science standards it incorporates. The lessons set up teachers and students to use the perimeter of their school to inquire about and monitor air quality as well as learn about emissions and activism in their community.Did you know idling cars during school pickup impacts air quality and the environment? Learn how to use an easy-to-implement action project to motivate and empower your students. Your students will build an understanding of how air pollution impacts their community and the climate and learn what community members are doing about it. They will then work together to map their findings, develop an action plan and share what they have learned.This storyline was created by IslandWood. To learn more about IslandWood, follow this link: https://islandwood.org/ 

This sequence of instruction was developed in the Growing Elementary Science Prjoject to help elementary teachers who were working remotely.  We developed a short storyline that ties together a few sessions to help explore a specific concept.  We tried to include some activities that honored and included the student’s family and experience, and some that included the potential for ELA learning goals.
In this Unit of Instruction, students observe animal behaviors - both in video format and in their own neighborhoods - then create a model to explain how these behaviors help the animals meet their needs.
It is part of ClimeTime - a collaboration among all nine Educational Service Districts (ESDs) in Washington and many Community Partners to provide programs for science teacher training around Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and climate science, thanks to grant money made available to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) by Governor Inslee.

This sequence of instruction was developed in the Growing Elementary Science Project to help elementary teachers who were working remotely.  We developed a short storyline that ties together a few sessions to help explore a specific concept.  We tried to include some activities that honored and included the student’s family and experience, and some that included the potential for ELA learning goals.
In this Unit of Instruction, students observe and act out animal behaviors, then observe animal behaviors for animals in their lives. They use these observations to determine what some animals' needs may be.
It is part of ClimeTime - a collaboration among all nine Educational Service Districts (ESDs) in Washington and many Community Partners to provide programs for science teacher training around Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and climate science, thanks to grant money made available to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) by Governor Inslee. 

This 5th grade STEM Storyline Unit from Washington Educational Service District 112 is focused around Climate Justice, Over five NGSS aligned lessons and using the 5E model, students are presented with the ideas of environmental stewardship and restoration.

This lesson was originally created to give elementary school teachers a foundation for understanding the impacts of climate change. Teachers, acting as students, physically participate in the movement of carbon throughout various biospheres.

This sequence of instruction was developed in the Growing Elementary Science Project to help elementary teachers who were working remotely.  We developed a short storyline that ties together a few sessions to help explore a specific concept.  We tried to include some activities that honored and included the student’s family and experience, and some that included the potential for ELA learning goals.
Students view a couple of videos and record what they notice and wonder about how plants change as seasons change. Students take a walk with family members to search for evidence of changes due to weather in their neighborhoods.
It is part of ClimeTime - a collaboration among all nine Educational Service Districts (ESDs) in Washington and many Community Partners to provide programs for science teacher training around Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS) and climate science, thanks to grant money made available to the Office of the Superintendent of Public Instruction (OSPI) by Governor Inslee. 

Engineers design methods of removing particulate matter from industrial sources to minimize negative effects of air pollution. In this activity, students will undertake a similar engineering challenge as they design and build a filter to remove pepper from an air stream without blocking more than 50% of the air.

This course explores how citizen science can support community actions to combat climate change. Participants will learn about framing problems, design ways to gather data, gather some of their own field data, and consider how the results can enable action. Leaks in the natural gas system—a major source of methane emissions, and a powerful contributor to climate change—will be a particular focus.
The course was organized by ClimateX and Fossil Free MIT, with support from the National Science Foundation for the methane monitoring equipment. It was offered during the Independent Activities Period (IAP), which is a special 4-week January term at MIT.

This course provides a broad overview of issues related to climate change, with an emphasis on those aspects most relevant to computer scientists. Topics include climate science, climate models and simulations, decision-making under uncertainty, economics, mitigation strategies, adaptation strategies, geoengineering, policy-making, messaging, and politics.The course will culminate in a presentation of a research project which might include a paper, a blog, software etc.

We are concurrently experiencing two global crises - the climate crisis and COVID-19. What are connections between the two? Why are BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) communities disproportionately affected by both? This asynchronous Canvas course explores these questions and more. The course includes recordings from two guest speakers. Dr. Isabel Carrera Zamanillo from Stanford University presents on climate justice connections. Dr. Carrie Tzou, Professor and Director of the Goodlad Institute for Educational Renewal at UW Bothell, shares strategies and instructional resources for teaching about COVID-19. 

A collaboration between TED Countdown and Fine Acts, Artists for Climate started as a global open call that sought digital illustrations targeting climate change, with a focus on hope and solutions.
The artworks you see here have been published online under a Creative Commons license and are available for anyone to use and adapt non-commercially, to help shift the global narrative of the climate crisis towards a brighter future. This hopeful collection is an invaluable resource and tool for educators and organizations from around the world, working towards climate action.

The primary goal of these resources and programming, created as part of a larger initiative to expand climate justice education at MIT, is to provide support to faculty members and instructors across disciplines in integrating climate justice content and related instructional approaches into their courses.
Funded by the Alumni Class Funds Grant, the Toolkit houses a wide range of climate-justice-adaptable teaching modules, a starter guide for teaching climate justice, resources for students, and climate justice data sets that can serve as supportive tools to enhance teaching content and approaches.

This article provides five strategies for building the foundation for climate science literacy in the elementary grades.

This article discusses ten common misconceptions held by students and adults about climate change.

This course introduces students to climate studies, including beginnings of the solar system, time scales, and climate in human history. It is offered to both undergraduate and graduate students with different requirements.

Grounded in the belief that students need to explore climate change for themselves, the high school-level Climate Project course from the OER Project equips students with the knowledge and skills to take action. The course aims to understand the climate crisis by examining facts, impacts, and solutions, fostering civic action, education, and career readiness, and promoting constructive discussion. Through an inquiry-based approach, students interrogate diverse sources, build data and digital literacy skills, and engage with timely materials. Flexible in design, the course can be taught as a comprehensive semester program or through standalone lessons, culminating in projects ranging from climate-focused careers to community civic action.

With funding from the Environmental Protection Agency, The Washington State Department of Natural Resources' Aquatic Assessment and Monitoring Team (AAMT) developed three curricula (elementary, middle, and high school) that are designed to bridge the goals of bringing local climate science into Washington state classrooms and local internships by highlighting aspects of the Acidification Nearshore Monitoring Network (ANeMoNe)
More specifically, the curricula focus on local climate science issues and incorporate elements of scientific monitoring methods and community science to showcase how climate is being addressed in Washington State and how students can get involved in fighting climate change in their own “backyards”.​ Youth learn principles of aquatic ecology, environmental and social impacts driven by climate change, government and social response, and issues of environmental justice.
These climate resilience curricula are intended to inspire and engage youth throughout Washington to implement climate change adaptations in their local communities.

This course provides strategies and resources students can apply to their current, and ongoing, knowledge of a given science topic using the Science and Engineering Practice of Modeling and Student Explanations.

The goal of the Climate Primer website is to summarize the most important lines of evidence for human-caused climate change. It confronts the stickier questions about uncertainty in our projections, engages in a discussion of risk and risk managment, and concludes by presenting different options for taking action. We hope that the facts prepare you for more effective conversations with your community about values, trade-offs, politics, and actions.
In March 2024, the MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative launched the first major update to the Climate Primer. The updated Primer includes more precise estimates of future global warming and its effects on global temperatures and extreme weather events, important advances in climate modeling, new actions taken around the world to adapt to the impacts of climate change, and the latest data about the pace at which clean energy and other critical climate solutions are being deployed. Read more about the update on the MIT Environmental Solutions website.

This learning resource will engage you and your colleagues in learning more about the importance of learning and teaching climate science as part of the Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS). You will hear from multiple stakeholders about the importance and impact of learning about climate science, as well as engage with learning tools and reflection questions to deepen your learning and position you to take action in your setting. We envision this professional learning taking place in an ongoing community of practice. We encourage you to determine and proceed at your own pace that reflects the needs of your team.

Image by ejaugsburg from Pixabay