SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students learn about climate change, choose one solution to climate change, and write a claim-evidence-reasoning paragraph explaining why they believe it is the best solution to climate change.

SCIENTIST NOTES: Although there is no silver bullet to addressing climate change, combining multiple solutions and prioritizing the best ones are important strategies to combat present and future climate risk. This lesson introduces students to explore the best solutions to address climate change. Data in the resources, accompanying materials, and videos are accurate. Accordingly, this lesson has passed our science review.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson is terrific for teaching paragraph structure.
-The color coding of the sentences in the paragraph is really helpful, especially for concrete thinkers.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-Project Drawdown is an excellent organization that quantifies solutions to climate change. This is great background reading before the lesson. If you sort the solutions by scenario 1 (2°C temperature rise by 2100, then reduced food waste is the #1 solution. If you sort the solutions by scenario 2 (1.5°C temperature rise by 2100), then onshore wind turbines are the #1 solution. These two solutions (food waste and renewable energy) are two of the four solutions presented in this lesson.
-Encourage the students to use as many hard facts as possible in their supporting sentences. These include dates, names, places, and specific events.
-You can use 2-3 videos of solutions to climate change if you do not want to use all of them.
-This lesson can be paired with the StC Lesson Plan What's the Worst Impact of Climate Change?

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Most students will benefit from color coding their sentences. Encourage them to keep their text highlighted as they write. They can even keep their paragraphs highlighted after they finish.
-Weaker students may write only five sentences. Stronger students may expand more in their supporting sentences.
-If students are struggling with their closing sentences, ask them to read their claim sentences aloud. Sometimes this helps guide their thinking.
-Stronger students who finish early can read their paragraphs to one another, discuss the writing process, and discuss the climate crisis.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students learn about climate change, choose one impact of climate change, and write a claim-evidence-reasoning paragraph explaining why they believe it is the worst impact of climate change.

SCIENTIST NOTES: Understanding the key drivers of climate change and weather extremes, including the carbon cycle and processes and changes in the earth-atmosphere-ocean systems, have been discussed in this lesson. This is important for students to learn and prepare for future climate risk. This lesson has passed our science review process.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson is terrific for teaching paragraph structure.
-The color coding of the sentences in the paragraph is really helpful, especially for concrete thinkers.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This lesson shows some of the impacts of climate change. Some of these might be difficult to hear. Students may feel anger, sadness, anxiety, or grief after hearing about some of these devastating impacts. Encourage them to share their emotions.
-This lesson will naturally lead into the discussion of solutions to the climate crisis. Lean into that discussion.
-There is, of course, no right answer to "What's the worst impact of climate change?" These impacts of climate change are all catastrophic in their own right.
-Encourage the students to use as many hard facts as possible in their supporting sentences. These include dates, names, places, and specific events.
-You can use 2-3 videos of impacts of climate change if you do not want to use all of them.
-This lesson can be paired with the StC Lesson Plan What's the Best Solution to Climate Change?
DIFFERENTIATION:
-Most students will benefit from color coding their sentences. Encourage them to keep their text highlighted as they write. They can even keep their paragraphs highlighted after they finish.
-Weaker students may write only five sentences. Stronger students may expand more in their supporting sentences.
-If students are struggling with their closing sentences, ask them to read their claim sentences aloud. Sometimes this helps guide their thinking.
-Stronger students who finish early can read their paragraphs to one another, discuss the writing process, and discuss the climate crisis.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students learn about climate change, choose one impact of climate change affecting New Jersey, and write a claim-evidence-reasoning paragraph explaining why they believe it is the worst impact of climate change in New Jersey.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This lesson illustrates the impacts of climate change in New Jersey. Five video resources are presented that provide background information, answer skepticism, and explore four key implications of climate change in New Jersey. The four climate impact videos are well-sourced and address local concerns with scientists from Rutgers and the New Jersey Department of Environmental Protection. Students are tasked with deciding which is the worst impact of climate change and then writing a paragraph to support their claim. This lesson is recommended for teaching.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson is terrific for teaching paragraph structure.
-The color coding of the sentences in the paragraph is really helpful, especially for concrete thinkers.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This lesson shows some of the impacts of climate change. Some of these might be difficult to hear. Students may feel anger, sadness, anxiety, or grief after hearing about some of these devastating impacts. Encourage them to share their emotions.
-There is, of course, no right answer to “What’s the worst impact of climate change?” These impacts of climate change are all catastrophic in their own right.
-Encourage the students to use as many hard facts as possible in their supporting sentences. These include dates, names, places, and specific events.
-You can use 2-3 videos of impacts of climate change if you do not want to use all of them.
-Make sure students know that there are many other impacts of climate change aside from the four impacts in the four videos. Other impacts of climate change include extreme weather events, mass extinction, climate migration, etc. The goal of this lesson is to choose one of those four impacts of climate change.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Most students will benefit from color coding their sentences. Encourage them to keep their text highlighted as they write. They can even keep their paragraphs highlighted after they finish.
-Weaker students may write only five sentences. Stronger students may expand more in their supporting sentences.
-If students are struggling with their closing sentences, ask them to read their claim sentences aloud. Sometimes this helps guide their thinking.
-Stronger students who finish early can read their paragraphs to one another, discuss the writing process, and discuss possible solutions to climate change.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students learn where food comes from and the importance of taking care of natural resources.

SCIENTIST NOTES: Soil, air, light, water, and other natural components aid plant growth. When they are perturbed or polluted, it influences plant growth and makes food unhealthy for human and animal consumption. This lesson underscores the correlation between natural resources and food production. It shows students what is required for agricultural production and how they can locate food sources in their local environment. The lesson also provides basic understanding on how the natural resources could be protected from harmful human activities. The materials embedded in the lesson were fact-checked, and this lesson has passed our credibility review process.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson is a great way for students to understand and appreciate the care that goes into growing food.
-Students will get to share their families' food traditions with others.
-Students will feel empowered to help protect natural resources.
-Students will share their new knowledge with others.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-You will need a fruit or vegetable for the beginning of the Inquire section.
-You will need to acquire a copy of Right This Very Minute by Lisl Detlefsen before class begins. You can check your local or school library for a copy of the book.
-You will need to enter an email address to access the PDF lesson plan of Who Polluted the River? the first time you use the Population Education website.
-You will need the following materials for the Who Polluted the River? activity:
-Clear gallon jar or bowl of water
-Small lidded containers
-Printed container labels (printable templates included)
-Printed character name tags (printable templates included)
-Slotted spoon
-Plastic toy fish
-Dry leaves
-Soil
-Baking soda
-Shreds of paper
-Fishing line or dental floss
-Instant coffee
-Water
-Vegetable oil
-Dishwashing soap
-Red and green food coloring

DIFFERENTIATION:
-You can break this lesson up and teach Inquire, Investigate, and Inspire on three separate days.
-The Student Document is provided in four levels.
-Fluent writers can write one or more paragraphs to accompany their informative piece.
-You can go over the Vocabulary Cards at the beginning of the lesson or print the Vocabulary Cards and make a word wall to reference throughout the lesson.

SYNOPSIS: This lesson encourages students to think about their food choices and where their food comes from.

SCIENTIST NOTES: The lesson introduces students to analyze the origin or source of their food and explore and track the factors that determines their food choices. This lesson provides understanding on the implications of our food choices on achieving food security. There are no scientific misconceptions in this lesson. On that account, this lesson has passed the science credibility process.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson gets students thinking about what they eat, why they eat what they do, and where some of those foods may come from.
-The guided research gives students independent time to explore where their favorite meal’s ingredients might come from.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This is lesson 1 of 6 in our 6th-8th grade Climate Change, Food Production, and Food Security unit.
-Students should understand that healthy foods like fruits and vegetables provide certain vitamins and nutrients that junk food does not.
-Students should know the consequences of an imbalanced diet can include diabetes, obesity, and other health issues.
-Teachers should be mindful that some students might be sensitive to topics surrounding food tracking, diet, and body image.
-For students to access the Food Tracker, teachers can print the Google Document or assign a copy to all students digitally.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-If teachers choose to teach this lesson without teaching the following lessons in the unit, teachers can end the lesson by having students explore this climate change food calculator after completing their Food Trackers.
-Teachers can assign the Teacher Slideshow or Student Document on Google Classroom and students can submit their work independently.
-Teachers can group students for the guided research section and assign them level-appropriate resources.
-Teachers can eliminate options in the guided research section if the options are overwhelming.
-Teachers can review the Teacher Slideshow as a class and answer the questions as a whole class assignment.

SYNOPSIS: This lesson introduces students to climate change and the idea that renewable energy sources are a better choice for the planet.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This lesson introduces students to climate change and provides an excellent resource that illustrates how climate change impacts life in New Jersey. The energy independent island Samsø, Denmark is presented through a reading of Energy Island by Alan Drummond, and a Venn diagram is provided so students can compare Samsø to their hometown. Students are tasked with designing a zero emission ferry for Samsø and are challenged to see how climate change affects them and how an 8-12 year old can make a difference. This lesson is recommended for teaching.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson allows for a collaborative learning environment for students as it builds on understanding of climate change.
-This lesson features a problem-based approach to learning where students are immersed in solving a real-world problem.
-Students connect a real idealistic community to their own to see what is possible.
-This lesson follows the engineering design process.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-Students should have a basic understanding of climate change.
-Students should have an understanding of the engineering design process.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Students can think-pair-share during the read aloud where students can make predictions or answer questions.
-You can pause the read aloud for students to make observations and predictions about the story.
-Groups of students with mixed abilities can collaborate on their ferry design challenge project.

SYNOPSIS: This lesson asks students to consider how their communities would look and feel with and without green spaces.

SCIENTIST NOTES: The lesson accentuates the benefits of having green spaces vis-a-vis not having them in their community. We recommend this lesson for students to explore the benefits green spaces have on ecosystem health, mental health, and physical health. Students can also explore the maps to gain skills in urban planning. All the materials have been properly cited, and this lesson has passed our credibility process.

POSITIVES:
-Students have agency over their learning when conducting their own research.
-This can be integrated into an ELA class, as students will be reading informational text when conducting their own research.
-This can be integrated into an art class, as students will be drawing multiple maps.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This is lesson 4 of 6 in our 3rd-5th grade Green Spaces unit.
-It may be helpful to have a mostly blank map of the school campus or community for students to use.
-Students should have some prior experience conducting research. This lesson uses Kiddle, a kid-friendly search engine.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-You may need to preselect resources for some students who need scaffolding when conducting research.
-Some students may need a blank map of the school campus or community. Other students may wish to draw their maps from scratch using blank paper.
-Some students may prefer to draw, type, or use text-to-speech while taking notes.

SYNOPSIS: This lesson features powerful imagery from the climate crisis. Students choose one photograph and write an ekphrastic poem about that photograph.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This lesson introduces students to social-emotional learning and how to use ekphrastic poetry to write about an artwork. It also contains photography depicting impacts of pollution, environmental degradation, and the climate crisis for students to analyze, share their thoughts, and communicate their climate solutions. This lesson has satisfied the science review process, and it is recommended for teaching.

POSITIVES:
-This lesson features stunning images of the impacts of the climate crisis as well as climate solutions.
-There is a sense of mystery because students will write their poems before knowing the context of their chosen photograph.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-Before teaching the lesson, type your students' names into Slide 19 of the Student Slideshow.
-Make sure that all students have viewing access to the Student Slideshow and editing access to the Student Poetry Anthology Slideshow.
-Students may feel anger, anxiety, sadness, despair, fear, hope, or even excitement when viewing these pictures, writing their poems, or hearing their classmates’ poems. These emotions are normal and natural. Make sure students know it is OK to feel and express these emotions when confronted with the realities of the climate crisis.
-The information available for each image is varied. There is a lot of information about some of the photographs, but others do not have that much information.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Be sensitive to the emotions of your students. Some of these photographs may remind them of personal loss or some other specific connection to the climate crisis.
-Students can use the "Ideas For Your Poem" on the slideshow if they have trouble starting.
-Some students may know of other climate-related photos that they'd like to use. Encourage students to use those photographs if they make sense in the context of the lesson.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students discover, share, and evaluate what young people around the globe are doing to address climate change and utilize this information as the basis for a portrait.

SCIENTIST NOTES: This lesson plan includes information about youth climate activists and their motivation and actions for addressing climate change around the world. The video is short, focuses on the activists' individual motivation behind taking climate action, and introduces the idea of climate justice. The information presented in the provided articles links to information and other news articles where needed. The profiles on the climate activists may get outdated over time but are still useful for the lesson. This resource is recommended for teaching.

POSITIVES:
-Students are introduced to a diverse range of global youth climate leaders.
-Students learn that climate activism includes environmental justice.
-Students begin to identify ways that they, as young people, have agency in the fight against climate change and climate inequities.
-Students learn how to use a global issue as the source of their subsequent artwork.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This is lesson 2 of 3 in our 9th-12th grade Climate Heroes unit.
-This lesson should follow a basic introduction to climate change science, exploration of global and local impacts, and climate change solutions.
-Students should know how to access and navigate Padlet.
-Students should know how to work on Google Slides or a similar format.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-Students can complete the projects individually or in groups.
-The Padlet exploration can be done as a whole class or as independent work. For students who need support working independently, teachers can assign them three youth activists to explore.
-If students have trouble selecting one activist, they can pick the person who is closest in age to them.
-Students can choose to go outside of the Padlet for information, but they should use the C.R.A.A.P. test for determining the validity of their source. A video explaining the test is linked in the Padlet.

SYNOPSIS: In this lesson, students create portraits of youth climate heroes.

SCIENTIST NOTES: The content of this lesson plan focuses on artistic techniques and uses climate activists as the inspiration. The activists’ stories and the video featured are accurate. Resources and the bulk of science information come from previous lesson plans in this series. This is recommended for teaching.

POSITIVES:
-Students will experience using real-world problems as the sources of their art-making.
-Students will use their art to impact others through education, influence, and inspiration.
-This lesson provides numerous choice-based approaches, from the content of the artwork, to the media used, to the composition and presentation of the work.

ADDITIONAL PREREQUISITES:
-This is lesson 3 of 3 in our 9th-12th grade Climate Heroes unit.
-Basic knowledge of drawing/painting art materials is required (such as pencil, colored pencil, pen, watercolor, acrylic, etc.). This lesson should only be attempted after students have some basic media familiarity.
-Basic understanding of elements of art/principles of design, composition, and use of thumbnails should be established prior to this lesson.
-Students should have some prior experience drawing facial features such as eyes, nose, mouth, etc.

DIFFERENTIATION:
-The timing of the lesson can be altered according to teacher preference.
-The Investigate section offers various supports for students about different art techniques. Teachers can eliminate or add to this depending on student ability.
-The Investigate section includes an advanced study of portrait composition that is 52 minutes long. It is sectioned into chapters, so teachers can select which clips are most relevant for their class.
-If students are overwhelmed with choice, teachers can assign a specific type of art media.