Resources: For Teachers and Students
Last Update: 10.20.2021
10.20.21_2 The following is a resource explaining the physical concepts and the math used for calculating the passage of radiation through the earth's atmosphere and thus the greenhouse effect. It is mainly intended for college teachers and their students in physics, earth sciences or applied math. But it may also be suitable for advanced high school students and for readers with some acquaintance with basic calculus. But I hope it will be useful for readers without such a background as well. To read it, click on : radtransf.pdf This file contains a reference to the resource immediately below this one which I urge readers to consult.
10.20.21_1 The following link gives a very readable and authoritative article on the greenhouse effect and the role of infrared radiation in controlling the temperature of the Earth, as well as Venus and Mars. It is written by one of the world's experts on the topic, Dr. Raymond Pierrehumbert, and was originally published in the April 2011 issue of Physics Today. To read it, click here:
pierreh_physcstoday_radtransfer.pdf
10.15.21 A resource for parents and teachers of primary grade children: Activities for Environmentally Friendly Living:
Reader Mykael Ray kindly sent the following resource for involving chlldren and their parents or teachers in sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. While it is written for parents of children, it can equally well be used by teachers as part of hands-on school activities.There are seven different topics: Recycling, Reducing Waste, Reusing Items, Water Conservation, Energy conservation, Composting, and "Product Sourcing" (i.e. choosing the companies from whom you purchase goods and service who themselves practice these same things.) In each of these topics you will find "general tips"--specific actions to take--and also tips on how to get children involved.
Thank you Mykael.
To access this resource, click on:
www.mrrooter.ca/about/blog/2021/january/how-to-be-environmentally-friendly-in-a-home-wit/
* * * *
A college student's guide on how to live sustainably on campus (while remaining within their budget) :https://couponfollow.com/research/sustainability-guide. Provided by Lucas, a concerned member of a Scout troop who found this resource page useful and wanted to contribute. Thank James (Scout leader), and Lucas!
Here is a link to a video, and the transcript to it, sent by a reader whose daughter had discovered it as part of a student project. The link is Greenhouse gas emissions Standards in the United States. it deals with the emissions standards for cars that both states and the federal government have enacted. See the 2nd paragraph of the 7/24/18 Recent Websites Update page for the context of this video and an important numerical correction.
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Teachers who have a science unit on Climate Science and Climate Change might be interested in this innovative
suggestion for student group projects. An old Astronomy colleague sent me the attached paper on which her daughter,
Susan Lynds, was a co-author. It was published in the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)
Science Scope magazine Vol 41 #2 October 2017. Students work in groups to produce short films about the impact
that climate change is having in their communities, interview local experts or officials in their communities. In the
process they learn climate science basics, group skills, basic research procedures and responsible journalism.
I don’t have a way of judging what age group this idea is most suited for, and I think it requires quite a bit of pre-planning
on the part of the teacher, but with the availability of cell phone and tablet video capabilities I am guessing that middle school
through 9th and 10th grade classes could do this. This project could certainly be integrated into the Next Generation Science
Standards curriculum described at the end of the paper. If you feel, as I do, that science literacy and critical thinking
are crucial for students and you know of teachers who might be interested, please pass this on to them.
In any case, look at some of the videos in the “Resources” appended to the paper. Look especially at the following, about “Steroids and Baseball”, not a student production but done by scientists at the University of Colorado. It is very clever: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW3b8jSX7ec
Here is the link to the paper. Enjoy
http://common.nsta.org/resource/?id=10.2505/4/ss17_041_02_86
Virginia 3rd grade teacher Alberta Ferris kindly called my attention to a wonderful resource for teachers who are doing a unit on weather, Air & Water: Weather Forecasting for Kids (link below), on which you will find 15 links to further teaching resources about the weather. I think they are suitable for both elementary and middle school classes. Since the primary focus of my website is climate science education I immediately checked out A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change (link below), which has further links to explore various topics in more depth, including an excellent short video. My only mild criticism would be that I wish there were a segment explaining a little more explicitly the difference between "weather" and "climate" since these concepts are often confused in the minds of adults as well as children. All in all, however, these are great resources and thanks to Alberta Ferris for bringing these sites to my attention.
A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change
"his is part of a website provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The main site: Here is a very good source
of information for adults about climate change.
Air & Water: Weather Forecasting for Kids
Teacher Patty Nevlin and her students suggest the following article having excellent links to climate change, energy and waste reduction and recycling information designed for use by children.
NASA Climate Kids NASA's Eyes on the Earth
A great NASA website for children.
The resources here are from the Climate Portal of the Universal-Universalist United Nations Office:
- Climate Resources for Teachers
- Kids' Climate Corner
- Education, IPCC, Videos: Science, Impacts, Mitigation, Models, Data
Global Warming is Hot Stuff Part of the "Environmental Education for Kids" (EEK) series.
10.20.21_1 The following link gives a very readable and authoritative article on the greenhouse effect and the role of infrared radiation in controlling the temperature of the Earth, as well as Venus and Mars. It is written by one of the world's experts on the topic, Dr. Raymond Pierrehumbert, and was originally published in the April 2011 issue of Physics Today. To read it, click here:
pierreh_physcstoday_radtransfer.pdf
10.15.21 A resource for parents and teachers of primary grade children: Activities for Environmentally Friendly Living:
Reader Mykael Ray kindly sent the following resource for involving chlldren and their parents or teachers in sustainable and environmentally friendly practices. While it is written for parents of children, it can equally well be used by teachers as part of hands-on school activities.There are seven different topics: Recycling, Reducing Waste, Reusing Items, Water Conservation, Energy conservation, Composting, and "Product Sourcing" (i.e. choosing the companies from whom you purchase goods and service who themselves practice these same things.) In each of these topics you will find "general tips"--specific actions to take--and also tips on how to get children involved.
Thank you Mykael.
To access this resource, click on:
www.mrrooter.ca/about/blog/2021/january/how-to-be-environmentally-friendly-in-a-home-wit/
* * * *
A college student's guide on how to live sustainably on campus (while remaining within their budget) :https://couponfollow.com/research/sustainability-guide. Provided by Lucas, a concerned member of a Scout troop who found this resource page useful and wanted to contribute. Thank James (Scout leader), and Lucas!
Here is a link to a video, and the transcript to it, sent by a reader whose daughter had discovered it as part of a student project. The link is Greenhouse gas emissions Standards in the United States. it deals with the emissions standards for cars that both states and the federal government have enacted. See the 2nd paragraph of the 7/24/18 Recent Websites Update page for the context of this video and an important numerical correction.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Teachers who have a science unit on Climate Science and Climate Change might be interested in this innovative
suggestion for student group projects. An old Astronomy colleague sent me the attached paper on which her daughter,
Susan Lynds, was a co-author. It was published in the National Science Teachers Association (NSTA)
Science Scope magazine Vol 41 #2 October 2017. Students work in groups to produce short films about the impact
that climate change is having in their communities, interview local experts or officials in their communities. In the
process they learn climate science basics, group skills, basic research procedures and responsible journalism.
I don’t have a way of judging what age group this idea is most suited for, and I think it requires quite a bit of pre-planning
on the part of the teacher, but with the availability of cell phone and tablet video capabilities I am guessing that middle school
through 9th and 10th grade classes could do this. This project could certainly be integrated into the Next Generation Science
Standards curriculum described at the end of the paper. If you feel, as I do, that science literacy and critical thinking
are crucial for students and you know of teachers who might be interested, please pass this on to them.
In any case, look at some of the videos in the “Resources” appended to the paper. Look especially at the following, about “Steroids and Baseball”, not a student production but done by scientists at the University of Colorado. It is very clever: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MW3b8jSX7ec
Here is the link to the paper. Enjoy
http://common.nsta.org/resource/?id=10.2505/4/ss17_041_02_86
Virginia 3rd grade teacher Alberta Ferris kindly called my attention to a wonderful resource for teachers who are doing a unit on weather, Air & Water: Weather Forecasting for Kids (link below), on which you will find 15 links to further teaching resources about the weather. I think they are suitable for both elementary and middle school classes. Since the primary focus of my website is climate science education I immediately checked out A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change (link below), which has further links to explore various topics in more depth, including an excellent short video. My only mild criticism would be that I wish there were a segment explaining a little more explicitly the difference between "weather" and "climate" since these concepts are often confused in the minds of adults as well as children. All in all, however, these are great resources and thanks to Alberta Ferris for bringing these sites to my attention.
A Student's Guide to Global Climate Change
"his is part of a website provided by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency.
The main site: Here is a very good source
of information for adults about climate change.
Air & Water: Weather Forecasting for Kids
Teacher Patty Nevlin and her students suggest the following article having excellent links to climate change, energy and waste reduction and recycling information designed for use by children.
NASA Climate Kids NASA's Eyes on the Earth
A great NASA website for children.
The resources here are from the Climate Portal of the Universal-Universalist United Nations Office:
- Climate Resources for Teachers
- Kids' Climate Corner
- Education, IPCC, Videos: Science, Impacts, Mitigation, Models, Data
Global Warming is Hot Stuff Part of the "Environmental Education for Kids" (EEK) series.