Climate Change and the Carbon Cycle

3-hour Unit

Target Audience: 9th-12th Grade Students

This unit was designed to introduce 9-12th grade students to climate change, the carbon cycle, and the effects of increasing atmospheric carbon dioxide on Earth’s climate. We partnered with the USDA Southwest Climate Hub to design this rigorous high-school level education unit aligned with Common Core State Standards and the three dimensions of the Next Generation Science Standards. This unit is freely available and intended for use by anyone, especially educators of 9-12th grade students. The unit consists of three activities and was designed to be conducted over four days. Each activity can also stand alone however, and the unit need not be completed in its entirety.

Click the icon below to watch a brief instructional video to learn how to conduct select lessons from the Climate Change and the Carbon Cycle Unit.