Climate Change and the Water Cycle

10-hour Unit
Target audience: 6th-12th Grade Students
Increased temperatures and altered precipitation will make water, a limited resource in the arid southwestern United States, even scarcer in many locations. With the aim of fostering climate literacy in our future citizens, we partnered with the USDA Southwest Climate Hub to create an engaging, fun, and scientifically rigorous education unit for 6-12th grade students. It is aligned with Common Core State Standards and Next Generation Science Standards.
Click the icons below to watch brief instructional videos to learn how to conduct select lessons from the Climate Change and the Water Cycle Unit.
INSULATING
Insulating You, Insulating Earth: Examining the Enhanced Greenhouse Effect
WATERORCLIMATE
Weather or Climate? You Decide!
UNDERSTANDING
Understanding the Difference: Do the American Public and Media Understand Weather and Climate?
EVAPORATION
Evaporation Investigation setup
The Water Cycle Game 
 
Streams and Steam: Effects of Climate Change on the Water Cycle
 
ReadySetGrowEducatorGuide
Ready, Set, Grow: How Does Climate Change Affect Primary Producers?
 
RainoutSheltersEducatorGuide
Rainout Shelters: How Does the Availability of Water Affect Plant Growth in the Desert?
 
ClimateDataJamEducatorGuide
Climate Data Jam: Communicating Climate Data to Non-scientists
 
INSULATING
Spanish Handouts
 
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