In this activity, students will observe the effect of the gases resulting from a burned fossil fuel on the heat absorption of air and determine the ability of phytoplankton to remove greenhouse gases from the atmosphere. This activity is part of a set of three activities exploring the effects of phytoplankton on water and air. Full description.

In this activity, students will use pre-marked paper strips to simulate tree-ring core samples to help them understand that data for past climate changes can be gathered from sources beyond long-term weather observations. Students will be able to recognize the direct impact of climate on annual tree growth patterns. The student guide has an overall description of the activity, a list of materials, ... Full description.

In this activity students will simulate climate variability and come to understand that long-term climate averages are the result of significant annual climate variability. After this activity students will understand that long-term climate averages are the result of significant annual climate variability and be able to express the fact that random climate variability makes detecting climate change ... Full description.

This collection of K-12 activities covers the following science content areas: bioscience, communications, computers, earth and physical sciences, energy, math, oceanography, space, and transportation. Specific activities that may be classified under Earth system science include: Bringing the Greenhouse Effect Down to Earth, The Greenhouse Effect in a Jar, Slick Sea Spills, Ocean in a Bottle, People ... Full description.

This activity will provide students with first hand knowledge of local weather changes and how they relates to local climates. After this activity students will understand the general distinctions between weather and climate, that daily weather measurements are highly variable compared to long-term climate data, and appreciate the difficulty of identifying climate trends based on limited data. The ... Full description.

This activity has students explore the carbon cycle and learn to identify carbon sources, sinks, and release agents. They will come to understand that carbon is critical to the biosphere and must continue cycling to support life on earth. The instructor guide contains detailed background material, learning goals, alignment to national standards, grade level/time, details on materials and preparation, ... Full description.

In this activity, students import mean temperature data from the U.S. Historical Climatic Network (USHCN) into a spreadsheet program and use it to prepare graphs and calculate statistical measures and trends. It can be used in a course with climate change content or as an introduction to basic statistics. A tutorial on using Excel for basic statistics and an answer document are provided. Full description.