This series of activities demonstrates some effects of rising levels of greenhouse gases on climate. Specifically, it shows how an increase of heat-trapping gases in the atmosphere raises temperatures; higher temperatures affect the water cycle, and rising sea levels could affect coastal areas as a result of glacial and polar ice melt. Although these activities are designed to teach specific skills ... Full description.

This activity explores the potential impact of climate variability and change on one of Earth's increasingly vulnerable resources, forests. Although the activity is designed to tap specific skills and knowledge through scientific inquiry, its broader intent is to stimulate thought about the long-term impacts of a warmer planet. The scenario invites students to examine higher level issues of climate ... Full description.

This Classroom Connectors lesson plan discusses the survival needs of animals. Students learn about endangered species, identify some reasons why certain animals are endangered, and discover ways people can help animals survive. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The Classroom Connectors address content with an activity ... Full description.

This Classroom Connectors lesson plan teaches students about the importance of certain plants and animals within local communities. This includes agricultural and wildlife organisms, food chains, food webs, and the positive and negative effect humans have on the environment. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The ... Full description.

This tutorial explains the ecosystem of the Arizona Upland region of the Sonoran Desert and describes the plants and animals that live there. Students will discover the interactions of the living and non-living parts of the ecosystem. There is an interactive glossary within the text. Full description.

This tutorial explains the wetland ecosystem of the Everglades. Students will discover how living and nonliving parts of the ecosystem interact and the importance of habitats such as the saltwater environment of the Florida Bay, the coastal prairie, freshwater sloughs, pinelands, and mangrove forests. There is an interactive glossary within the text. Full description.

This Classroom Connectors lesson plan discusses habitats, including topics such as the food chain and habitat preservation. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The Classroom Connectors address content with an activity approach while incorporating themes necessary to raise the activity to a higher cognition level. ... Full description.

This Classroom Connectors lesson plan explains how each individual impacts the environment, and vice-versa. The site provides goals, objectives, an outline, time required, materials, activities, and closure ideas for the lesson. The Classroom Connectors address content with an activity approach while incorporating themes necessary to raise the activity to a higher cognition level. The major motivation ... Full description.

This page, from the University of Illinois Extension, has an animated cartoon designed to help young children (5-8 years of age) gain an appreciation of trees, observe trees in their every day lives and develop an interest in learning more about trees. It is intended for adults to work with children to explore the wonders of trees. It meets several of the Illinois statewide learning goals for second ... Full description.

This lesson investigates familiar and unfamiliar ecosystems using Internet resources. Students will explore how various organisms satisfy their needs within their environments. They will also study the kinds of relationships that exist between organisms within an environment. This lesson is the first in a two-part series on microorganisms. It is designed to be used in conjunction with the second lesson, ... Full description.