Civics and Climate Action Learning Lab Lessons

Provided by: The Climate Initiative

Lesson Plans Grades 9-12

Synopsis

In this six-lesson unit, students will learn about climate policy and what it means for them locally.
Students will build their background knowledge about climate policy, analyze case studies regarding policy through sociocultural, economic, and ecological lenses, write their own case studies, interpret data regarding public opinion on climate change, create proposals for local climate policy, interview community members for local context for climate change, and research policies in other locations that could solve a local problem.
This is a companion resource for the Student Lab.

Related Teaching Resources

Subjects: Science, Civics

Authors: The Climate Initiative

Region: Global, Maine

Languages: English

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Teaching Materials

Positives

Participating in the development of an action project will give students a sense of agency and ownership in solving the climate crisis.
This unit emphasizes localizing the data and information for students, making the context for learning as relevant for students as possible.

Prerequisites

The teacher slide presentations are optional, but they provide valuable directions and context for the activities.
Students should be familiar with reading and interpreting graphs, citing evidence to support claims, and a general idea of the political process.
The link to another activity to use with students on slide 12 is broken.
The link to the slide containing the rubric for the action project is for a deleted slide. The rubric can be found on slide 40

Differentiation & Implementation

If time permits, teachers can use this lesson to guide an exploration of En-ROADS after Lesson 1.
Students with low reading stamina may need extra time to read the case study and guidance for close reading.
If local policies or data are available, teachers can use these during the data analysis lesson to localize the concepts.
For Lessons 5 and 6, teachers may find the Policy Toolkits helpful in guiding their research.

Scientist Notes

Teaching Tips

Standards

Resource Type and Format

About the Partner Provider

The Climate Initiative

The Climate Initiative is a nonpartisan, science-based climate change organization based in Kennebunkport, Maine whose mission is to empower youth voices for climate action. Through national education and empowerment initiatives, youth are learning about climate solutions and becoming agents of change in their communities and beyond. Learn more about TCI by connecting with us on Instagram, Facebook and Twitter.