If you help children connect with their environment and community, add your voice here: 2026 Census of Community-Based Environmental Learning

Decoding the Data

Lesson Plans

Grades6, 7, 8, 9, 10Science, Social Studies, Mathematics

This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
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What it is

  • In this activity, students interpret graphical data from the Yale Program on Climate Change's Six Americas Super Short Survey and answer questions about the information.
  • The activity includes a PDF for educators that contains lesson objectives, tips, and an answer key.

Teaching tips

Positives
  • The student worksheet PDF is a fillable form, so students can type their answers directly in the answer blanks.
  • The student worksheet contains questions that require critical thinking and thoughtful reflection.
  • This activity will work well as a written activity, a discussion, or both.
Prerequisites
  • Teachers may want to go over the Global Warming's Six Americas with the class before starting the activity.
  • Teachers may want to share the student worksheet electronically so that students can click on the links.
Differentiation & Implementation
  • Art classes can use question #15 from the student worksheet as a prompt for artwork. Students could look at Jill Pelto's artwork for inspiration.
  • After completing the activity, students can give the Six Americas Super Short Survey to their family members, friends, or other members of their community to see which audience they fall into.
  • Other resources on this topic include this data analysis activity on coral bleaching and this SubjectToClimate lesson plan that teaches students how scientists and mathematicians use data and statistics to understand climate change.

From the scientist review

Using data from SASSY, this resource provides students with the opportunity to analyze and dissect graphical information. This is a qualitative method and this resource is recommended for teaching.
How we review resources

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Hosted on climatecommunication.yale.edu

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