Green Roof Teacher’s Guide K-5
Provided by: NYC Audubon|Published on: March 10, 2025|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5
Type: Activity - Outdoors
Subjects: Science
Authors: Vicki Sando
Location: North America > United States > New York > New York
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 →
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 →
Synopsis
- This collection of activities from NYC Audubon will support students in understanding, exploring, and designing green roofs.
- The activities are designed with the Kingsland Wildflowers at Broadway Stages and focus on New York-specific information.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- Students will get to know the native wildlife and plants in a hands-on way, which is especially great for students in urban areas.
- With the wide variety of activities and topics, elementary teachers can easily find something that fits seamlessly into their curriculum.
Prerequisites
- Some of the links to additional resources at the beginning of the guide and throughout it are broken.
- To do the activities at the Kingsland Wildflowers at Broadway Stages, as described in the lesson, teachers can use the educational tours page on their website to schedule a tour with their classroom.
Differentiation & Implementation
- Many of the activities take place on green roofs. If teachers don't have access to green roofs, they can easily do most of the activities in any green space near the school.
- Students can discuss the necessity for green roofs, citing them as a solution to things like biodiversity loss and the urban heat island effect. Students can discuss climate change and brainstorm reasons and strategies that make green roofs a climate change solution.
- When learning about the birds and habitats supported by New York green roofs, first-grade students can use the resource Songbirds of New York to get to know some of the native bird species.
- As Kindergarten students learn about butterflies and their needs, teachers may want to use the read-aloud activity Leo's Colorful Story.
- In the biomimicry activity for fourth-grade students, teachers may want to give students a specific problem or design challenge to guide their biomimicry solutions hunt.
This resource describes green roofs, their history, and their benefits. The information focuses on New York City, but green roofs can be found all over the world. Activities are provided for multiple grade levels. All activities focus on green roofs, however, students will also learn about a related concept (ex.patterns) that will help them understand the climate and environment around them. The information presented is accurate and this resource is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
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