Environmental Science

Conservatree is an organization that offers expert advice and leadership on paper choices. In their "Learn More" section, one can read about papermaking, the environmental issues that arise due to the papermaking industry, recycling, the truth behind some of the myths of recycled paper, and a section with suggestions on what you can do to promote more environmentally-friendly papers.

Water on the Web (WOW) helps college and high school students understand and solve real-world environmental problems using advanced technology. WOW is a complete package containing two sets of curricula, data from many lakes and rivers nationwide, extensive online primers, data interpretation and Geographic Information System Tools, and additional supporting materials.

NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries is offering classrooms throughout the United States the opportunity to be involved in an exciting and innovative educational program. The Ocean Guardian Classroom is an action-based program for classrooms related to the conservation of local watersheds, the world's ocean and special ocean areas, like marine sanctuaries. The program provides classrooms with activities and other opportunities to become involved in projects in their local community. Registration is required, but it is free.

The NCSE-NASA Interdisciplinary Climate Change Education Team is developing a curricular package on climate change based on a University of California Davis course taught by Professor Arnold Bloom. The curriculum includes modules that cover a wide range of topics relevant to climate change. Data produced by NASA is used to create data-driven modules focusing on ice core and recent climate change observations.

The mission of the U.S. Department of Energy's Workforce Development for Teachers and Scientists (WDTS) program is to provide a continuum of opportunities to students and teachers of science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM). WDTS programs include programs for teachers and for K-12 students, including the DOE National Science Bowl and the Albert Einstein Distinguished Educator Fellowship Program.

The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), a program of the U.S. Department of Energy, offers resources for K-12 students and teachers. Student programs seek to promote science, mathematics and technology education using renewable energy as the vehicle to capture student interest. Teachers are offered research and development opportunities to enhance their content knowledge, instructional strategies, and leadership abilities.

Classroom Energy is a fun web site created by the American Petroleum Institute. The website offers online, interactive games, activities and video tours as well as K-12 curricula and kits involving energy basics, oil and natural gas and energy, technology and the environment. Resources are organized by topic, media type and grade level. Visit the website to access the resources.

In this lesson plan from National Geographic Xpeditions, students learn the components of a wave, and then discuss the effects of wave height, wavelength and wave period in determining the overall size of a wave. The lesson plan is appropriate for grades 9-12 and adheres to National Geography Standards.

This curriculum guide from Data in the Classroom contains five activities for grades 6-8 that incorporate real data from NOAA. Students learn how to access and interpret sea surface height and tide data. The goal is for students to become experienced with these kinds of data and the tools for accessing them, so that by the end of the module, they can continue to explore data sets driven by their own inquiry. Activities tie to National Education Standards in mathematics, geography and science.

The Gulf of Mexico Deep-Sea Ecosystem Education Materials Collection, developed by NOAA's Office of Exploration and Research, is comprised of an Educators' Guide and 16 lesson plans on deep-sea ecosystems and exploration in the Gulf of Mexico. The lessons in this collection touch on physical science, life science and Earth science topics and offer many opportunities for cross-curricular activities involving social studies, language arts, mathematics and fine arts.