Students begin by exploring how consumer goods in their everyday lives produce greenhouse gases that contribute to climate change. Students investigate a variety of consumer goods, like water bottles and electronics. This prompts students to wonder about the steps of a consumer good’s life cycle: extraction of raw materials, manufacturing, transportation, use, and waste. Students investigate chemical reactions that occur during consumer goods’ life cycles, including the combustion of fossil fuels, that produce gases that enter the atmosphere. Simulations allow students to observe how greenhouse gases contribute to the recent increase in Earth’s average surface temperatures.
Using mathematical representations, students calculate which consumer good life cycle contributes the most greenhouse gases to the atmosphere. Students use engineering principles to explore solutions for greenhouse gas emissions in the consumer good life cycle. The unit culminates with students redesigning one or more steps in the life cycle of consumer goods and creating a plan to implement their solution.
“I truly enjoyed teaching this. It has been heartwarming to see them care about other living things and the environment.”
“Students were curious and continue to be curious. They are more aware of their surroundings than before and continue to point out observations daily.”
“This did a great job of piquing students’ interest and sparking opposing points of view, which created lively discussions on the topic.”
“WOW! What incredible and engaging lessons to do with my students. They loved this opportunity to be scientists, explore and think about the food they eat, and I loved the ways that they began to model. I am so excited about these lessons and cannot wait to share them with my coworkers.”
“I love how the data was more interactive and chunked into smaller pieces. I also like how there was a way to bring all the knowledge and wondering back to come up with a conclusion to the problem.”
“I heard comments like, ‘I didn’t realize how much climate change affects my community,’ and, ‘This project made me think about what I can do to help.'”
“This lesson brought in cultural stories from the original people who inhabited California. This is a perspective that is not often taught in science. I think that the kids liked having science be a little less facts and figures and more story.”
“Students really enjoyed the hands-on activity. They were very interested to learn about the different pollutants that they’ve never heard of. It also developed their curiosity about air quality and pollution. It was an eye-opener for some that they are able to see what is mostly ‘unseen’ by everyone.”
“Using the maps and seeing things like schools and how close they are to hazards is really cool. They may not be super connected personally, but they can put themselves in the shoes of other kids and try to relate. I know it’s working because I have a kid that just watches Netflix all day, every day and he pulled out his earbud and participated!”
“They’ve never thought about stuff like this before, and now they’re sharing it. One girl said this was the only class that she went home and talked to her parents about.”
“Every lesson was so thoroughly designed, the case study design book was beautifully organized, and it helped to give my class a real-life understanding of how college/graduate-level academic research works. Being able to connect their research back to environmental issues they actually experience was simply icing on the cake. Well done!”
“I am so amazed and impressed by the depth of resources that you embedded in the teacher guide. This is really well put together.”
Sylvie Kademian, Curriculum Developer
Jenny Kostka, Curriculum Developer
Susan Lyons, Curriculum Developer
Josh Paschedag, Curriculum Developer
Crystal Howe, San Diego COE
Kelly Meade, Long Beach USD
Milton Reynolds, Steering Committee
Mackenzie Clark, Curriculum Developer
Matt Ellinger, Designer
Sara Krauskopf, Curriculum Developer
Stacey Lane, Illustrator
Ladie Malek, Development Editor
Roger Palmer, GIS Etc
Sofia Safranek, Ten Strands
Rachel Weisbrot, Ten Strands
Craig Manges, Lemoore Union HSD
