Energy and Climate Change
Provided by: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative|Published on: June 17, 2022|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: 9, 10, 11, 12
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Physics, Earth and Space Sciences, Mathematics
Authors: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
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 lesson plan teaches students the distinctions between energy and electricity and improves their data analysis skills.
- Students will explore graphs of data on the United States' generation and consumption of electricity and energy to help further differentiate the terms and to evaluate climate solutions.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- The student pages include a glossary of energy sources and if each is considered low CO2 or renewable.
- The Educator Guide includes student objectives, standards, skills addressed, what students should already know, a table of contents with time stamps, and other helpful information to effectively teach the lesson.
- Students make future predictions based on the data.
Additional Prerequisites
- Teachers can download the full Educator Guide as a PDF at the top of the page.
- Teachers can scroll down to separately download the teacher pages, student pages, and tips for using the Educator Guide.
Differentiation
- Try assigning the podcast as homework, as it directly addresses misconceptions around using energy and electricity interchangeably, while the worksheet dives deeper into the data on electricity and energy and can be completed during class in groups.
- Before teaching the lesson, students can make a prediction about the difference between electricity and energy, and then update their responses after the lesson or podcast.
- Students can identify which sectors produce the most CO2 and propose policies for the United States based on the graphs they explore in the lesson.
- Other resources related to these topics include this lesson on the electric grid as it relates to climate change, this interactive map on global access to electricity, and this video on the amount of clean electricity needed to reach net-zero emissions by 2050.
This resource is a full lesson plan and includes a short (~5 minute) podcast that examines the difference between energy and electricity. Namely, energy is a catch-all for various forms of energy (heat, electricity, etc.) while electricity is a specific example of energy. Energy is neither created nor destroyed but could be transformed from one form to the other. This resource is intended to ensure that listeners understand the disparity, the process and how energy is produced, transmitted and consumed. In addition, the resource contains educator guide for students to map, analyze and interpret the US energy and electricity data, and also gain deep insights to articulate policies for a just transition to clean energy. This resource is recommended for classroom.
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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