Greenhouse Gases and Climate Change
Provided by: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative|Published on: November 29, 2023|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: 9, 10, 11, 12
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Earth and Space Sciences, English Language Arts
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
- In this comprehensive lesson plan, students will explore the issues and circumstances surrounding the causes of climate change through hands-on demonstrations, modeling, listening to a podcast, and answering discussion questions.
- Students will evaluate the accuracy of greenhouse effect models, determine their preferred metaphor for this effect, and understand what makes a gas a greenhouse gas.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- Each section of the overall lesson has a timing guideline, a brief description, a materials list (if necessary), discussion questions, and specific steps for students.
- There are links for related teacher guides at the bottom of the web page.
- There is a helpful sidebar with links to several support resources.
Additional Prerequisites
- The resource includes a downloadable educator guide with links to a climate primer (climate knowledge for everyone), a series of climate explainers, and an online help desk. There is also information about using podcasts and discussing climate change in the classroom.
- Teachers will need to purchase hands-on materials for two demonstrations. There is a materials list in the educator guide.
- The podcast episode with a transcript is available here.
Differentiation
- Math teachers can also utilize this resource, specifically the activities "Greenhouse Effect In A Beaker" and "DIY Spectrophotometer and Carbon Dioxide" since students must complete a graph and table and analyze the data for each activity.
- Students in English classes read the one-page Explainers and then create objective summaries and subjective opinion paragraphs.
- Students can create artistic visualizations of the analogies used in the lesson to describe the greenhouse effect and infrared.
- Language arts students can discuss the purpose and evaluate the use of metaphors and similes in scientific explanations.
Two physical realities make the greenhouse effect possible: the molecular structure of gases in the atmosphere and the nature of electromagnetic radiation. This podcast episode and accompanying lesson plan explain how these shape climate change as we know it. Information in the resource is scientifically accurate. 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.
Learn about our review process →
