What's Causing Sea Level Rise? Land Ice vs. Sea Ice
Videos
Grades2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8Earth and Space Sciences, Engineering
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 →
Provided by NASA
What it is
- In this experiment, students construct models to determine if land or sea ice contributes more to sea level rise.
- Students monitor melting ice cubes and rising water levels in their models. Then, they record data and evaluate their predictions.
Teaching tips
Positives
- There is a student project page to walk students through the experiment with a helpful video tutorial.
- This experiment requires minimal materials.
Additional Prerequisites
- The teacher will need to freeze ice cubes ahead of time and use a tray that ensures they are uniform.
- Students should understand climate change and how it contributes to melting ice and sea level rise.
- It may benefit students to discuss how sea level rise impacts coastal communities.
- Spanish subtitles are available for the video tutorial.
- Students should know how to use a ruler and keep track of time in minutes.
Differentiation
- Teachers can discuss other implications caused by fast-melting ice, such as flooding, drought, and positive feedback loops.
- To make writing connections, have students write down their hypotheses and support them with evidence and reasoning.
- Teachers can make math connections by having students graph their data from the student worksheet.
From the scientist review
This resource is from the CLEAN collection. “The CLEAN collection is hand-picked and rigorously reviewed for scientific accuracy and classroom effectiveness.”
Ready to use it?
Hosted on jpl.nasa.gov
Want this to fit your class?
Add your location for local examples, questions, and action ideas.
