Classroom Activities

Please check out the following links for resources you can use in your classroom. You can also search all available resources. If you are a member of NESTA, you can submit resources to share with others, as well as save resources you'd like to use in "My NESTA". If you're not a member of NESTA, join NESTA today.

  • An Exploration of Global Oil Spill Disasters
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    With the record oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, Google Earth allows for a global exploration of oil spills in history.

  • Carbon Dioxide - Sources and Sinks
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    Students will use a chemical indicator (BTB) to detect the presence of carbon dioxide.

    * Students will be able to explain the concept of 'sources' and 'sinks' as they relate to carbon dioxide.

    * Students will understand the use of an indicator solution (BTB) to reveal the presence of carbon dioxide.

    * Students will understand the qualitative differences between animal and fossil fuel sources of global carbon dioxide.

  • Chandra X-Ray Observatory Educational Materials
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    Visit this website for a plethora of activities related to x-ray astronomy and stellar evolution. These creative activities can be used as individual activities, but when combined, they make a complete unit in astronomy minus a chapter on the solar system.

  • Charles Burrows' Earth Science Teaching resources
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    Charles Burrows (Spring Valley High School, NY) has created a great variety of classroom enhancement resources. These include animations, videos, and a lot of other excellent classroom activities.

  • Classroom Activities for Teaching About the Poles and the Cryosphere from Windows to the Universe
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    Windows to the Universe and other educational programs of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research Office of Education and Outreach invite you to explore Earth's polar regions with your students via activities for the classroom. Listed below are polar science activities that we have developed.

  • Differences between Climate and Weather
    Classroom Activities
    Website
    Understanding and interpreting local weather data and understanding the relationship between weather and climate are important first steps to understanding larger-scale global climate changes. In this activity, students will collect weather data over several days or weeks, graph temperature data, and compare the temperature data collected with averaged climate data where they live.
  • Glaciers: Then and Now
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    An activity for upper elementary and middle school level. Students match photographs of Alaskan glaciers from the early part of this century with photographs that were taken at the same locations within the last few years. They record what in the photographs has stayed the same and what has changed before a group discussion about the current state of alpine glaciers.

  • Graphing Sea Ice Extent in the Arctic and Antarctic
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    A classroom activity for grades 5-12 where students graph sea ice extent (area) in both polar regions (Arctic and Antarctic) over a three-year period to learn about seasonal variations and over a 25-year period to learn about longer-term trends.

  • Growing Penguins Timeline
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    An activity for upper elementary and middle school level. Students match written descriptions of stages of Adelie penguin growth with photographs of penguins at different stages and then construct a timeline of Adelie penguin development. An excellent activity for emphasizing literacy skills in the science classroom.

  • Living During the Little Ice Age
    Classroom Activities
    Website

    In this lesson from the Climate Discovery Teacher's Guide, appropriate for middle school level, students compare various records to understand what life was like in Europe during the height of the Little Ice Age.