How Does Climate Change Work?
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Provided by: Suzie Hicks the Climate Chick & Sprout|Published on: May 16, 2025
Lesson PlansScientist Reviewed
K12
Scientist Reviewed 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 lesson from Suzie Hicks the Climate Chick & Sprout, students learn where some greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide and methane) come from, how greenhouse gases trap heat in the atmosphere, and some of the effects of climate change.
- Students play a game of hot and cold to find the sun, watch a short video about the greenhouse effect and climate change, and color a "happy" Earth versus a "hothouse" Earth.
Subjects: Science
Authors: Suzie Hicks the Climate Chick & Sprout
Region: Global
Languages: English
Teaching Materials
Positives
- This lesson explains fundamental science concepts in ways that young learners can access.
- Students engage in different kinds of learning activities in this well-paced lesson.
- This lesson provides SEL opportunities for students to process climate emotions.
Prerequisites
- The lesson does not provide a link to the video needed for the main lesson. You can find the video on YouTube here.
- The lesson does not provide the printables needed for the lesson. You can find them here.
- Materials needed: cardboard cut into circles, markers or colored pencils, glue sticks or glue, paper clips, and string.
Differentiation & Implementation
- This is the second lesson in a series to teach young learners about climate change.
- Learning about climate change can bring up strong emotions for students. This resource can help teachers have these conversations with students.
- This lesson on clean energy can be used as a follow-up to discuss solutions to climate change with students in more depth.
The resource explores the greenhouse effect, key greenhouse gases that impacts significantly on the climate system, including the energy budget concept and why an overheated atmosphere (Hothouse earth) could cause weather disturbances and extreme conditions. 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 →
