• Submitted By: Christine Thompson
• Resource Type: Lesson Plan
• Subject:
  • Mathematics
  • Environmental Studies
• Topic:
  • Climate Change
• Level:
  • Secondary

Web Pages Used

• Polar Bears on Climate Change Video
• CO2 concentration Full Data Set

Attachments

• CO2 concentration vs. Time Graph
• Dataset
• Ontario Curriculum Connections

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Description

This lesson explores linear relationships through analyzing the data set of measured CO2 concentration in parts per million in the in Mauna Loa – Hawaii vs. time

It connects to Tread Lightly lesson 1.1 - Our Changing Climate

Time Required: 1 class

 

Learning Objectives

By the end of the lesson students will:

- Gain and understanding of the meaning behind the points on a graph
- Describe trends and relationships observed in data
- Determine values of a linear relation by using a table of values, by using the equation of the relation, and by interpolating or extrapolating from the graph of the relation.

Teaching Process

Part A - Hook students with topic of climate change with provided video and short discussion on what is causing climate change.

Part B - Graphing Data

Part C - Further questioning activity

Teeachers Notes

Part A -

a) Hook – show students video on climate change: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_Zo7wTOdc_M&feature=related
This video is a comical video about the causes of climate change.

b) Open discussion with student about climate change, what do they know about it?
Think/Pair/Share – ask students to think about what they know for 1 min, then talk about it with whomever is beside them for 1 min, then ask students to share with the class their ideas.

c) Introduce the concept of greenhouse gases to students. Use these keys points
i) Greenhouse gases are gases in our atmosphere that trap the sun’s energy in the form of heat from escaping out to space
ii) Ask students if they know any greenhouse gases (they may have already identified some during the think/pair/share)
iii) Tell them one major greenhouse gas is carbon dioxide CO2 and its concentration has been increasing in the atmosphere since the industrial revolution.

Part B

a) Handout the table of values and graph paper and have students plot the points making sure they (10min):

i) Have labeled the x and y axis with the correct variable (dependent vs. independent)
ii) Have an appropriate scale
iii) Have titled their graph

b) As a class take up the plot together by either doing your own on the overhead/chalkboard/smart board with students, having them instruct you how to plot the point (15-25mins)

OR

Having one already made to project or show on overhead/chalkboard/smartboard.

c) Engage the students by asking the following questions

i) Do you plots look the same as mine? Why or why not?

ii) What is the independent variable?

iii) What is the dependent variable?

iv) What is the difference between them?

v) What does the data point (1964, 322.23) mean?

vi) What does data point (1980, 344.70) mean?

vii) What was data point (1992, 359.15) mean?

viii) What is the general trend in the data? Draw the line of best fit

d) Leave the students to find the slope of the line of best fit using two points (10-15min)

e) Discuss with students what the slope of this particular line means (CO2 levels rise by so much every 4 years)

Part C

For the rest of the class period and/or homework, ask the students to continue by finding the equation of the line of best fit and answer the following questions and take up as a class the following day:

i) Using the equation of the line of best fit, what is the concentration of CO2 in ppm in 1972? 1980? 1988?

ii) Are they different from the table of values? By how much? Why do you think this is?

iii) What year did was the concentration of CO2 365 ppm? Use the equation, and use your graph by inspection. How do the two numbers compare?

iv) Using the equation of the line of best fit, estimate what the concentration of CO2 will be in 2010? 2015? 2020?

v) Burning of fossil fuels is one reason CO2 concentrations have grown so much since data was recorded in the 1960s in this example. If you were to use this equation to figure out the concentration of CO2 in the early 1800s, do you think it would be correct? Why or why not?

 

Other Tools

- Graph Paper - Dataset handout - Projector/computer to show final graph and use with students to answer questions - Internet to show introductory video