Science Partnership for Global Change Education
In-class activities
Rising Air Temperatures
These hands-on student activities explore the idea that air temperatures are increasing globally, but are not equally heating Earth with some areas heating up more than others. The first activity has students plot temperature data from Sacramento, CA, while the other two exercises focus on why certain places heat up more than others depending on the reflectivity of the Earth’s surfaces (dark versus lighter landscapes) and what material covers the Earth’s surface (plants, water, or human-made structures).
1. In this data driven activity, students will investigate temperature trends in Sacramento, CA. As part of this jigsaw style activity, each student will plot one decade of temperature data, which will be compiled into a century long climate record.
2. In this simple hands-on activity students will explore how color affects how heat is absorbed or reflected by using infrared thermometers to measure the temperature of various colors. This activity provides the foundations for why albedo (reflectivity) is an important component of the climate system since it is part of the ice-albedo feedback loop (explained the the video and slides in this section).
3. In this activity student will explore their school campus taking surface temperature measurements of various surfaces using infrared thermometers. The results will help students understand why urban areas heat up more, faster and cool down more slowly at night. The activity will also help students develop ideas about would help keep cities (or school campuses) cooler and mitigate the urban heat island effect. It helps to have a large campus map printed out so that students can plot their temperatures directly on the map to observe trends.