Carbon Offset Lesson Plans

Just in case you happen to be doing a unit on Global Warming, I thought I'd pass along the link to the Carbon Offset Lesson Plans developed by Travelocity (at www.eco-bunnies.com).

These are free pdfs that you can download, organized by grade level, grade preK to grade 8. They put quite a lot of work into the plans -- they are about 30 pages long and contain background teacher information as well as a sample letter to go home to parents at the beginning of the unit. There are also lots of activities. If you are looking for some ideas to complement a global warming or climate change discussion, check these lesson plans out. The "Home Energy Survey" is a particularly good activity, giving the amount in costs per hour (in cents) to run common household appliances like computer, dishwasher, oven, ceiling fan, and so on. Then students estimate the average number of hours per day this appliance is used in their family, and multiply to find the cost per week, per month, and per year. This helps them get an idea of their overall annual energy consumption.

I am considering using the Grade 2 curriculum in my classroom in April around Earth Day.