Lesson Plans
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Written to meet the Georgia Performance Standards (GPS), these lessons are creative, interactive and provide both students and educators with a comprehensive look at air quality. Lessons cross several subject areas including Health, Physical Science, Life Science, Earth Science, Social Studies, Language Arts and Environmental Science. Grade levels range from 3-12.
The lesson plans link to the Department of Education Web site for the complete set of plans. This includes the standards, background materials and the actual lesson. A streamlined version of the lesson plans will be available on this site soon. Please check back!
If you have questions about the lesson plans, please contact us.
3rd Grade
Hazy Days (coming soon)
To learn more about particulate matter, students play a game in which cilia try to protect lungs from particles.
4th Grade
Monitoring Air Pollution (coming soon)
Using homemade particulate matter collectors, students analyze pollution from various school locations.
5th Grade
The Six Infamous Air Pollutants (also meets 8th grade standards)
A mock press conference helps students learn and categorize each of the six major air pollutants.
Traffic Jams
Students explore how vehicles contribute to air pollution through the use of equations, data collection and graphing.
Green Vehicles
Students research new technologies to reduce vehicle emission and then create presentations to market those vehicles that feature their favorite air pollution solutions.
6th Grade
Air Pollution and Electrical Energy Production (also meets 8th grade standards)
In this investigation of pollution created through the production of electricity, students build a water wheel to explore hydropower as an alternative energy source.
What Do Light Bulbs Have to do with Air Pollution (also meets 8th grade standards)
Students conduct a home energy audit and calculate the impact of energy conservation where they live.
7th Grade
Every Breath You Take
After learning the part of the respiratory system, students make a working lung model, then modify it to demonstrate air pollution-induced health effects..
Lung Power and Air Pollution
Students decipher the Air Quality Index (AQI) by analyzing data, building a device to measure lung capacity and comparing results between days with good and bad air quality.
8th Grade
The Properties of Air
Students explore by building air cannons, heating air-filled ballons, separating hydrogen and oxygen from water, observing air as it is released from plants and testing for the presence of carbon dioxide.
The Chemistry of Air Pollution
Students play the computer game "Planet Polluto" and simulate chemical reactions in a game of ozone tag.
9th-12th Grades
Ozone: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly
Experiments using sunscreen and UV-detecting beads help students distinguish between ground-level ozone and stratospheric ozone. Students can also create "smog in a jar."
Heat Islands
Students get hands-on experience by measuring the temperature above different types of outdoor surfaces.