Climate Change Curriculum Resources

Climate change is one of the most pressing challenges of our time, impacting ecosystems, economies, and communities. As the science of climate change evolves, it is essential that students gain the knowledge to understand its causes, effects, and the role they can play in addressing it. New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Climate Change Education encourage critical thinking and action, focusing on climate science, sustainability, and environmental justice. These standards help students grasp the impacts of climate change and prepare them to engage in future solutions.

To support the integration of climate change education, the New Jersey Climate Change Education Hub was launched by a coalition of organizations, including SubjectToClimate, Sustainable Jersey, the New Jersey School Boards Association, The College of New Jersey School of Education, New Jersey Audubon, and the National Wildlife Federation, and. This resource is designed to help educators teach climate change across grade levels and subjects.

The Hub includes:

Highlighted Resources

Funded by a grant from the New Jersey Department of Education Sustainable Jersey worked with partners to develop new, interdisciplinary units that address subject area standards and integrate climate change education for elementary and secondary classrooms.

Elementary Interdisciplinary Units

In partnership with SubjectToClimate and funded by a grant from the Department of Education, Sustainable Jersey developed 18 interdisciplinary units to support elementary school classrooms in implementing the New Jersey Student Learning Standards for Climate Change Education. Each unit includes three lessons that address climate change concepts, emphasize standards-based instruction, and integrate supporting standards from multiple content areas.

K-2 Units

• Art Unit: Animals and the Changing Climate
• ELA Unit: Human Impact on Biomes
• Math and Weather Unit
• Performing Arts Weather Unit
• Social Studies Unit: Stay Cool on the Playground
• Spanish Language Unit: Biomas de los ríos
• Spanish Math Unit: Gráfica del estado del tiempo
• Spanish Language Unit: Mantente fresco
• Stay Cool ELA Unit

3-5 Units

• ELA Unit: Animal Adaptation in Literary Genres
• Green Transportation: ELA Unit
• Habitats and Changing Climate
• Math Unit Plan: Big Trees and Erosion
• Social Studies Unit Plan: Lighthouses
• Spanish Unit: La energía renovable
• Spanish Unit: La tortuga marina
• Wind Energy and Fractions: Math Unit Plan
• Unidad de matemáticas: Erosión costera

Secondary Interdisciplinary Units

Integrating Climate Change into Curriculum using New Jersey Resources and Datasets

Developed by Sustainable Jersey and the Rutgers Center for Mathematics, Science, and Computer Education, this resource provides guidance on incorporating state-specific climate-related resources into OpenSciEd's 7th-grade Unit 7.6, Earth's Resources and Human Impact. These place-based learning opportunities connect climate change concepts to the real-world impacts on students’ communities and New Jersey.

Access the full resource here.

The Benefit of Trees: A 15-20 Hour Project-Based Learning Unit

This free, interdisciplinary unit examines the environmental, social, and ecological benefits of trees. Designed for middle or high school sustainability or environmental science electives, it can also be used as a summer program. The training includes ready-to-use lesson plans, presentations, and student materials. Through active, inquiry-based learning, students will engage in data collection, analysis, and discussions to understand how trees address climate change. Topics include urban heat islands, carbon sequestration, equitable access to green spaces, and the positive impact of increasing tree canopy coverage on communities.

Access the full curriculum resource here.