Students will collect data through a simulation game on deforestation and be able to describe how humans have impacted a simulated forest. Students will also learn about subsistence farming and its role in rain forest (primary) forest deforestation.

In this lesson, students will infer how human activities may impact the environment and consider an example of human impact by studying a research project where drones are used to make observations about the ocean and life forms living in the ocean.

In this lesson, students explore some of the issues affecting Yellowstone National Park. They will work in small groups to consider management issues that meet both of the conflicting mandates that the National Park Service must follow. After the investigation, students will be able to answer the question: How does the National Park Service attempt to balance the dueling mandates of preservation and use in complex dilemmas?

This lesson is about the flow of energy in ecosystems. The setting is Plimoth Plantation, a living history museum in Plymouth, Massachusetts, USA, where students will learn about the first Thanksgiving meal in America, celebrated in 1621 by early American settlers and Wampanoag Indians. By examining this meal and comparing it to a modern day Thanksgiving celebration, students will be able to explore the way in which food energy moves and is transformed in an ecosystem.

This blog is designed for North Carolina's K-12 teachers and students who are interested in the topic of energy and alternative energy (nuclear and renewables). This blog is maintained by Dana Haine, K-12 Science Education Manager for UNC-Chapel Hill's Institute for the Environment, with funding provided by Progress Energy.

In this lesson, students explore the role that environmental concerns play in political conflicts worldwide. Students will engage in an open discussion or organized debate of film and readings, concentrating on the question of whether environmental concerns ought to trump sovereignty concerns.

In this lesson, students explore the connections that can exist in a natural environment, and examine how changes to the environment, particularly those caused by human activity, can affect those connections.

This series of lessons focuses on the impacts - both positive and negative - that humans have on the oceans. In Lesson Plan 25, "Seals, Corals and Dollars...," students will study the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands ecosystem and research the environmental issues surrounding monk seals and precious corals of the region and the management of these species. In Lesson Plan 26, "Polar Bear Panic!" students will graphically analyze data on sea ice cover in the Arctic Ocean and discuss possible causes and effects of the trends in the data.

Students analyze a map to identify and describe the relationship between habitat loss, land cover, and indigenous territories. After analyzing the effects of human activity on the current map, students make a prediction about how railroad development may impact the rain forest ecosystem and distribution of indigenous populations.

Students explore the effects of human development on the Amazon rain forest in order to access valuable resources by analyzing the map Amazonia: The Human Impact. After analyzing effects due to mining and the construction of hydroelectric dams and oil and gas blocks, students write a proposal to protect an area that is at risk of being developed in the future.

Students will be able to explain developmental and migration patterns of salmon and apply that understand- ing to other migratory species.

In this lesson, students will understand that the forest is a renewable resource that is to be conserved and utilized. Students will learn the different management techniques that are currently being employed. Students will also discover how the forest impacts their everyday life.

This lesson plan supplements the multimedia resource, part of the NC Science Now series, which describes the restoration of historic Pinehurst #2 golf course, site of the 2014 U.S. Open. In this lesson, students will identify grasses and other plants that are native to North Carolina, and compare them to popular non-native plants. They will also identify and explain the advantages of using native plants for a golf course.

In this case study, students will be introduced to active conservation work going on in Africa. Set against the restoration of war-torn Gorongosa National Park in Mozambique, The Guide tells the story of a young man from the local community who discovers a passion for science after meeting world-renowned biologist E.O. Wilson. Produced by Academy Award winning filmmaker Jessica Yu, the film weaves themes in conservation biology and environmental science, the value of scientific mentorship, and the social and economic realities of wilderness restoration. The film and accompanying resources serve as a case study in ecology and conservation biology.

In this role-playing activity, students take on the roles of members of a forest ecosystem to illustrate the challenges facing endangered species, environmental stewards and economic interests.

Students will learn how wildlife conservationists in Costa Rica are teaming up with law enforcement to catch poachers by using 3D-printed plastic eggs with GPS trackers. Using the invention process, students will research different ways to curb poaching of wildlife and design their own prototypes to help solve this global issue.

This brief video lesson discusses how the impacts that humans have made have become so pervasive, profound, and permanent that some geologists believe we merit our own epoch. Discussion/assessment questions and suggested supplemental resources are also included.

This activity can be used as a way to introduce students to human impact or as a follow-up once essential standard 2.2 has been covered in class. This activity works best if done by groups of 2-3 students. People have many misconceptions about the Earth and things that affect the Earth. For this project, students will identify one misconception people have about the Earth or environment and work in a group to create a video/brochure/online media that can be published to address this misconception. A misconception isn’t a factual error or indication that a person is not educated; it is a misunderstanding about how something works. This lesson was developed by NCDPI as part of the Academically and/or Intellectually Gifted Instructional Resources Project. This lesson plan has been vetted at the state level for standards alignment, AIG focus, and content accuracy.

Students will investigate the diversity of resources present within the cloud forest and how humans could benefit from this rich ecosystem. A debate structure is provided, through which students will discuss the role that humans should play in utilizing the cloud forest ecosystem of Monteverde, Costa Rica.

In this activity, students will use trail camera data to answer a scientific research question about the impacts of humans on species diversity in Gorongosa.