Computer Science Lesson Plans

Advancements in science and technology have gone hand in hand throughout history. Now, computer science supports work in the natural sciences more than ever, as everything from how the brain works to how the climate is changing requires advanced modeling. In 2021, the Nobel Prize in Physics was awarded for work contributing to our understanding of complex physical systems. One-half of the award was jointly given to Syukuro Manabe and Klaus Hasselmann “for the physical modeling of Earth’s climate, quantifying variability and reliably predicting global warming.” Studying climate change is an important application of computer science; it provides relevant real-world problems your students can tackle! SubjectToClimate has pulled together a list of eight computer science lesson plans that will help students see that computer science education is integral to solving the climate crisis.

In these lessons, students will encounter a range of climate change topics such as weather changes, pollution, and habitat loss. The following computer science resources cover topics from students in grades 3-12, including AP, and these free resources are sure to get students asking questions and making connections between computer science and climate change. 

Subjects: Science, Computer Science & Design Thinking, World Languages, Spanish, French, Russian, Arabic, Chinese, Other

Resource Type: Interactive Media

In this lesson, which is available in a variety of languages, students will work through video game-like modules as they use machine-learning techniques to teach a robot to clean up the ocean. Students will work to classify objects as either “fish” or “not fish” to determine which objects belong in the ocean. Next, students will expand their training data set and choose their own labels to apply to images of randomly generated fish. The goal is to introduce students to the fundamentals of computational thinking and machine learning and to explore how training data allows a machine learning model to classify new data.   

An in-depth lesson plan is provided, with teaching tips, discussion prompts, and important ideas to tease out. This makes the lesson easy to prepare for, with little burden on the teacher. This computer science lesson plan works well as an introduction to machine learning and will excite students and motivate them to learn more.    

The modules students work through are self-paced. Students can work independently or in groups. The role of the instructor is to provide guidance as students work through the modules. The opportunities for differentiation and flexibility in the lesson to focus on different aspects of computer science, such as ethics and bias, make this a great lesson for many different grade levels. Connections can be made to other ways artificial intelligence could be used to combat climate change issues like food waste.  

Subjects: Science, Social Studies, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Lesson Plan

Many students feel anxiety about the changing climate and how it will impact their futures. This computer science lesson gives students a chance to use their basic coding skills with Scratch to make the world a better place. This 60-minute tutorial is interactive and gives students a chance to be creative and solve problems that matter to them using computer science.   

This computer science lesson plan highlights the important role of modeling in understanding the effects of climate change. This interdisciplinary unit is also a great chance to connect with what students may be learning in other science and math classes. The supplied student activity worksheet and educator references with sample data outputs make this lesson easy to prepare for.

Students are best placed in mixed-level groups for this activity, although the model is relatively easy to use and the outputs should be accessible to most middle school learners. Teachers can encourage students to create a board game (or perhaps, a computer game!) to show what they have learned.  

Subjects: Science, Biology, Math, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Lesson Plan

Students will run a computer model to investigate how climate change is impacting caribou in the Arctic. In this 45-minute lesson from the Smithsonian National Museum of Nature History, students will specifically look at the effects of insect activity and snow levels on the Caribou. 

This computer science lesson plan highlights the important role of modeling in understanding the effects of climate change. This interdisciplinary unit is also a great chance to connect with what students may be learning in other science and math classes. The supplied student activity sheet and educator references with sample data outputs make this lesson easy to prepare for.  

Students are best placed in mixed-level groups for this activity, although the model is relatively easy to use and the outputs should be accessible to most middle school students. Teachers can encourage students to create a board game (or perhaps, a computer game!) to show what they have learned. 

Subjects: Science, Earth and Space Sciences, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Lesson Plan

In this middle and high school computer science lesson plan, students will learn about how scientists quantify and think about uncertainty through an investigation of climate models. The lesson plan includes a podcast and a game, allowing students to interact with the content in multiple formats. The need for a common language among scientists is also emphasized. 

The teacher pages include discussion questions to help guide the lesson forward. The student worksheet is well constructed and will allow students and teachers to easily follow along in the lesson. The lesson requires very little preparation for such a rich experience with models and climate change that’s perfect for a computer science class.

The students will begin by listening to the podcast as a whole class. Next, students will play the game, which could be done alone or in groups. There are then two readings for students, which are already broken up to be conducted as a jigsaw activity. This additional resource can provide students with an introduction to the concept of risk. Additionally, this resource could be used to give students more practice in looking at climate models and assessing areas of uncertainty.

Subjects: Science, Physics, Earth and Space Sciences, Engineering, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Lesson Plan

In this computer science lesson plan, students use models and data to explore factors influencing storm frequency and resiliency. The lesson plan includes a podcast and a computer model (WiFi required), as well as data for students to analyze. As the lesson ends with a discussion on resiliency, it allows students to imagine and analyze solutions that mitigate the impact of climate change. 

The teacher pages include discussion questions to help guide the lesson forward. The student handout is well constructed and easy to follow; therefore, the lesson requires very little preparation.

The students will begin by listening to the podcast as a whole class. Next, students will work with the computer model and analyze data. These two experiences can be done alone or in groups. Each section of the lesson has prompts for students to work through and discuss, including prompts for the teacher to use to wrap up the lesson.  

Subjects: Science, Earth and Space Sciences

Resource Type: Lesson Plan

Inquire

Students discuss the role of video games in education and behavior modification, sharing their personal experiences and thoughts.

Investigate

Students read an article on addressing attitudes and behaviors towards climate change through online and mobile gaming.

Inspire

Students choose to evaluate the effectiveness of climate change games or design their own climate change video game.

Video games are often a major driver for why students want to study computer programming. Although gaming has its pros and cons, this SubjectToClimate lesson prompts students to investigate how computer games can teach about climate change and bring about positive changes in behavior. 

This lesson taps into an interest and an activity that many students already engage in. The lesson is student-focused and driven, with a Google Slides deck provided to assist the teacher in guiding students with their learning. This makes the lesson easy to follow and prepare for, with minimal burden on the teacher while offering a rich learning experience.   

Students will begin with a guided discussion on their own experiences with video games. Then, they will complete a reading that is accompanied by a student handout with reflection and discussion prompts. To show what they have learned, students have the choice to compare and contrast 2-3 climate change games or design their own game. This can be differentiated based on the student’s level of coding and game design experience. 

Subjects: Science, Earth and Space Sciences, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Video

This 10-minute video, with subtitles available in multiple languages, discusses how CO2 emissions are currently calculated and how artificial intelligence and data science could provide a more accurate way to calculate emissions. For a computer science lesson plan, this video could be used to discuss the role of AI in real-world problem-solving. The speaker is optimistic about the impacts of AI technology, which can inspire students to study computer science and tackle problems like climate change. 

As the video is quite short, it can be used in conjunction with many lessons computer science teachers have already planned in order to provide a more authentic learning experience by connecting to a real-world problem. 

This video could be shown as an intro to a lesson or unit, such as having students collect data and model the emissions of their school. Or, it could be used to wrap up a lesson or unit on AI in order to show students how AI can be used to improve the world and tackle climate change. 

Subjects: Science, Social Studies, History, Computer Science & Design Thinking

Resource Type: Video

This 12-minute video provides an introduction to the history of computing, all the way from the abacus to today’s computers. It explores why we need computing devices and how these devices have shaped society. 

The importance of computers in our daily lives and their future potential is emphasized, which can inspire students to study computer science further. The video is short, so it can be used along with an already existing lesson to allow for more connections between climate change and computer science. The video could also be a great way to introduce students to the subject of computer science in general. 

Teachers could use this video to begin discussions with students about the impacts of globalization and increasing technology dependence on the climate and environment. This video could also be used as an introduction to the importance of modeling in computer science as it encourages the development of a procedure to fight climate change. This is also the first video in its series, so the teacher could continue to use these videos for the class going forward.  

These free lesson plans will help you bring climate change topics into your computer curriculum. As students learn how important computer science is for understanding our natural world, especially through the powerful models that can be created, they will become more invested in building their computer science skills. Be sure to check out the SubjectToClimate database to find even more computer science-focused climate change resources to inspire the future programmers in your classroom.

About the Author

Greta Stacy is a high school science teacher in Doha, Qatar. She has previously taught in Ecuador and the United States. Greta teaches IB Chemistry and is passionate about giving students real-world, hands-on experiences doing science.