The Effects of Climate Change

Videos

Grades8, 9, 10, 11, 12, APBiology

Scientist Reviewed

Provided by BioInteractive

Open Resource

What it is

This resource from BioInteractive features a 12-minute Crash Course video, a teacher guide with discussion quesitons, video transcript, supporting standards list, and primary literature links.
Students will learn how climate change impacts phenology, numerous ecosystems, various plant and animal species, and human society.

Teaching tips

Positives

The chart that sorts the timestamps by topic is very helpful for teachers who wish to organize notes or pause the video at certain points.
Students will enjoy the speaker's jokes and lighthearted demeanor.

Prerequisites

Though the video does give a brief overview of the causes of climate change, some students may benefit from having a more robust lesson on the topic before they watch this video.
The video, transcript, and related materials are available in both Spanish and English.

Differentiation & Implementation

There are standards and connections to AP Biology, AP Environmental Science, IB Biology and IB Environmental Systems and Societies provided to connect to many topics.
This lesson provides some hands-on activities for exploring how climate change is affecting pikas, as mentioned in the video.
Throughout the year, students can track phenological changes and when they occur. Alternatively, students can explore phenology with this inquiry lesson.
To make connections to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, teachers can ask students how Goal 13, Climate Action, interacts with other goals, such as Goal 14, Life Below Water.

From the scientist review

This resource details the effects of climate change on biological systems. Through several examples, the video shows how impacts on one organism can have ripple effects throughout an entire ecosystem. While accessible to children, the science is rigorously presented, with cited sources from IPCC and peer-reviewed journals. This resource is recommended for teaching.

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At a glance

Grades: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, AP
Subjects: Biology
Other types: Lesson Plans
Format: PDF
Language: English
Location: Earth
Provider: BioInteractive
Authors: Crash Course Biology, BioInteractive
Published: October 8, 2025
Last updated: July 16, 2026
: Reviewed by our climate scientists How we review

Standards alignment · MS-LS2-5. + 9 more

Core

Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS)

MS-LS2-5.Evaluate competing design solutions for maintaining biodiversity and ecosystem services.
MS-LS2-A.1.Organisms, and populations of organisms, are dependent on their environmental interactions both with other living things and with nonliving factors. (MS-LS2-1)
MS-ESS3-D.Human activities, such as the release of greenhouse gases from burning fossil fuels, are major factors in the current rise in Earth’s mean surface temperature (global warming). Reducing the level of climate change and reducing human vulnerability to whatever climate changes do occur depend on the understanding of climate science, engineering capabilities, and other kinds of knowledge, such as understanding of human behavior and on applying that knowledge wisely in decisions and activities. (MS-ESS3-5)
HS-LS2-C.1.A complex set of interactions within an ecosystem can keep its numbers and types of organisms relatively constant over long periods of time under stable conditions. If a modest biological or physical disturbance to an ecosystem occurs, it may return to its more or less original status (i.e., the ecosystem is resilient), as opposed to becoming a very different ecosystem. Extreme fluctuations in conditions or the size of any population, however, can challenge the functioning of ecosystems in terms of resources and habitat availability. (HS-LS2-2), (HS-LS2-6)
HS-ESS2-D.3.Changes in the atmosphere due to human activity have increased carbon dioxide concentrations and thus affect climate. (HS-ESS2-6)
HS-ESS3-C.1.The sustainability of human societies and the biodiversity that supports them requires responsible management of natural resources. (HS-ESS3-3)

New Jersey Climate Education Hub

English Language Arts

SL.II.6.2Interpret information presented in diverse media and formats (e.g., visually, quantitatively, orally) and explain how it contributes to a topic, text, or issue under study.

Science

HS-LS2-6.Evaluate claims, evidence, and reasoning that the complex interactions in ecosystems maintain relatively consistent numbers and types of organisms in stable conditions, but changing conditions may result in a new ecosystem.
HS-ESS2-2.Analyze geoscience data to make the claim that one change to Earth’s surface can create feedbacks that cause changes to other Earth systems.
HS-ESS3-1.Construct an explanation based on evidence for how the availability of natural resources, occurrence of natural hazards, and changes in climate have influenced human activity.

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