Wildfires: Impact of Climate Change
Provided by: The Nature Conservancy|Published on: September 5, 2023|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Biology, Earth and Space Sciences
Authors: Nature Lab by The Nature Conservancy
Location: North America, North America > United States, North America > United States > Colorado, North America > United States > Idaho, North America > United States > Montana, North America > United States > Utah, North America > United States > Washington, North America > United States > Wyoming, Oceania
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Learn about our review process →
Synopsis
- In this multi-day lesson by Nature Lab, students learn about the impact climate change has on the severity of wildfires, the effect that wildfires have on the environment, and what can be done to reduce this impact.
- Students will research the topic of wildfires by watching videos, answering questions, playing a Kahoot, and reading articles. They will then demonstrate their learning by giving a presentation and creating a plan to enact change.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- For the research project in this lesson, students get to choose their topic from some provided options. This gives students a sense of autonomy in their learning.
- The documentary that this lesson is based around has interviews, visuals, and cinematography that is very engaging for students.
Additional Prerequisites
- Some students may need the terms urbanization, algorithms, combustible, inoculate, aerosol, parch, regalia, decimate, sequester, and others defined prior to beginning the lesson.
- Students should have a basic understanding of what climate change is and the driving forces behind it.
- The link for "Girl Rising - Climate Education Initiative for Girls" link in the Links for Students section may be broken.
- There is a linked article about using the Socratic method in the classroom. This article is strictly for teacher use, but does use the word "hell" in it.
Differentiation
- In the research portion, each student must begin with the same article in their research, listed first in the available resources. This article can be used with the whole class to demonstrate how to correctly find and cite evidence.
- Students who have public speaking-related anxieties can record their presentation or present to just the teacher.
- Students with low reading stamina can work together in groups to read the articles for research and do so in a jigsaw method, with each student reading one article and reporting the most important points to the rest of the group.
- The climbing video can be used in physical education classes to help connect climate change to physical fitness classes.
- Science classes can use this lesson to connect to lessons about ecological succession, climate zones, biomes, biodiversity, or plant biology.
This resource is a teacher's guide for the impacts of climate change on wildfires. Within the guide are many links to articles and videos, all of which have been reviewed and approved for scientific accuracy. This resource is recommended for teaching.
Teaching Tips
Standards
Resource Type and Format
Scientist Reviewed
This resource has been reviewed by SubjectToClimate's climate scientists and verified for scientific accuracy and up-to-date information. Our review process ensures that every resource in our library reflects the current state of climate science.
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