Big Insight from Little Things: An Introduction to Isotope Analysis in Climate Science

• This video from the Paleontological Research Institution describes how scientists can determine ancient climates using isotopes of oxygen in ancient ocean sediments. 
• Students will learn how scientists do chemical analyses of fossilized shells in sediment cores to determine historical temperatures. 

Positives

• Students will learn how to use different resources to research paleontological climate data.
• The diagrams used are simple and do a great job of explaining the processes being described.
  

Additional Prerequisites

• Students should have a basic understanding of the hydrologic cycle.
• Students should be familiar with atomic structure.
  
• The Museum of Earth website link in the description is broken.

Differentiation

• Students can research climates from 100, 1,000, 10,000, 100,000, and 1,000,000 years ago and analyze the processes scientists used to determine each.
• Students can explore the additional resources listed in the description.
• Biology and chemistry classes could use this video for lessons about atomic structure, subatomic particles, the uses of stable isotopes in medicine, ecology, biology, and Earth sciences.
  
• Students can also explore this lesson about isotopes and getting past temperatures from ice cores.
• For more information about isotopes, students can explore this lesson about different types of isotopes and how they can be used to make scientific discoveries.

This resource addresses the listed standards. To fully meet standards, search for more related resources.