Climate Change Impacts
Provided by: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative|Published on: April 27, 2021|Last updated: September 26, 2026
Grades: 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12
Type: Lesson Plans
Subjects: Earth and Space Sciences, Geography
Authors: MIT Environmental Solutions Initiative
Location: Earth
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
- This resource about the uneven impacts of climate change includes a lesson plan, a podcast, a water cycle game, discussion questions, and a resilience investigation activity.
- Students will learn that different parts of the world will experience different climate impacts. Some places will have extreme weather, while others will experience severe drought. These changes will impact water security, create dangerous heat and humidity situations, and change the spread of diseases such as malaria.
Teaching Materials
Positives
- This resource includes a variety of well-designed components that will appeal to many learning styles.
- The podcast includes a time-stamped transcript.
Additional Prerequisites
- Students should be familiar with the water cycle.
Differentiation
- Economics classes could use this resource to discuss the financial effects of climate change.
- Social studies and geography classes use this lesson in a discussion about the unequal effects of climate change on the Global South.
- Other resources on this topic include this library of images on the impacts of climate change, this lesson plan and activity on what causes droughts, and this lesson on how climate change impacts youth in the United States.
A transcript and educator guide, along with additional resource links, are provided. In the podcast, an MIT expert is interviewed and discusses local and regional climate impacts with a focus on heatwaves and the resulting health impacts. Emission scenarios are presented and the likely range of impact is discussed. 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.
Learn about our review process →
