The 4th grade classes completed a unit in Forschen about climate and pollution. The learning goals for this unit were identifying the world climate zones and distinguishing between weather and climate. The children learned through their research that while weather changes quite rapidly, climate changes occur only very slowly. Next, the children investigated the effects of carbon dioxide production by humans, specifically the greenhouse effect. Using bottles to simulate the Earth’s atmosphere, we created two separate enviroments: one with oxygen and another with carbon dioxide, then we set them in the sun to mimic the greenhouse effect on Earth. The temperature in each of the two bottles was then measured. The children observed that under identical conditions, the bottle filled with carbon dioxide had a warmer temperature than the bottle with oxygen. This helped the chidren to understand why reducing carbon emissions is important to prevent global climate change. The 4th graders also visited Klimaversum, a traveling event where stations and experiments are offered to learn more about weather and climate.
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