• ENGLISH LANGUAGE ARTS (ELA)
  In your “Personal Narratives” unit, use the true story Follow the Moon Home as a mentor text about a girl who starts a local campaign to protect sea turtles.
  Or in a unit on the fairy tale genre, show students this brief video of Sustainability: Told As a Children’s Fairy Tale.
• SOCIAL STUDIES
  In your fifth grade unit on basic economic principles, use this project titled “What is the Real Cost of Bananas?”
  which examines the intersection of commerce, child labor, and agriculture, using primary source documents.
  Or in the unit about human impacts on the environment, do this activity about water pollution to illustrate the significance of collective action.
• MATH
  As you teach students how to read graphs and charts, introduce this pie chart breaking down US energy consumption by petroleum, gas, renewables, etc.
  Or use this lesson to have students track NASA data about water changes on Earth and create line graphs.
• ART/DESIGN
  As you address how understandings of society manifest in art, use this lesson in which students craft forms of shade.
  Take the opportunity to discuss heat waves and cooling solutions.
  Or use this lesson “How to Make Paper” as a vehicle to discuss natural resources, consumption, and traditional fiber arts.
• PHYSICAL EDUCATION (PE)
  Use this activity titled “Bee Waggle Dance” to give students opportunities to connect movement and meaning,
  by teaching students how pollinators communicate with each other to find nectar.
• SCIENCE
  In the weather unit use this lesson plan to introduce the concept of weather and examine weather patterns over time
  through an age-appropriate book about a Haitian girl feeling impacts of climate change.
  Or in teaching the water cycle, watch this five minute video to better understand groundwater.

The database lists recommended grade levels to avoid texts that are too simplistic or difficult but these recommendations may be unsuitable for some student populations.

Many of the database’s texts are meant for young students. In such cases children would not be expected to read on their own but rather would listen to a read-aloud.

In the texts for older students teachers should use discretion as to whether the reading is at an appropriate reading level.

These resources have been culled from established science educators as well as respected academic and government institutions,

many of which use stringent vetting processes before publishing materials.

However, as this database is still in development, users are likely to have feedback for DEP about particular resources or database design.

You are invited to share your feedback or suggest additional resources with Julia.Sommer@dep.nj.gov.