Focus the Nation Teach-In Activities


Here are a few short activities that you can use to incorporate the issue of global climate change into your classes on January 30 and 31st. Please be sure to let us know if you are using any of these activities, or participating by using your own activity or presentation, by submitting details here

Climate Change Perspectives
One easy way to participate is to gather responses from students about how they view global climate change. Simply give each student an index card and ask them to spend a few minutes completing the sentence, "Global climate change is..." This will allow students to express their point of view, provide their definition, or comment on the issue in their own way. You can collect the cards without discussion or allow a few more minutes for some of the students to share responses. We will provide cards for your class and collect them after you've completed the activity so we can gather different perspectives from students about this issue. Be sure to let students know that their comments may be posted on our website.
Climate Change Challenge
This activity examines 20 actions for reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Students spend 5-10 minutes deciding which actions they think will have the greatest impact. The activity is designed to be completed individually, then discussed with a partner or group to come to a consensus on responses. Handouts can be downloaded here. A detailed answer key and a corresponding Power Point presentation will be emailed to instructors upon submitting details about your event. Special thanks to Ken and Iralee Barnard of Hope, Kansas, for sharing this activity.
Lights Out
Demonstrate energy conservation by teaching your class with the lights out (assuming your classroom has windows). Save some time at the end of class to calculate how much energy you saved, and how much could be saved if you used natural light for the entire semester. Here are a few quick tips for calculating:
  1. Determine how many lamps are in the classroom. You can tell by looking at the fixture and counting how many "bulbs" there are. Click here for an example of a 2-lamp fixture.
  2. Calculate total wattage for the fixtures in the room. Assume each lamp is 29 watts (multiply the number of lamps by 29)
  3. Convert watts to kilowatts (divide watts by 1000).
  4. Calculate the number of kilowatt hours used (multiplying kilowatts by hours of use)
Example: If your classroom has 12 2-lamp fixtures, you are using a total of 696 watts (12 x 2 x 29 = 696 watts). Divide that by 1000 to get .696 kW. Leaving the lights off for 45 minutes saves .522 kWh (.696 x .75 = .522 kWh).

You can also calculate the carbon dioxide emissions reduced and cost savings for the class period (which won't look like much!) or the semester using the following conversions:
  • Carbon dioxide emissions: Our electricity is generated at a coal-fired plant. In 1999, the average output of carbon dioxide by coal-fired plants in the US was 2.1 pounds per kWh. Multiply your final kWh above by 2.1 to estimate emissions saved.
  • Cost savings: Multiply kWh calculated above by $0.06, our current rate per kWh.
  • Semester savings: Calculate how much you can reduce carbon dioxide emissions and how much money could be saved if you turn the lights off during class for the rest of the semester. Multiply your answers above by the number of class sessions remaining (or assume 13 sessions for classes meeting once a week, 26 sessions meeting twice a week, and 38 sessions meeting 3 times a week).
To put that in perspective:
  • 1 gallon of gas emits an average of 19.4 lbs of CO2
  • The average US home uses approximately 11,000 kWh per year
  • Leaving your CPU and printer on over night when not in use (8 hours) consumes as much as 2.1 kWh.
Calculate Your Impact
If your classroom is equipped with a computer and projector, consider walking through one of these calculators to see what your impact on the environment is and what you can do to reduce that impact.

Consumer Consequences - Find out how many Planet Earths it would require to sustain your lifestyle if everyone lived like you.

Climate Crisis Carbon Calculator - Calculate how many tons of CO2 emissions you are responsible for each year.

Nature Conservancy Carbon Calculator - A more detailed calculator than above.

Environmental Defense "Make the Switch" - Find out how much money and CO2 can be saved by replacing incandescent light bulbs with compact fluorescent lamps (CFLs)


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