One of the most important things to do to combat the effects of global warming is to educate kids. Adults are very good at accepting things – that is our strength. Kids, on the other hand, are good at challenging people and making us think differently. Doing a unit on energy conservation, pollution, or global climate change is a great way to help your students become the informed citizens they will have to be. If we are going to stop the ravages the planet is undergoing now, we need to train citizens of the future who are willing to make sacrifices in the name of saving the planet Earth.

Environmental education has been going on for decades. Nonetheless, it has taken on a new urgency in the last couple of years. Only a little while ago, people were still debating the causes of global warming. A lot of folks simply didn't want to admit that our actions have consequences that were destroying the planet. Although the extent of the effect of global warming is still being debated, one thing is clear: it is much worse than we had previously thought, and we had better begin to prepare for it.

A great activity you can do on the effects of global warming is to work with your students to decrease individual energy consumption. Talk about all the ways that energy is wasted – by leaving the heat on, by turning on lights in rooms that you aren't using, and all the other energy wasters that many of us take for granted on a daily basis. Challenge your students to take stock of their own families habits and try to make a change. Have them monitor how much energy they use before and after they start to conserve resources. Although it requires the parents to participate, this is still an excellent project. Most families will agree to do it, and your students will benefit greatly.

There are many different ways that you can address the effects of global warming in the classroom. There are plenty of environmental advocacy groups out there that make excellent resources available for doing a global warming lesson plan. Even better, you can hire an expert to come in and speak to your class. In your community there is likely to be an environmental education community center staffed by people who are more than happy to talk to your students about saving the environment. Best of all, they will usually come in for free.