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Center for Advancing Research in Transportation Emissions, Energy, and Health (CARTEEH)

A USDOT University Transportation Center

Home / Education / K-12 Curriculum / What is in the air? Introducing Air Pollution to Grades 5 – 8.

What is in the air? Introducing Air Pollution to Grades 5 – 8.

The following lesson was developed through a partnership between CARTEEH and Texas A&M University’s Teaching Learning & Culture Department.

Lesson Plan

Many people are unfamiliar with the serious environmental problem of air pollution compared to other issues like anthropogenic climate change. However, in 2016 the World Health Organization attributed 4.2 million premature deaths to unhealthy air quality worldwide. Air quality challenges are likely to become more exacerbated as populations, transportation, and energy demands continue to grow. This sequence of lessons is designed to promote a deep understanding of this critical issue, including the scientific knowledge and societal decision-making facets. Each lesson draws on the extensive science education research base to foster a logical flow, questions, and activities that promote a high-quality and meaningful learning experience for students.

Lesson Objectives

  1. Promote a deep and robust knowledge of the air pollution environmental issue.
  2. Build an accurate understanding of the airborne particles we breathe, including the types of particles, the sources of various particles, and the health and environmental impacts of
    different particulates. The focus is on particulate particles.
  3. Stimulate civic decision-making using reasoning and scientific evidence to

Download Curriculum Materials

  • Lesson Overview & Plan
  • Teacher Companion Slides
  • Student Handouts Pt 1
  • Student Handouts Pt 2 (Mystery Town)
  • Video Overview
  • TTI Career Video
  • Materiales en español próximamente (Materials in Spanish coming soon
Start Here! Overview of What’s in the Air Lessons

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TTI

Texas A&M Transportation Institute logo

Johns Hopkins

Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health

Georgia Tech

Georgia Tech School of Environmental Engineering

UTEP

University of Texas at El Paso College of Engineering

UC Riverside

University of California, Riverside, CE-CERT

Morehouse School of Medicine

North Dakota SU

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