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Sea Level Rise Curriculum

Coastal communities are experiencing an increase in coastal flooding due to storms, king tides, and sea level rise. Educating students on these issues is not only a great science and math exercise, it increases informed-decision making on adapting to climate change-related trends.

Educators from Georgia Institute of Technology created a curriculum for middle school students using the 5E Model of Instruction to actively investigate climate change and the phenomenon of sea level rise.

The curriculum provides foundational science principles and allows middle school students to use real data to create data visualizations of sea level rise. Students will spend time brainstorming methods that can be used to mitigate the effects of climate change.

Please contact Jayma Koval (jayma.koval@ceismc.gatech.edu) to access curriculum materials.

Using the Curriculum in the Classroom

Watch the below webinars on how to use the curriculum in the classroom. They are intended to act as a tool for educators to reference as they teach the lesson plan.

Webinar 1

Causes of Sea-level Rise

Activity: What effect (if any) do melting sea ice and land ice have on sea-level rise?

Watch

Webinar 2

Introduction to the phenomenon of coastal flooding in the Savannah/Tybee area

Activity: Ft. Pulaski historical data- coastal flooding

Watch

Webinar 3

Sea Level Sensor Project + available data from sensors

Activity: Ft. Pulaski historical data- tides (connect back to sea-level rise, coastal flooding)

Watch

Webinar 4

Analyzing global sea-level and temperature data

Activity: Impact of increased amounts of carbon dioxide on global temperature- what can students do to help

Watch

Authors of the Curriculum

Jayma Koval, Ed.S.

Georgia Institute of Technology

Dr. Alex Robel

Georgia Institute of Technology

Learn More

The curriculum is supported by the Smart Sea Level Sensors project, a unique partnership between Chatham Emergency Management officials, City of Savannah officials, and Georgia Tech faculty who are working together to install a network of internet-enabled sea level sensors across Chatham County.