Teaching Climate Change in Science Classrooms, Grades 6-12

Ready to teach climate change? This program is designed to support science teachers in grades 6-12 in incorporating the new climate change standards into your already-tight curricula. This workshop will help you understand how climate change occurs and the ways it affects society, and individual members of society, differently. We will explore phenomenon- and inquiry-based methods to meet New Jersey’s climate change standards using an interdisciplinary and participatory approach that reflects the pedagogies of inclusion and equity in formal and informal learning environments. Workshop activities will include climate change modeling, an interpretive hike, water quality assessment (by land and/or canoe), and analyzing and interpreting data. We’ll be working both indoors and outdoors (rain or shine) on the beautiful campus of the New Jersey School of Conservation. Whether you teach in a classroom or in an informal setting, you will gain skills and strategies to enable you to address this important issue at a grade-appropriate level. Follow up support will be provided!

Your instructors are Liz Carletta and Rae Cade.

Liz is a formal and informal science educator. She has taught environmental/conservation education at Jenkinson’s Aquarium and the Bergen County Zoo, as well as high school biology and forensic science in Newark, NJ. Liz earned her MAT from Montclair State University (certified K-12 biology and students with disabilities teacher) and is currently pursuing a PhD in Teacher Education and Teacher Development. Her research interests include the partnerships between formal and informal educators and education, teaching with an equity lens, and science teacher retention.

Rae Cade is a doctoral student and teaching assistant at Montclair State University in the Environmental Science and Management department. She has a Bachelor’s degree from William Paterson University where she double majored in Earth Science and Anthropology and a Master’s degree in Sustainability Science from Montclair State University. While her thesis explored the beliefs and perceptions of climate change and sustainability amongst millennials who are non-environmental science majors, her current research focuses on the interactions between water quality and environmental racism.

The Friends of the New Jersey School of Conservation is a U.S. tax-exempt 501(c)(3) organization. When NJSOC closed in July 2020, the Friends launched a campaign to save it. This ultimately led to negotiations with the NJ Department of Environmental Protection, owners of NJSOC, to obtain an interim management agreement for the School. This agreement was finalized in April 2021, and the Friends of NJSOC are proud to offer limited programming at NJSOC with the help of dedicated and talented volunteers. We are pleased to register you for one of our programs!