In this 5Es lesson, students will uncover how changes in global air quality have impacted human health in cities between 2000 and 2019.

Students will identify and describe the relationship between land cover classification and surface temperature as they relate to the urban heat island effect. Students will also describe patterns between population density and the locations of urban heat islands. 

Use the AirNow.gov website to determine current air quality in US locations, as well as other information.

Students compare climographs for two locations to determine the most likely months to expect the emergence of mosquitoes in each location.

Students interpret AQI maps and charts to compare today’s AQI with the past five days. Using the EPA’s air quality activity guides, students create a social media post for residents of their region providing key information related to today’s AQI.

In this 5E’s lesson, students observe maps that show smoke and AOD levels surrounding Fresno, California at the time when the 2020 Creek Fire was burning. Students construct a claim that identifies a relationship between fire-related data and air quality data.

My NASA Data has recently released several new resources, StoryMaps, for use in educational settings.

Students synthesize information from My NASA Data maps and texts from the EPA website to determine how levels of criteria pollutants have changed from 2005 to 2021. This research will prepare them to respond to the lesson’s essential questions during a Socratic seminar.

Use the Earth System Data Explorer to analyze data and make a claim about which 2018 eruption was larger, Kilauea, HI or Ambae Island, Vanuatu.

This StoryMap allows students to explore the urban heat island effect using land surface temperature and vegetation data in a 5 E-learning cycle. Students investigate the processes that create differences in surface temperatures, as well as how human activities have led to the creation of urban heat islands.