Facing Calamity: Climate Change Facts and Fictions

Identify a writer's claims in a text and explain how they support those claims, as well as how they respond to conflicting viewpoints.

“Understanding Climate Change”

Standards

RI.8.6RI.8.8

Identify the speaker's central claim about climate change and evaluate how she uses relevant evidence to support her claim.

“Greta Thunberg's Speech At The U.N. Climate Action Summit”

Standards

RI.8.2RI.8.8

Identify a writer's claims in a text, explain how they support those claims, and evaluate whether the evidence provided is relevant and sufficient.

“Climate change sets people on the move”

Standards

RI.8.1RI.8.2RI.8.8

Explain how the author uses figurative language and literary devices to develop a theme about climate change in a short story.

“Field Notes”

Standards

RL.8.4RL.8.9

Explain how authors' specific words and phrases develop tone and meaning across genres.

“The Marshall Islands Are Disappearing”
“Dear Matafele Peinem”

Standards

RI.8.1RI.8.4RL.8.1RL.8.4

Analyze the central claims of informational articles and evaluate the evidence given to support them.

“Just 57 companies linked to 80% of greenhouse gas emissions since 2016”
“Survey finds that 60 firms are responsible for half of world's plastic pollution”

Standards

RI.8.8RL.8.2

Identify claims made in an informational article and assess the relevance and sufficiency of evidence provided to support those claims.

“As Rising Heat Bakes U.S. Cities, The Poor Often Feel It Most”

Standards

RI.8.8

Explain how an author's specific word choices develop meaning and tone.

“It's Not Climate Change—It's Everything Change” — end at "because you may be needing it" (para. 19)

Standards

RI.8.2RI.8.4

Analyze the central claims of informational articles and evaluate the evidence given to support them to determine the role that Indigenous peoples play in the fight against climate change.

“Indigenous knowledge is crucial in the fight against climate change – here's why” — end at "How is UNDP supporting Indigenous Peoples and their knowledge?"
“Indigenous climate efforts vital to fight against environmental destruction”

Standards

RI.8.2RI.8.8

Explain how the author draws on myths, traditional stories, or religious works to develop meaning in a short story.

“Half-Eaten Cities”
“The Significance of Water in Literature”

Standards

RL.8.2RL.8.4RL.8.9

Write a short cli-fi scene that explores specific potential impacts of climate change.

Day 1 - Planning

Brainstorm and synthesize research to determine key aspects of setting and develop causal ideas that will drive a cli-fi narrative.

Narrative Brainstorming Page (G8, U5, L11)

Standards

W.8.7W.8.8W.8.9

Day 2 - Drafting

Draft two paragraphs of a cli-fi narrative that clearly and vividly establish aspects of setting.

Narrative Brainstorming Page (G8, U5, L11)

Standards

W.8.3.aW.8.3.d

Day 3 - Drafting

Draft a cli-fi scene that uses pacing intentionally to develop a sequence of events and shape how readers experience the action.

Standards

W.8.3.bW.8.3.c

Analyze the arguments of two different texts, identify where they disagree, and explain how the authors address conflicting viewpoints.

“What the new report on climate change expects from you”
“Focusing on how individuals can stop climate change is very convenient for corporations”

Standards

RI.8.6RI.8.9

Analyze the central claims of an informational article and evaluate the evidence given to support them to determine the role that young activists play in the fight against climate change.

“Gen Z on how to save the world: young climate activists speak out”

Standards

RI.8.2RI.8.8

Analyze the arguments of two different texts, identify where they disagree, and explain how the authors address conflicting viewpoints.

“Do Plastic Bag Bans Help or Harm Local Communities?”
“Gen Z on how to save the world: young climate activists speak out”

Standards

RI.8.6RI.8.9

Delineate arguments made about climate change and assess whether the evidence provided is relevant and sufficient.

“Excerpt from An Inconvenient Sequel: Truth to Power”

Standards

RI.8.2RI.8.8

Socratic Seminar

Engage in a Socratic Seminar with peers, responding directly to others by rephrasing and delineating arguments, determining the strength of evidence, and posing clarifying questions.

Standards

SL.8.1SL.8.1.dSL.8.3SL.8.4

Writing

Overview

Write a persuasive letter to a specific audience by making and supporting a clear claim about why they should take a specific action.

Day 1 - Planning

Research the potential local impacts of climate change in preparation for writing a letter to a congressperson.

Day 2 - Planning / Drafting

Narrative Brainstorming Page (G8, U5, L11) — completed in Lesson 11
Argumentative Brainstorming Page (G8, U5, L17)

Standards

W.8.5W.8.7W.8.8

Select, organize, and integrate the strongest evidence of different types into argumentative body paragraphs for a letter to a congressperson about climate change.