Background Information for Teachers

Frequently, instruction on the carbon cycle begins with an illustration showing the paths of carbon movement on earth and implying a rather simple concept. This approach assumes students know what carbon is, why it is important, and how it behaves. As you probably know from experience, this is usually not a safe assumption.

Trillions of living organisms representing an incomprehensible quantity of biomass have come and gone on this planet over the past several millions of years. How is it that the carbon on this planet has not been completely consumed? How do living things use carbon? What are the physical and chemical properties of carbon and some of its compounds both within and outside of living things? The resources provided here are intended to complement your content knowledge and provide you with additional contexts in which the carbon cycle is conceptually important.

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WebElements Periodic Table http://www.webelements.com/

Click on carbon to get extensive information about the element and its compounds. A Scholar Edition, aimed at students, is also included. MSP full record

Cell Biology Animation http://www.johnkyrk.com/

EA detailed cell biology tutorial, created by graphic artist/biologist John Kyrk, will refresh your knowledge of respiration and photosynthesis and the complementary nature of the two processes involving carbon compounds. From here you can decide the level of detailed understanding you want your students to acquire and modify your instruction appropriately. MSP full record

Global Change Instructional Modules http://www.dpc.ucar.edu/globalChange/index.html

This site supplies a good breadth and depth of information regarding earth systems. Note that the carbon cycle does not happen in a vacuum, but that other cycles are occurring concurrently. This awareness will enable you to avoid developing misconceptions in your students while focusing your teaching on the carbon cycle. Modules include biogeochemical cycles, biological consequences of climate change, human energy use, population growth, international environmental law, and stratospheric ozone depletion. MSP full record

LEARN: Atmospheric Science Explorers http://www.ucar.edu/learn/index.htm

This module was created by teachers. The seven sections include introductions to the atmosphere, climate, ozone, stratospheric ozone and tropospheric ozone, the greenhouse effect, and global climate change. Each section provides background information, general learning concepts, and a list of classroom activities. MSP full record

New Standards for Highway Motorcycles Contribute to Air Quality Improvements http://yosemite.epa.gov/opa/admpress.nsf/b1ab9f485b098972852562e7004dc686/ 2ef43ec5a8ed2af085256e05006e547e?OpenDocument

A press release describes new rules for reducing emissions from motor vehicles. It reports the approximate quantities of hydrocarbons and nitrogen compounds that will be reduced and how that should impact air quality. MSP full record

Biomass: Energy from Wood, Garbage, and Agricultural Waste http://www.eia.doe.gov/kids/energyfacts/sources/renewable/biomass.html

This resource explores renewable energy from biomass and how human activities intersect with the carbon cycle. Biomass fuels include wood, wood waste, straw, manure, sugar cane, and many other byproducts from agricultural processes. MSP full record

Ethanol-Blended Fuels http://www.ethanolacrossamerica.net/EthanolCurriculum93003.pdf

This free 61-page booklet in pdf form provides five teaching modules dealing with ethanol. You may choose to extract specific sections and adapt them for your particular teaching goals. MSP full record

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Copyright July 2007 — The Ohio State University. This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. 0424671. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

This work is licensed under a Creative Commons License.