Grade Levels: 6-8, 9-12

*Click to open and customize your own copy of the Fossil Fuels Lesson Plan.

This lesson accompanies the BrainPOP topic Fossil Fuels, and supports the standard of constructing an argument for how human activity impacts Earth’s systems. Students demonstrate understanding through a variety of projects.

Step 1: ACTIVATE PRIOR KNOWLEDGE

Ask students: 

  • What do you know or have heard about fossil fuels? 
  • Can you provide an example of how humans use fossil fuels?

Step 2: BUILD KNOWLEDGE

  • Read aloud the description on the Fossil Fuels topic page
  • Play the Movie, pausing to check for understanding. 
  • Have students read one of the following Related Reading articles. Partner them with someone who read a different article to share what they learned with each other.

Step 3: APPLY and ASSESS 

Students take the Fossil Fuels Quiz, applying essential literacy skills while demonstrating what they learned about this topic.

Step 4: DEEPEN and EXTEND

Students express what they learned about fossil fuels while practicing essential literacy skills with one or more of the following activities. Differentiate by assigning ones that meet individual student needs.

  • Make-a-Movie: Produce a PSA describing the environmental impact of burning fossil fuels, and give suggestions on how to conserve this nonrenewable resource. 
  • Make-a-Map: Make a concept map identifying different types of fossil fuels and their uses. 
  • Creative Coding: Code a learning game challenging players to sort types of energy as renewable or nonrenewable.

More to Explore

Climate Change Unit: Continue to build understanding around human impact on the environment with more BrainPOP topics 

Teacher Support Resources:

 

 

Lesson Plan Common Core State Standards Alignments