Teacher preparation:

Overarching learning goal: In this activity students work in groups to create a short documentary or film about climate change, in particular its impacts, risks and the personal actions that can be taken to fight climate change. Students understand that there are a range of risks and impacts associated with climate change and recognise that there are many different personal actions that we can all take to help fight climate change.

Teacher content information: For the most part, the news we hear about climate change is bad: it's bad for the environment; it's bad for the plants and animals that live in the environment; it's bad for oceans and deserts; it's bad for coral reefs and alpine ecosystems; and it's bad for us humans. In fact, sometimes it can seem so bad that it's very easy to just want to either sink into despair or go into denial. The aim of this activity is for students to consider how we can be proactive and what personal actions we can all take for climate change: it's about thinking about what we CAN do, not what we CAN'T.

This activity can be extended over several sessions. In addition, you could consider holding a screening for other students or parents.

The IPCC:

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is the United Nations body for assessing the science related to climate change. It was created to:

provide policymakers (governments) with regular scientific updates about climate change;
highlight the impact climate change will have on the planet in the future; and,
offer some ideas about how to tackle the challenges of climate change's potential effects on the planet.

In 2021-22, the IPCC released their sixth assessment report. This is the most up-to-date physical understanding of the climate system and climate change.

The report makes a number of important points:

It is unequivocal that human influence has warmed the atmosphere, ocean and land.
Global surface temperature will continue to increase until at least mid-century under all emissions scenarios considered. Global warming of 1.5°C and 2°C will be exceeded during the 21st century unless deep reductions in CO2 and other greenhouse gas emissions occur in the coming decades (B1). The report describes five possible climate futures, where #1 is not great and #5 is extremely bad. If we want to keep global warming at less than two degrees, which the IPCC says is the best-case scenario, we need to reduce our CO2 and greenhouse gas emissions significantly and start right away.

'Net zero' or 'carbon neutral' are terms that refer to achieving an overall balance between greenhouse gas emissions produced and greenhouse gas emissions taken out of the atmosphere. Getting to net zero means we can still produce some emissions, so long as we're doing something else to reduce the greenhouse gases already in the atmosphere at the same time, kind of like balancing a set of scales (more info).

Student and classroom organisation:

Step 1.

Break your class into groups of 5 or 6. Each group will work to create a documentary or short film about how climate change relates to their lives, including the risks, impacts and personal actions that can be taken to fight climate change.

Examples of plots and story lines for videos could include:

A day in the life: This documentary describes all the actions of one student over the course of one day and how these actions relate to climate change. For example: getting dressed (where the clothes come from and their impact of clothes on the environment), eating breakfast (what impacts certain foods have), riding the bike to school (how this has a lower environmental impact) etc. A narrator can describe these behaviours and the impacts.
Climate change in the bush/ocean: Students role play various animals that live in an ecosystem and describe how these animals might be affected by climate change. Again students can use a narrator or students can choose to have speaking parts.
An alien invasion: Aliens have landed and are investigating how humans interact with their planet. They are surprised to find that humans are causing damage to the Earth through a range of actions. The aliens describe these actions and the consequences of these actions.
200 years from now: It's the future and humans are looking back at the close shave the Earth had with devastating climate change. The narrators in the documentary describe how humans finally managed to successfully address climate change and what actions they took to do this.
Travel show: Students 'visit' different locations around the world and describe what the potential impacts of climate change are on these places and how the people there might be adapting. For example, students could visit a Pacific island and talk about what local communities are doing to address and adapt to climate change impacts. Alternatively, students could visit alpine communities, coastal cities, Arctic villages, or desert towns.

The videos should include details of the actions that are having a negative impact on climate change, and suggestions as to how these actions could be addressed to reduce their environmental impact.

Students will also need to prepare a short half page report that shows evidence of:

Research
Storyboard ideas
Script
Individual student roles in film planning and production

We have created some planning guidelines for making a short film or documentary. Click here to download (also available on the student worksheet).

Step 2.

Once students have prepared their film or documentary ask them to share it with the rest of the class. Ask students to use the Peer Assessment Rubric - Film to assess the videos of other groups (also available on the student worksheet).

You could also consider sharing these videos with other students and teachers at your school, showing them to parents, or posting them on the school website or class blog.

Reflection

When all groups have shared their documentary, hold a brief class discussion around some of the following questions:

What were the main impacts that were identified in the videos?
What actions were identified to minimise these impacts?

Also ask students to reflect upon the videos using the reflection questions on the student worksheet.

Extension

Ask students to incorporate facts and stats about climate change into their films. For example:

How many emissions your state or territory makes;
What the average rainfall will be in 50 years time and how this compares to now; or
How many hot days we have now and how many we'll have in 100 years.

Students can use the resources from the Cool Australia Climate Change Toolbox to access some of this information.

Create a Climate Change Documentary

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