Lesson Plan: Teaching about Microbial Life and Climate Change

• When teaching the topic of microbes, discuss the relationship between microbial life and climate. As climate change alters the environment, microorganisms respond, adapt, and evolve in their surroundings. Microorganisms have generation times that may be as short as a few hours; therefore, they respond to environmental and climate-related changes at a faster rate than most other organisms. Thus, microbes are ideal systems for understanding the effects of climate change on biological systems.
• • Play the micro-lecture (approx. 3 min) “What Are Microbes?” to provide an overview of microbes, their classification, and their role in the biosphere.
• • The micro-lecture “What Are Microbes?”, provided by RMIT University and contributed by Dr. Taghrid Istivan, is available at https://www.rmit.edu.au/media-objects/multimedia/video/seh/how-stuff-works/what-are-microbes.
• • Discuss the significant role of microbes in sustaining life on earth.
• • Now, play the animation/video (approx. 3 min) “Food Pathogens and Temperature” to illustrate how microbial growth depends on various environmental factors. Use the graphs in the animation to explain the effect of changing temperature on microbial growth. Proceed to explain how global warming may affect microbial growth and establish a relationship between the environment and microbes.
• • The animation/video “Food Pathogens and Temperature” is provided by McGraw Hill and is available at http://highered.mheducation.com/sites/0072501855/student_view0/chapter16/animation_quiz_1.html.
• • Note: This tool requires a Flash player, and therefore, may not play in some browsers. Please enable the Flash player or use a browser (such as Firefox) that supports the playback of Flash content.

• •  Now, use the handout in the reading “Microbes and Climate Change” to explain the crucial role of microbes in the environment. Discuss the role of microbes in gas cycling, the consumption and production of greenhouse gases by microbes, and the resulting effects on climate.
• • This reading discusses the role of microbes in ecological systems and their role in the biogeochemical cycling of elements such as carbon and nitrogen.
• • This handout and reading is provided by the Microbiology Society and is available at https://microbiologysociety.org/uploads/assets/uploaded/f4c5c7a3-3386-427b-a5cafc7d2102806c.pdf. 
• • Note: More information on the relationship between microbes and climate/climate change can be found in the Additional Resources section.

• •  Next, help students explore this topic further in an engaging manner through a classroom activity “Microbes and Climate”. In this activity, students can use online resources to identify the relationship between a specific marine microbe and the climate system. They will then present their findings.
• • The classroom activity “Microbes and Climate”, created through the Educational and Research Testing Hypotheses program from Monterey Bay Aquarium and Research Institute, is available at https://www.mbari.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/01/Microbe-climate_student.pdf.
• • This handout and reading is provided by the Microbiology Society and is available at https://microbiologysociety.org/uploads/assets/uploaded/f4c5c7a3-3386-427b-a5cafc7d2102806c.pdf

http://www.brooklyn.cuny.edu/bc/ahp/CellBio/Growth/MGpH.html

http://microbiologyonline.org/about-microbiology/microbes-and-the-outdoors/carbon-cycle

http://microbiologyonline.org/about-microbiology/microbes-and-the-outdoors/nitrogen-cycle

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/06/080603085922.htm

https://bio.libretexts.org/TextMaps/Microbiology/Book%3A_Microbiology_(OpenStax)/09%3A_Microbial_Growth/9.5%3A_Other_Environmental_Conditions_that_Affect_Growth