Urban Heat Islands

This lesson plan promotes awareness, critical thinking, and practical problem-solving for urban environmental challenges Understand the urban heat effect on cities.

  • Define an Urban Heat Island (UHI) and explain how it forms.

  • Identify factors that contribute to UHIs.

  • Analyze the effects of UHIs on the environment, human health, and urban areas.

Materials Needed:

  • Thermometers or infrared temperature sensors (optional, for outdoor activity).

  • Chart paper or whiteboards for brainstorming.

  • Handouts or digital access to UHI-related data for analysis.

Lesson Outline

1. Introduction

  • Engage: “Have you ever noticed it feels hotter in the city than in the countryside?”

    • Discuss possible reasons behind the temperature difference.

  • Urban Heat Island (UHI):

    • An urban area that is significantly warmer than its surrounding rural areas.

(Sources: Research Gate, weareiowa.com, Otesection)

2. Exploration Activity: UHI Factors

  • Key Factors:

    1. Heat-absorbing materials like concrete and asphalt.

    2. Lack of vegetation and green spaces.

    3. Waste heat from vehicles, buildings, and industries.

    4. Urban geometry trapping heat.

Group Activity:

  • Split students into small groups. Provide each group with a UHI factor and ask them to:

    • Explain how their factor contributes to UHIs.

    • Give examples or evidence from their own city or local area.

  • Groups will share findings with the class.

3. Presentation: UHI Impacts

  • Environmental Impacts:

    • Increased energy consumption for cooling.

    • Elevated air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions.

    • Stress on urban water systems.

  • Health Impacts:

    • Heat-related illnesses and mortality, especially for vulnerable populations.

    • Poor air quality exacerbating respiratory issues.

  • Economic Impacts:

    • Higher energy costs for households and businesses.

Engage: Show a short video highlighting impacts of UHI effects.

4. Mitigation Strategies

  • Strategies:

    1. Planting trees and creating green roofs.

    2. Using reflective materials for rooftops and pavements.

    3. Designing sustainable urban landscapes with parks and water bodies.

    4. Promoting energy-efficient building designs.

5. Reflection Activity

Objective: Apply knowledge and encourage creative thinking.

  • Scenario: Imagine you are an urban planner tasked with reducing the UHI effect in your city. Write a short plan outlining three specific actions you would implement and explain how they would help.

  • Volunteers share their ideas with the class.

Assessment

  • Formative: Participation in group activities and discussions.

  • Summative:

    1. Write a brief report explaining the causes and impacts of UHIs.

    2. Create a poster or digital infographic showcasing UHI mitigation strategies.

Extensions/Enrichment

  • Outdoor Experiment: Measure temperature differences in shaded versus sun-exposed areas around the school or neighborhood.

  • Research Project: Investigate how different cities around the world are combating UHIs and present findings.

A series of maps depicting land use and urban planning in a city. The first map shows city boundary in blue, built-up land in red, and urban, pre-urban, and rural areas. The second map separates rural and urban areas, with rural in blue and urban in yellow, excluding built-up/water/wetland areas. The third map illustrates elevation control, with final rural areas in blue and urban areas in yellow. The fourth map shows diurnal urban mean LST, with high temperatures in red, low in green, and outlines of the urban area for calculating diurnal LST.
Line graph showing temperature variation during day and night across different land uses: rural, industrial, downtown, park, and suburban. The highest temperatures are in downtown during the day, while the lowest are in rural areas at night.
Diagram illustrating the heat transfer processes contributing to urban heat, showing sunlight heating buildings, heat from vehicles, heat from road surfaces, and heat loss through vaporization, with arrows indicating temperature increases and decreases.