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Impact of climate change on sea levels
I can explain how global warming can cause sea levels to rise
Lesson 3 of 6
New
New
- Year 8
Impact of climate change on sea levels
I can explain how global warming can cause sea levels to rise
Lesson details
Key learning points
- Greenhouse gases in the atmosphere keep it warmer than it would be without them.
- Heating from the Sun controls the average temperature of Earth.
- Increased temperatures melt ice sheets more quickly, moving more water into the sea, making sea levels rise.
- More sea ice melts in summer, but this does not add water to the sea or raise sea levels.
- Warmer oceans and seas expand, causing sea levels to rise.
Keywords
Global warming - the increase in Earth’s average surface temperature
Sea level - the average level of the surface of the sea
Ice sheets - thick layers of permanent ice found on land
Glacier - a large mass of ice, moving very slowly downhill because of the gravitational force acting on it
Sea ice - floating ice, formed of frozen sea water
Common misconception
Melting icebergs and sea ice cause sea levels to rise.
A detailed explanation of the anomalous properties of ice is not appropirate for most pupils at this stage. Instead, draw attention to water taking up exactly the same space as the part of a floating iceberg that is underwater.
Task B can be demonstrated, so long as a plastic bottle of water is frozen in advance. Another demo. involves adding ice to a beaker of water, marking the level of the water and allowing the ice to melt. The level of water should not change.
Teacher tip
Equipment
Licence
This content is © Oak National Academy Limited (2026), licensed on Open Government Licence version 3.0 except where otherwise stated. See Oak's terms & conditions (Collection 2).
Lesson video
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Prior knowledge starter quiz
6 Questions
Q1.Match the words about climate science to their definitions.
Match the words about climate science to their definitions.
Q2.For how long have climate scientists being measuring Earth’s temperature?
For how long have climate scientists being measuring Earth’s temperature?
a few decades
a few thousand years
hundreds of thousands of years
Q3.What is the change in sea level that happens twice a day called?
What is the change in sea level that happens twice a day called?
Q4.What is the cause of global warming?
What is the cause of global warming?
the Sun becoming hotter
Earth moving closer to the Sun
Earth’s surface getting hotter
Q5.When did Earth’s global surface temperature start to rise quickly above its long-term average?
When did Earth’s global surface temperature start to rise quickly above its long-term average?
Following the first world war (1920s)
Following the start of the space race (1960s)
Following the smartphone revolution (2000s)
Q6.What would cause Earth’s global surface temperature to start to fall?
What would cause Earth’s global surface temperature to start to fall?
lower greenhouse gas emissions
higher greenhouse gas emissions
higher levels of greenhouse gases in the atmosphere
Assessment exit quiz
6 Questions
Q1.How is the sea level measured?
How is the sea level measured?
tide gauge on a floating buoy
satellite photography
Q2.What do satellite and tide gauge measurements show is happening to sea levels?
What do satellite and tide gauge measurements show is happening to sea levels?
decreasing several centimetres each year
decreasing several millimetres each year
unchanging each year
increasing several centimetres each year
Q3.How many ice sheets are there on Earth?
How many ice sheets are there on Earth?
one
several
many (more than ten)
Q4.What is the name of a large mass of ice moving very slowly downhill due to the gravitational force acting on it.
What is the name of a large mass of ice moving very slowly downhill due to the gravitational force acting on it.
Q5.What is not causing sea levels to rise?
What is not causing sea levels to rise?
melting ice from glaciers
melting ice from ice sheets
expansion of water in oceans
Q6.What happens to particles of sea water that causes oceans to expand?
What happens to particles of sea water that causes oceans to expand?
increase in size
bump into each other less often
