LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Last month was the warmest April on record and the 11th straight month of record highs around the world.

Today, nearly a quarter of people globally live in drought conditions.

And forecasters anticipate this year's Atlantic hurricane season will be the most active on record.

All signs that climate change is an accelerating threat to the planet, and young Americans are worried about it.

In fact, 85 percent of generation Z is very or somewhat concerned about climate change, according to a Marist poll from earlier this year.

In response, states like California, Connecticut, and New Jersey are now teaching kids about climate change in the classroom.

One of the educators at the forefront of this is Lauren Madden, professor of elementary science education at the College of New Jersey.

How do you go about incorporating climate change into a classroom curriculum?

LAUREN MADDEN, The College of New Jersey: So in New Jersey, it's a little bit simpler than it is in some other places because we have standards that are required to be taught at all grade levels in all subject areas.

So they're really developmentally appropriate and they're good tools for teachers to use to think about ways that they can connect to climate in things they're already doing in the classroom.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Could you give examples of how lessons about climate change may change from, say, first grade to 9th or 10th grade.

LAUREN MADDEN: Yes, that's really important to be developmentally appropriate, especially when we're talking about working with young children.

So in the early years, it's really about understanding what lives around you, what's supposed to be here when things happen seasonally.

And some of the differences between weather and climate.

It's not a tough concept for a young child to understand that weather is day to day changes, while climate happens over long periods of time.

Whereas by the time we're in 9th or 10th grade, especially if we've built this foundation of weather and climate, and how our weather and climate are changing over time, then we can start to unpack some of the more nuanced mathematical relationships.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Why do you think it's a necessary subject to teach students?

LAUREN MADDEN: So I think it's really important that we don't lie to children, especially young children.

Our children are seeing the effects of climate change in unprecedented ways.

They're experiencing changes in their day to day lives that none of us have seen before.

So, for example, last spring here in New Jersey and across the east coast, we experienced dust in the air from Canadian wildfires.

And that was something that affected children, all children, their ability to play outside, their ability to go about their day to day life.

And we need to be clear with kids and let them know that something is happening.

And this isn't just a bunch of surprise things that are going on and scientists know what's going on.

But the other more important piece is that our economy is going to change what the future looks like and what the industries are that will be employing our children in the future will be around climate.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: We also spoke with a high school art teacher in New Jersey about the impact of working climate change into her art lessons.

CAROLYN MCGRATH, Hopewell Valley Center High School: I feel that it's very important for students to know about the realities of the circumstances that they're living through.

And as educators, I think we also have an obligation to teach students and guide students through the difficulties of not only understanding this, but also emotionally processing the severity of the situation.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: How can teachers like that one, Carolyn McGrath, help students navigate anxiety and stress about climate change?

LAUREN MADDEN: First of all, we need to be honest with them and we need to be truthful, and we need to let them know that the scientists have really good predictions out there and we have a good sense of what kinds of things are going to be happening into the future.

But I think to ease anxiety, aside from being honest and making sure that our children are well informed, we need to tell them about the types of solutions that exist already and foster their creativity and imagination to help them consider what kinds of solutions can be built in the future.

And I think the best way to ease anxiety is to foster positive actions and also thoughts about large scale solutions that they can contribute to as children and in the future.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: We've seen pushback in primarily conservative states when it comes to teachings about the history of racism or LGBTQ studies.

Does teaching climate change receive similar pushback from some parents, and are those parents seeking to restrict what their kids may be able to learn?

LAUREN MADDEN: So I understand in many parts of the country there is pushback about teaching about climate change from politicians as well as from some parents.

From my experience, I did a research study not too long ago where we surveyed parents in New Jersey, and what they really wanted was tools for helping mitigate student climate anxiety, as well as information that they can make sure they were having a consistent conversation with their children at home and supporting what teachers were doing.

But across the country, I don't know that story is necessarily the same.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: I mean, in states like Florida, they're seeing rising sea levels and record temperatures.

But Governor Ron DeSantis recently signed a bill that deletes most mentions of climate change in state law.

What do you say to educators in states like Florida about how to teach climate change when they may be dealing with elected leaders who reject that it exists?

LAUREN MADDEN: So I've certainly heard from science educators at national conferences who've been working with teachers in Florida who are personally choosing to learn more about how to integrate climate change into their classrooms.

And there's a lot of fear.

I was at a conference session where were asked not to take pictures of anything for fear of disclosing who the teachers were.

I think teachers are our nation's greatest asset, and they are naturally innovators and creative people.

So I know many teachers in Florida are doing things like talking about climate solutions without calling them climate solutions, talking about green innovation and things like that.

But we owe it to children, especially children who are facing sea level rise, droughts, extreme heat, to know what it is that's happening around them and also to know what some of the things are they can do to mitigate those changes.

LAURA BARRON-LOPEZ: Professor Lauren Madden, thank you so much for your time.

LAUREN MADDEN: Thank you.