The Tyneside club visit Wearside having lost the last four meetings with Sunderland, who claimed a 1-0 victory at St James' Park in December.
Carver - who has taken the novel approach of preparing for the contest at St James' rather than the club's training ground - believes the presence of Newcastle natives on the club's staff has helped transmit the importance of the game to his players.
And Carver said: "The players know what the derby means. With the staff - most are local - they know what it's like and what to expect.
"Any team of mine playing against a Sunderland side will never lack for effort or enthusiasm. My staff and I will be driving them on.
"We wanted to get the players into the stadium for training this morning, into a good environment. Our preparation has been different."
Newcastle have been severely hampered by injury problems this season, however, Carver did have a rare positive update on that front.
He added: "All of our international players have come back in one piece. Mehdi Abeid will be in the squad. It's too early for Rolando Aarons."
