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Lesson Plan
PBS

Ocean Circulation in the North Atlantic

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Swirling and churning, the waters of the North Atlantic play a vital role in Earth's climate! Discover the many factors that produce circulation using a multimedia lesson from PBS's Weather and Climate series for high schoolers. Scholars...
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Lesson Plan
Centers for Ocean Sciences

Ocean and Great Lakes Literacy: Principle 1

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Is your current lesson plan for salt and freshwater literacy leaving you high and dry? If so, dive into part one of a seven-part series that explores the physical features of Earth's salt and freshwater sources. Junior hydrologists...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

Mud is Mud...or is it?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
We know that the type of soil varies by location, but does the seafloor sediment also vary, or is it all the same? Scholars compare photos of the seafloor from two different locations: the Savannah Scarp and the Charleston Bump. Through...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

Stressed Out!

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
Are our oceans really suffering due to the choices humans make? The sixth and final installment in the volume of activities challenges research groups to tackle one of six major topics that impact ocean health. After getting to the...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

Come on Down!

For Teachers 7th - 8th Standards
What do we do when a dive is too dangerous for humans to accomplish? Send in the robots! Middle school scientists get acquainted with several different models of submersible robots in the second lesson of six from NOAA. Lab groups then...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

What's the Big Deal?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Who knew that a possible answer to Earth's energy resource problems was lurking deep beneath the ocean's surface? Part four of a six-part series introduces Earth Science pupils to methane hydrate, a waste product of methanogens. After...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

Methane Hydrates – What's the Big Deal?

For Teachers 9th - 12th Standards
Have you ever tried to light ice on fire? With methane hydrate, you can do exactly that. The ice forms with methane inside so it looks like ice, but is able to burn. The lesson plan uses group research and a hands-on activity to help...
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Lesson Plan
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Consortium for Ocean Science Exploration and Engagement (COSEE)

Ocean Acidification: Whats and Hows

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Open this instructional activity by demonstrating the production of acidic carbon dioxide gas by activated yeast. Emerging ecologists then experiment with seashells to discover the effect of ocean acidification on shelled marine...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Descending to the Challenge: Developing Documentaries About the Deep Ocean

For Teachers 7th - 12th
The video clip that comprises the warm up is not available, but the related article from The New York Times and the movie trailer for Aliens of the Deep are, leaving enough material to make this a fascinating lesson on deep-sea...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Lesson Plan #3 ~ Ocean Currents

For Teachers 6th
Sixth graders experiment to understand the ocean's currents.  In this ocean current lesson, 6th graders complete an experiment with two bottles of water and an index card to discover information about the ocean current.  Students...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Tools of the Trade

For Teachers 7th - 12th
Students construct functional replicas of oceanographic tools and demonstrate and explain their use.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Specialized for the Sea

For Teachers K - 2nd
Students use pictures and make a mural to investigate how ocean animals are adapted to certain parts of their environment.
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sampling the Ocean Floor

For Teachers 3rd - 12th
Young scholars sample goodies from an unseen ocean floor and try to accurately describe their composition. This simulation helps students explain the limitations of sampling and the problem of obtaining representative samples of sea...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Deep Blue Sea

For Teachers 3rd - 5th
Elementary schoolers identify the ocean floor in a geological sense. They create a presentation that highlights the key features of the ocean floor. This terrific lesson plan has excellent streaming video segments embedded in it, and the...
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Lesson Plan
NOAA

Turning the Tide on Trash: A Learning Guide on Marine Debris

For Teachers 1st - 12th
The lessons in this learning guide are designed to increase youngsters' awareness of the impacts of marine debris and to teach them about pollution prevention techniques. This fabulous, 30-page packet is chock full of important...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Waters of the Earth - Friends or Enemies

For Teachers 10th - 12th
High Schoolers observe the paintings and drawings of Robert Harris, and do a study of the ocean that delves into human and physical geography. Learners make prints, listen to music, create a database, and perform research on a specific...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Round and Round

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Learners interpret data from a three-dimensional array of current monitors to determine an overall pattern of water circulation. They hypothesize what effect an observed water circulation pattern might have on seamount fauna. A very...
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Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Under the Sea

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Students imagine and describe fictitious sea animals that might live in the ocean. After reading an article, they reflect on new discoveries found in the ocean recently. Using the internet, they research the interdependence of animals...
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Lesson Plan
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Curated OER

Ocean Careers Exploration

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Learners will work together in groups to gather information about careers in oceanography. They discover the need to have a diverse group of people on a team and then share their information with the class. Web links and materials are...
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Lesson Plan
NASA

Inferring Relationships Among Sea Surface Salinity & Other Variables in the North Atlantic

For Teachers 6th - 12th
Some say a picture is worth a thousand words—even from a hundred miles away! Learners review satellite data to analyze ocean variables such as temperature, salinity, evaporation, and precipitation. They look for patterns in the data and...
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Activity
PBS

Reading Adventure Pack: Oceans

For Parents 1st Standards
Flotsam by David Wiesner and The Magic School Bus on the Ocean Floor by Joanna Cole, illustrated by Bruce Degen, begin a reading adventure pack focusing on oceans. With story listening and thoughtful discussion, scholars complete several...
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Interactive
Mr. Nussbaum

Lobsters

For Students 1st - 2nd Standards
Lobsters are the topic of an informational text that scholars read then answer a series of questions. A progress report details their work.
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Activity
American Museum of Natural History

Create a Coral Reef

For Students 6th - 12th
Scholars create a diorama to showcase a vibrant coral reef. Six steps walk pupils through setting up the diorama box, crafting four different types of marine life, and putting it all together. 
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Activity
American Museum of Natural History

Rubber Blubber Gloves

For Students 6th - 12th
Using gloves, shortening, tape, and a lot of ice, participants experience the feeling of having blubber. The experiment's eight steps follow an informative page about blubber and animals that have it.