Curated OER
Designing an Underwater Habitat for Humans
Students consider the limitations of deep water oceanography and design an underwater habitat to support scientists while they complete long term studies under the ocean. For this engineering lesson, students are introduced to the...
Curated OER
Oceanography: Ocean Market
Sstudents identify consumer goods obtained from the oceans. They classify the items and calculate the cost of buying these goods. After taking a simulated sea shopping spree, they tally the cost of the items purchased. They conclude the...
National Wildlife Federation
Ghost Town
Around 93 percent of the reefs on Australia's Great Barrier Reef have been bleached, and almost one quarter of them are now dead. Scholars research the sea temperatures, especially around the areas with coral reefs, to make connections...
Curated OER
Anansi and the Tug O' War
Read a short book with your first graders! Anansi and the Tug O' War is the focus of this lesson. After reading the African story together, they complete language arts activities to practice reading comprehension. A stellar group of...
Center Science Education
Hurricanes and Climate
Feeling under the weather? This lesson on hurricanes can whip things up! With professionally designed maps and handouts, teach your future weathermen (or women) where, when, and how hurricanes occur. They identify hurricane regions and...
Curated OER
Seashore Sweep
Learners gather information about sea animals. In this ocean lesson, students read a story about the ocean and seashore. They discuss the needs of seashore animals and create a Mystery Ocean Animal riddle book. Learners also discuss...
Curated OER
Seas, Gulfs and Bays
Students define gulf, bay, and sea. In this bodies of water mapping lesson plan, students locate seas, gulfs and bays and explain how they knew which body of water it was.
Curated OER
Let's Get to the Bottom of the Arctic!
Students identify the three realms of the Arctic Ocean, and describe the relationships between these realms. They describe different species associations in a benthic community.
NOAA
Invertebrates
Crabs and lobsters ... yum! The 18th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on invertebrate marine life. After the lecture slideshow, learners conduct an activity to sample...
Curated OER
My Wet Robot
After hearing about the 2006 PHAEDRA mission that explored the Aegean Sea, middle schoolers work in groups to create a robotic vehicle. They must consider power, propulsion, and other vital systems. Use the multitude of external...
Curated OER
Ocean Life Mural
How many oceans can you name? First, have learners try to name as many oceans as they can, and then have them locate and identify the oceans on a world map. They create a recognizable ocean animal using poster board and tissue paper....
NOAA
Sediments
Calcareous ooze ... what an interesting name! The 15th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program focuses on sediments found on the ocean floor. After viewing the slideshow lecture,...
Curated OER
Phytoplankton in the Gulf of Maine
Students use satellite data to see the correlation between sea temperature and sunlight in the Gulf of Maine. In this phytoplankton lesson students use Excel to analyze data.
Ocean Explorer
Architects of the Coral Reef
Coral Reefs are the focus of a life science lesson plan. Upper graders look at how coral reefs are formed, how the animals and plants reproduce, and the variety of ways that humans benefit from coral reefs around the world. Groups of...
Curated OER
History's Thermometers
Ancient coral beds give scientists clues to past ocean temperatures in much the same way that tree rings indicate historical weather conditions. High school scientists examine coral oxygen isotope ratios and plot the data as a function...
Poetry Class
Tackling Climate Change
Get your kids thinking about climate change with a series of activities that include creating a ditty box poem for the planet, a poem that identifies concepts or objects they would want to preserve.
Curated OER
Oyster Gardens - No Soil Required!
Explore the practice of oyster gardening. Because oysters play a vital role in marine ecosystems and their populations have declined, biologists are transplanting oyster seed to repopulate reefs. After learning about this practice,...
Curated OER
Introduce Vocabulary: Dolphin's First Day (Zoehfeld)
Travel out to sea as scholars learn vocabulary in context through Kathleen Zoehfeld's informational book Dolphin's First Day. Go over the new words scholars will hear before reading: approach, coast, expert, feeble, gaze, murky, propel,...
McGraw Hill
Study Guide for Island of the Blue Dolphins
Dive your class into a reading of Island of the Blue Dolphins with this in-depth study guide. Breaking the novel into three parts, the resource begins each section with a focus activity that identifies a specific theme or question to be...
California Academy of Science
California's Climate
The United States is a large country with many different climates. Graph and analyze temperature and rainfall data for Sacramento and Washington DC as you teach your class about the characteristics of Mediterranean climates. Discuss the...
Curated OER
Three Cold Realms
Students identify organisms within the realms of pelagic, benthic and sea ice. They explain how these three interact with each other.
Curated OER
Getting to the Bottom
Students identify taxa in Arctic benthic communities. They discover organisms that live in these Arctic areas. They analyze data compiled for the Canada Basin Benthic Samples, 2002.
Curated OER
Bathymetry
Young scholars study the topography of the ocean floor and the geological processes of how it is formed. They summarize what bathymetry, describe how islands are formed and illustrate a bathymetric model of the sea floor.
Curated OER
To See or Not to See
Students identify and discuss key factors that determine how effective color camouflage is in certain habitats. In this investigative lesson students divide into groups and study light.