Fifth graders continue their investigation of the plate tectonics cycle with an exploration of the movement of Earth's crust. During the lab, young geologists conduct an experiment to discover the result of different types of...

Ninth graders conduct research on the subject of sea water. They use a variety of resources to obtain information. There are helpful resource links listed in the lesson. In conjunction with the research students make inquiry of the...

Seventh graders study and make a model of the significant formations of the ocean floor. They examine images and illustration and apply their imagination while creating the model. They are challenged to complete further research as an...

Cooperative groups research trip logs from deep-sea expeditions and explore characteristics of deepwater habitats. Using a cake as the ocean floor, they work together to decorate it as a model of such habitats. They also prepare a...

How do oceanographers make maps under water? Junior explorers discover the technologies and processes involved in creating bathymetric maps in part three of a five-part series designed for fifth- and sixth-grade pupils. The lesson...

The pre-lab portion of the lesson introduces emerging geologists to the various layers that make up Earth. After completing a sheet on the identification of the layers, class members simulate plate boundaries and their...

Students predict and then analyze the layout of the tectonic plates that form the ocean's floor using mapping skills and Inquiry based problem solving, They compare the depth of various regions in the ocean with the geologic age to...

How do scientists provide evidence to support the theories they put forth? What clues do they put together to create these theories? After watching West of the West's documentary Island Rotation class members engage in a series of...

Middle schoolers participate in an activity that replicates the creation of sea floor bathymetry by taking a simplified form of soundings in the classroom. They discuss sea floor mapping technologies, sonar, soundings, and remote...

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...

Students study how weather is measured. In this climate lesson plan, students research how samples of the ocean floor reveal facts about the climate thousands of years ago. Students use clay samples to create layers that simulate real...

Students explore the plate boundaries of the earth. Through the use of video, internet and hands-on activities, students examine the types of plate boundaries. They create a model to illustrate the movement and interaction of the...

Yum! Using graham crackers, dried fruit sheets, and frosting, tectonics technicians demonstrate the different types of plate boundaries. If you want to encourage youngsters with an activity that is both educational and edible, then this...

A benthic habitat hosts a vast collection of organisms and its structure influences the biodiversity. Middle-school marine biology explorers will discuss how corals impact structure, and therefore diversity, on the ocean floor. They draw...

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.

Eighth graders determine the location of specific features of the stimulated ocean floor. The features include the continental shelf, continental slope, an ocean trench, and a mid-oceaniz ridge.

This unit focuses primarily on plate tectonics and plate boundaries surrounding continents. It contains pre- and post-lab sections that walk young geologists through plate movements in order to visualize what's going on inside Earth.

Mid-ocean ridges, rift valleys, island arcs, mountain ranges, earthquakes, volcanoes ... there are so many features associated with plate tectonics. The 14th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography...

Seamounts in the Coral and Tasman Seas are home to more than 850 different species. Groups explore hydrothermal vents, researching the organisms found there and their energy source. They also learn about seamounts, exploring their unique...

Students are introduced to Sea Floor Spreading and how it provides evidence for Hess's and Deitz's theory of Continental Drift. They use paleomagnetic data to calculate the rate of Sea Floor Spreading.

Fifth graders study the topography of the ocean floor. They determine its ever changing nature as they examine currents and trade winds. They write paragraph describing how the winds might affect land formations after the discussion of...

Students use a shoe box to create a seafloor model and use cardboard for layering inside of the shoe box to simulate the ocean floor. They probe the ocean floor to simulate sonar echoes. Finally, students graph their data to get a...

Fourth graders define new vocabulary associated with oceanography. They locate and label the four oceans. They also identify features of the ocean floor.

Students explore ocean vessels that drill the ocean floor. For this ocean drilling lesson, students watch videos about drilling the ocean floor and discuss. Students get into groups, go outside and use string to mark off the...