American Museum of Natural History
Find My Plankton Baby Picture
Get a better understanding of babies in the sea. The class learns about the two kinds of plankton. They then determine the baby pictures of eight marine animals given a picture of the adult and some hints about the larvae. When scholars...
Aquarium of the Pacific
Ocean Drifters
Take a drift in the ocean. Class members watch a video on plankton, the drifters of the ocean. Scholars find out about the different types of plankton and sea jellies. To add a little variety, they use the aquarium webcams to study sea...
Biology Junction
Water Biomes
Water covers more than 70 percent of Earth's surface. Scholars learn about both freshwater and saltwater biomes in a simple presentation. They compare and contrast the differences in oxygen levels, food sources, and sunlight to better...
NOAA
Understanding El Niño Using Data in the Classroom
Are weather troubles caused by El Nino? An installment of a larger series presents a five-part lesson on El Nino. First, scholars learn to read sea surface temperature maps. Then, they compare them to data on graphs before determining if...
Polar Trec
Nature's Density Column
Nature provides density columns in the polar regions that provides food for many animals. Young scientists build their own density columns with water in order to answer analysis questions. Through a slideshow presentation, scholars...
Polar Trec
Plankton Parents
Plankton are so abundant in the ocean they outweigh all of the animals in the sea. In this three day activity, groups discuss and become familiar with plankton, capture females, and look for egg production on day three.
NOAA
Plankton
Dive into the world of plankton. The 17th installment of a 23-part NOAA Enrichment in Marine sciences and Oceanography (NEMO) program introduces different types of plankton. Young scientists then use what they have learned to classify...
Dawn N . Ericson
California Kelp Forest Restoration
This unit is so cool, you won't be able to "kelp" yourself! Intended for all grades, this science and activity guide for teachers offers a unique opportunity to understand kelp's role as a valuable ecological resource. Teachers and...
Ask a Biologist
It’s a Plankton Eat Plankton World
For as small as they are, plankton sure play an enormous role in maintaining marine ecosystems. Dive into an investigation of these tiny organisms with a hands-on life science activity in which children cut out pictures of sea...
University of California
Plankton
Plankton: so much more than just a SpongeBob character. Three different activities have kids looking at both phytoplankton and zooplankton in pictures, as well as collecting their own samples (depending on your access to a saltwater...
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 instructional activity students use Excel to analyze data.
Curated OER
Sinking Races
Students build plankton models and compete to see which sinks most slowly. They write, or orally present ,the adaptations they incorporated to slow the sinking rate of their organisms. Race results can be grounds for some prizes!
Curated OER
Phytoplankton
Tomorrow's marine biologists journey through the world of phytoplankton when viewing this slide show. They are exposed to the shapes and life cycle of diatoms, and introduced to dinoflagellates, coccolithophorids, and silicoflagellates....
Curated OER
A Survey of Plankton Communities
In this biology instructional activity, students identify and define the vocabulary terms listed and make a prediction about the outcomes of the experiment. Then they complete the chart of the observations of the plankton diversity in...
Curated OER
Plankton of Tyson Lagoon
In this plankton key worksheet, students use drawings of phytoplankton and zooplankton to identify macro- invertebrates, diatoms and algae from a pond water sample.
Curated OER
The Mighty Hudson Stretches its Mussels
Students brainstorm possible causes of zebra mussel migration and population expansion. They identify the key causes and effects of the disturbance of the Hudson River ecosystem and research causes and effects in the disturbances of...
Curated OER
Phytoplankton
In this phytoplankton learning exercise, students read and study online information on plankton blooms to answer 8 short answer questions about the topic.
Curated OER
Immersion Presents Monterey Bay
Students study Monterey Bay. In this Monterey Bay lesson, students create a model of upwelling around Monterey Bay. Students simulate surface water movement relative to prevailing winds.
Curated OER
Plankton
Young scholars research phytoplankton and zooplankton. In this food chain lesson plan, students read This is the Sea That Feeds Us and discuss plankton, food chains, and webs. Young scholars define phytoplankton and compare...
Curated OER
Plankton
Young scholars explore the attributes of plankton. In this plankton lesson, students read This is the Sea That Feeds Us and discuss food chains. Young scholars discover the differences between phytoplankton and zooplankton as they...
Curated OER
Biochemical Cycles: Recycling Carbon and Nitrogen
Students construct flow diagrams of the carbon and nitrogen cycle processes. They identify sequences in each cycle that are affected by human impact and present their research to the class.
Curated OER
Harmful Algal Blooms in Full Bloom
Students calculate the total percentage of samples from the data on the graphs. In this marine science instructional activity, students analyze the concentration levels over a period of time. They suggest ways to lessen the effect of...
Curated OER
Life in the Ocean
In this ocean life worksheet, students review the animal and plant plankton and photosynthesis in the ocean. Students fill in the blank of 15 statements and then find these terms in a word search.
Curated OER
Make and Use a Plankton Net
Students make simple plankton nets and use them to collect and identify common forms of plankton. They identify and interpret plankton, as seen under a microscope, whether there was more zooplankton or phytoplankton. Finally, students...