Curated OER
OCEAN PAINTINGS
Fifth graders research animal life in a coral reef. They learn and use the wax-resist technique for painting, and create a picture of an ocean animal.
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Ocean Animals vs. Humans
Students use critical thinking skills to solve word problems using ratios that allow them to compare humans to ocean animals.
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A Real-Life Application of Ratio
Learners discuss the concept of "aspect ratio" of the Helios Prototype. They find real life objects that are taller or shorter than them by a certain amount. They practice with ratio and measurement.
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My Life as a Loggerhead
Students discuss the current flow of the Gulf Stream and the characteristics of the Sargasso Sea. They visit websites to gather information on loggerhead sea turtles. Students imagine that they are newly hatched loggerhead turtles.
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The Rhythm of Life - Episode 2 - Melody
Students complete a unit on melodies from various cultures. They watch an online program, analyze various melodies, write a short original melody, complete a worksheet, and compare/contrast three versions of "Amazing Grace."
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A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to the Mill
Students participate in a simulation of wool trading in the 1800's. They pass around a ball of yarn at various stations to simulate the interdependence of each stage of the wool trade, discuss what happens when there is a problem in the...
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Ocean Planet: Pollution Solution
Students explore the concept of environmental stewardship. In this science lesson, students investigate the impact of oil spills as they discuss historical spills. Students use problem solving skills to brainstorm clean-up methods.
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Wegener and Plate Tectonics: A Hands-On Lesson
Students are introduced to and experiment with the basic concepts of plate tectonic theory as well as assess the history of the theory of plate tectonics. They explain and illustrate the basic concepts through diagrams and models of...
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Salmon and the Non-Native Species
Students investigate the affect of non-native species on Pacific Salmon. In this non-native species and Pacific Salmon lesson, students participate in a competition and habitat loss game. They play the game in groups, while answering...
Michigan Sea Grant
Sea Lamprey
Learners discuss the types of technology that are used to control the population of sea lamprey in the Great Lakes. They explain the parasite/host relationship and understand the devastating impact invasive species have on ecosystems....
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Density Dynamics
Students set up working models demonstrating lake turnover and the formation of deep water masses in the oceans.
US Environmental Protection Agency
Carbon Through the Seasons
Meteorologists view an animated video by the Environmental Protection Agency to learn how the carbon cycle works, and then move into groups to analyze and graph actual data of the atmospheric carbon dioxide concentration from Hawaii's...
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Wildlife
The centerpiece of this lesson plan is a predator-prey simulation in which colored paperclips represent different species of animals camouflaged against a colored background. Relevant follow-up questions are provided. The activity is...
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Iron Fertilization - Pumping Iron
The theory that adding iron to ocean water may increase phytoplankton ability to remove carbon dioxide from the atmosphere is examined. The Monterey Bay Aquarium Research Institute is monitoring conditions off the California coast to...
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Feeding in the Flow
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) has developed a tremendous library of ocean-themed lessons that can be used in a variety of science settings. "Feeding in the Flow" is one of those activities; Its focus is on...
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Follow Your Dreams: Career Goals
It is so important for impending high school graduates to start thinking about their potential careers. Here, they discuss the persistence of Blondie Hasler and his impressive transatlantic trip. They follow various routes on a map and...
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Entering The Twilight Zone
In this lesson sixth grade students get into groups and research a given ocean habitat. The major features of cold-seep communities are the objective but plenty information is given about other habitats which could be assigned to...
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See Turtles Nest! See Turtles Hatch!
Students graph data of sea turtles hatching rates from Watamu/Malindi Marine National Park and Reserve in Kenya. In this math lesson, students use real life science data to calculate mean and median values. Students use...
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The Eyes Have It!
Reading essays about deep-sea expeditions open this lesson on crustacean vision. Marine biology explorers study the compound eye and then complete a worksheet in response to all they have discovered. Although the lesson doesn't offer an...
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Whale Migration - The Long Journey
Marine biology learners examine right whale sighting data from the WhaleNet website. They plot the data on a map and write down the number of adults and calves spotted. Questions accompany the data analysis activity, making this a...
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It's Going to Blow Up!
Get your ocean explorers online, reading articles about submarine volcanoes. They answer a series of questions and take a geometery challenge in which they calculate how much of a volcano has been blown away. Make sure to explore several...
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Sharks ~ Taking a Bite Out of the Myth
The first thing to know about this lesson is that the commercial fisheries data for the activity no longer seems to be available. That being said, there are fascinating links to other websites, some about the comparative odds of being...
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Caught in a Net
Students read and discuss the bycatch of the sea and the economic impact of taking bycatch away. In this bycatch lesson plan, students discuss the rights of fisherman and observe pictures of sea animals.
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Galapagos - Discover the Diversity
Pretend you are exploring a newly discovered species of fish in the Galapagos. Your budding marine biologists access FishBase Database's list of marine/brackish fishes and choose one to research. The link through this website does not...