Place—Algae in Your House Summary: No matter how far away we might live from the beach, we are culturally connected to the ocean and its resources. Students examine the contents of their kitchen cupboards to find evidence of the ocean’s influence. Concepts to teach: Nutrition, social studies Goals: Students discover that although we sometimes can […]
Stewardship—Citizen Biomonitoring Summary: Students contribute to the scientific understanding of a local ecosystem by collecting water quality data and reporting results to the community. Concepts to teach: Stewardship, action, water quality, process of scientific inquiry Goals: Students engage in scientific inquiry and come to see themselves as scientists as they collect and report data about […]
Stewardship—Storm Drain Marking Summary: Many people erroneously believe storm drains connect to sewer treatment systems. But in most communities, whatever enters the drains is discharged directly into a neighboring body of water (lake, river or bay) without benefit of treatment. In this activity, students mark storm drains to warn citizens not to dump polluting materials. […]
Human Impacts—Real Time Data Summary: How is water quality inland related to water quality located downstream? Real time or near-real-time data collected by scientists and remote sensing equipment are available to view online. In this focus area, students access some of these tools to answer questions about water quality. Concepts to teach: Water quality, real […]
Human Impacts—Who Dirtied the Water? Summary: Who is responsible for pollution of water resources and the subsequent clean up? Students identify a variety of pollution sources though participating in a story about the progressive contamination of a model body of water. They recognize that once the water is contaminated, it is difficult to determine to […]
Human Impacts—Nonpoint Source Pollution Summary: Nonpoint source pollution (NSP) comes from many diffuse sources, and is a leading cause of water quality problems in the U.S.. In this topic guide, students identify different types of NSP and their effects on water quality. Concepts to teach: Nonpoint source pollution, runoff, point source pollution, toxins, biomagnification, eutrophication […]
Human Use of Resources—Dirty Water, Clean Water Summary: Where does dirty water go when it leaves your home? This topic guide focuses on wastewater movement and treatment in municipal areas. Concepts to teach: Storm water, wastewater, water treatment plant, septic system Goals: Students recognize that water is an important resource used by humans, and that […]
Place—Stormwater Pathways Summary: Where does rainwater go after it hits the ground? In this topic guide, students find out where stormwater around their school or other local area goes, and what environmental contaminants might get picked up along the way. Concepts to teach: Stormwater, storm drains, sewer system Goals: Students work with storm drain maps […]
Place—Human Impact Survey Summary: The field-based “Human Impact Survey” lesson plan from Alaska Sea Grant is one part of a larger curriculum unit that focuses on the relationship between humans and the ocean. In this lesson, students construct knowledge about aquatic pollution through firsthand exploration of the local environment. Concepts to teach: Pollution, marine debris, […]
Coastal Ecology—Arctic Ocean Ecology Summary: Students analyze data from the Arctic Ocean expeditions to make inferences about productivity and nutritional relationships among three biological realms of the Canada Basin of the Arctic Ocean. Concepts to teach: Food webs, trophic levels, sea-ice realm, pelagic realm, benthic realm, nitrogen isotopes Goals: Students will examine data collected from […]