Related: OLP#6: The ocean and humans are inextricably interconnected.
LESSON PLANS AND ACTIVITIES
Click on a lesson plan or activity name to learn more about it
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Net Results
/ WETA/PBS Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture SeriesStudents will study and replicate a model of the factors affecting fisheries populations in the Chesapeake Bay (or any other bay). Through a game they will investigate how decisions by watermen, recreational fisherpeople, and lawmakers influence and are influenced by economics and the abundance or scarcity of fish and shellfish stocks.
For more information: http://www.pbs.org/emptyoceans/educators/activities.html.
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Game of Life
/ NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries ProgramThe goal of this game is to illustrate to the students what happens to a fish stock when large amounts of biomass are removed from a particular species. Students learn about over-fishing and its impact on the ocean.
For more information: http://sanctuaries.nos.noaa.gov/education.
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Fishing for the Future
/ WETA/PBS Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture SeriesThrough a fishing simulation, students model several consecutive seasons of a commercial fishery and explore how technology, population growth, and sustainable practices impact fish catch and fisheries management. For more information: http://www.pbs.org/emptyoceans/educators/activities.html.
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How to Catch a Fish
/ PBS – Jean Michel Cousteau Ocean AdventuresAfter an introduction to the variety of current fishing methods, students learn through an activity about the problem of bycatch and then design a poster or PSA to educate others about the issue.
For more information: http://www.pbs.org/kqed/oceanadventures/educators.
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Fish and Kids
/ Marine Stewardship CouncilA package containing lessons, worksheets, and activities to teach young students about sustainable seafood. Each subject has two levels: one for grades K-2 (key stage 1) and another for grades 3-5 (key stage 2).
Additional resources: http://www.fishandkids.org
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Do You Know the Fish You're Eating
/ WETA/PBS Marine Fisheries and Aquaculture SeriesStudents design and conduct research to discover firsthand what type of fish is being sold in their community, where this fish comes from, and whether that fish is an overfished species. This lesson gives students a chance to do their own market research and discover first-hand what type of fish is being sold to the public. It also provides an introduction to fish as an important food source and as an industry controlled partly by supply and demand.
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Alaska Sea Grant Fishing for the Future
/ Alaska Sea GrantIn an interactive game, students simulate fishery activity to demonstrate the effect of new technology and overfishing. They then rewrite the rules of the game in an effort to establish a sustainable practice.
For more information: http://seagrant.uaf.edu/marine-ed/curriculum/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=86&Itemid=174.
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Tale of a Whale
/ Smithsonian Institution and New England AquariumStudents exercise their observation skills to do some of the actual work of marine biologists who study the endangered North Atlantic right whale. They identify an individual whale by examining photographs taken at sea. They then examine a record of sighting of the whale in order to track its movements.
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The Best Hope for Northern Right Whales
/ National GeographicThis lesson asks students to research current and proposed methods of assisting the recovery of northern right whale populations. Students will conduct Internet research to investigate the best strategies to help save right whales.
Article “North Atlantic Right Whales on Path to Extinction” for lesson found at:
http://www.cnn.com/NATURE/9903/18/right.whales.enn/. -
WebQuest: Sensory Biology and the Plight of the Right Whales
Drs. Jill C. Fegley and Sara M. Lindsay / University of Maine Lindsey LabThis lesson introduces high school students (grades 9-12) to the topic of sensory perception in the marine environment. The WebQuest introduces the role of acoustic cues in ocean ecology and challenges students to determine if acoustic warning devices are useful tools to prevent right whale fishing gear entanglements and ship strikes in the Gulf of Maine.
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Collision Course
/ Massachusetts Marine EducatorsStudents analyze maps of shipping lanes and whale sightings to devise a new shipping lane through the Stellwagon Bank National Marine Sanctuary to minimize ship strikes on whales.
For more information:
http://www.massmarineeducators.org/. -
How do Humpback Whales Feed?
/ National GeographicThe activity covers background, migration, and feeding behaviors of humpback whales. It also includes a simulation of bubble net feeding and a drawing exercise.
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Splash – Monitoring Humpback Whales
/ NOAA National Marine Sanctuaries Program/National GeographicStudents learn the importance of monitoring endangered marine mammals like humpback whales and how monitoring can help marine conservation efforts.
For more information:
http://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education and
http://www.ngsednet.org/community/index.cfm?community_id=128. -
1st Grade Moorea Coral Reef LTER Education Curriculum
/ Moorea Coral Reef LTER EducationThese multidisciplinary lessons and activities include “What do scientists do?”, “What is a coral reef?” and “Fish Feeding.” For more information and to download the lesson plans and activities, go to http://mcr.lternet.edu/education/.
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4th Grade Moorea Coral Reef LTER Education Curriculum
Moorea Coral Reef LTER Education / Moorea Coral Reef LTER EducationThese life science lessons and activities are about food chains and ecosystems and include “Food Chain Hide and Seek,” “Connected Ecosystems” and “In Hot Water.” For more information and to download the lesson plans and activities, go to http://mcr.lternet.edu/education/.
