Thematic Units - Ocean

Ocean

You will find various Web Sites on the top portion of this page.
Further down, you will find Lesson Plans.
At the bottom of the page, you will find Books that you can order directly from Amazon.com!

Web Sites

Acoustic Thermometry of Ocean Climate
This site contains information of the goals to gather information about temperatures in the ocean in order to verify existing climate models, and to assess the potential effects of low frequency sound transmissions on marine mammals and sea turtles.

Aquatic Network
Information Service for the Aquatic World. Subject areas covered include aquaculture, conservation, fisheries, limnology, marine science and oceanography, maritime heritage, ocean engineering, and seafood.

Consortium for Oceanographic Activities for Students and Teachers
A working collaborative designed to effectively deliver oceanographic and coastal processes education to pre- and inservice teachers from K-12.

Earth, Geology, Geography, Oceanography Sites

Gander Academy
Oceanography on the web.

International Arctic Buoy Programme (IABP)
Polar Science Center-Applied Physics Laboratory-University of Washington
The IABP maintains a network of automatic data buoys in the Arctic Basin which monitor synoptic-scale fields of pressure, temperature, and ice motion to support real-time operations and meteorological and oceanographic research.

International Year of the Ocean (1998)
Even though 1998 was the Internation Year of the Ocean, this is an incredible site! It contains an unlimited amount of resources and information.Be sure to check out the Kids'& Teachers' Corner!

IRI/LDEO Climate Data Library
The IRI/LDEO Climate Data Library contains a wide variety of earth science data, primarily oceanographic and atmospheric datasets.

The Maury Project
The Maury Project is the American Meteorological Society's comprehensive national program of teacher enhancement based on studies of the physical foundations of oceanography. Major components of the program include: (a) the development of a cadre of master oceanographic education resource teachers who provide peer training opportunities for their colleagues throughout the country, and (b) the dissemination and implementation of scientifically accurate and pedagogically sound instructional resource materials directed towards teachers.

Ocean AdVENTure
Travel with us to hydrothermal vents in the sunless depths of the world's oceans. You'll discover some of the Earth's most bizarre creature thriving in one of its strangest habitats.

Oceanography Research
Here you will find a great resource of links and more links!

OCEANIC
The Ocean Information Center is a great source of information and links!

Ocean Planet
A Smithsonian Institution Traveling Exhibition. Find out where the exhibition will be and the lesson plans and activities that go along with it.

Oceanography
This site contains an introduction to water, seawater, and ocean circulation and dynamics. Great for older students!

Physical Oceanography From Space
Describes how satellites measure oceanographic parameters such as sea surface height and temperature, and how these measurements are used by NASA scientists.

SeaWeb
A multimedia project designed to raise awareness of the world ocean and the life within it.

SeaWorld
Check out SeaWorld's home page for ideas!

Turning the Tide on Trash
A Learning Guide on Marine Debris

Undersea & Oversee
Learn what students discovered when they visited the Atlantic Ocean and investigated its ecosystem. You can also find resources in answering some of the basic questions of the ocean.  (Why is the ocean salty?)

Virtual Marine Education Center
Here students and teachers can find information and on-line resources for learning about the marine environment.

WhaleNet - Teacher Resources
It has information on professional development, lesson plans, and web sites.

WhaleTimes
WhaleTimes will take you on an adventure to the ocean. Do you like seals, sharks, penguins and whales? Then you're going to love WhaleTimes. Find out how your favorite animals survive in the sea. What they eat, where they live and much more.

{Return to the top of the page.}

Lesson Plans

Animal Round Game Grades 5
This game is designed to reinforce animal classification by using a "round" game where allstudents participate.

The Beluga Whale: Something I Have Learned Grades K-3
The students will identify beluga whales. The students will speak about an experience they have learned. (You can purchase the book below.)

Jan Brett's Homepage Grades Various
Find seashell bookmarks, coloring pages and instructions for making a sailor's bracelet.
Check out the http://www.janbrett.com/piggybacks/piggybacks_comet.htm Piggy Back section for Comet's Nine.

Ocean Animals Grade K
The students will be able to identify pictures of animals verbally. The students will be able to match animal pictures.

Ocean Lesson Plans Grade 7
You can find 3 great lesson plans here: Anchor's Away, Under the Deep Blue Sea, Ship's Log

Oil Pollution Grades 2-3
Through a hands-on activity, students learn how oil pollution can be harmful to animals.

pH Grades 6-8
Students will learn how to test for pH and understand its relationships to them and their environment.

Salmon Homing Instincts Grades 3-9
In this activity students can experience first hand what it is like to be a returning salmon attempting to find its home by smell. This activity provides for the entire class to participate in the life cycle of the Pacific salmon and the hazards of their journey.

Salt Water Painting Grades 3
The students will observe and understand the process of evaporation.

Seeing Sound and Sonar Grades 7-8
This activity will give students practice in making inferences. It will illustrate that high amounts of information is contained in all types of waves, not just light waves. It is helpful in building a conceptual understanding of sonar radar and other means of investigating our world.

Sharks and Barracudas: Chasing and Tagging Activity Grades Various
This activity is geared for children at the 1st or second grade level.

Something Fishy Grades 6-12
This lesson affords students an opportunity to synthesize what they have learned about the anatomy of fish with their knowledge of ocean environments and organism's methods of adapting to survive. The problem can be expanded to include other sea creatures and environments.

The Water Cycle Grades 2-4
This lesson allows students to learn how the water cycle works and vocabulary to explain it.

Water Pollution Grades K-6
These activities will help students' understanding of water pollution and its potential effects on human and wildlife habitats.

Whale Echolocation Grades 2-4
This activity will provide students with a concrete experience in using echolocation to track an object.

Whales & Ocean Life Grade 3
In cooperative groups, students will learn facts about various species of whales (humpback, gray, killer, etc.)

Why is the sea salty? Grades K-3
For students to observe how salt concentrationincreases in water. Also, how the salt remains after thewater evaporates.

**DON'T FORGET...SOME OF THE WEB SITES ALSO CONTAIN LESSON PLANS**

{Return to the top of the page.}

Books

101 Questions About the Seashore
by Sy Barlowe

A 3-D Look at Oceans
by Keith Faulkner, Rober Morton (Illustrator)

Across the Big Blue Sea: An Ocean Wildlife Book
by Jakki Wook

A Drop Around the World (Teacher's Guide)
by Barbara Shay McKinney

A Drop of Water : A Book of Science and Wonder
by Walter Wick

Amanda Explores the Ocean

Animals of the Oceans (Animals by Habitat)
by Stephen Savage

Arctic Whales and Whaling (Arctic World Series)
by Bobbie Kalman, Ken Faris

As Big As a Whale
by Melvin Berger