+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Oceanographic Yo-Yo

For Teachers 7th - 8th
Students examine how oceanographers use chemical and physical parameters of seawater to locate hydrothermal vents.  In this ocean lesson students complete an activity and worksheets. 
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

A Hydrothermal Adventure

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students analyze hydrothermal vents. In this hydrothermal vents lesson, students discover the effects of hydrothermal vents on tectonic plates. Students make model hydrothermal vents to understand how they form and operate.
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Living With the Heat: The Ring of Fire

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students investigate the planet Earth's infamous ring of fire and the life that thrives from it.  In this ocean environment lesson, students investigate hydrothermal vents and how organisms thrive off their heat.  Students complete a...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Locating Vent Fields Using CTD Data

For Teachers 10th - 12th
Students describe the way hydrothermal vents work. Students work on locating vent regions through remote collection of data about water temperature and density. Comparing density and temperatures graphs, students search for indicators...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Sea Connections: Marine Ecosystems

For Teachers 6th - 10th
Students identify producers and consumers from marine ecosystems and describe the balance among them in the environments. After constructing a food chain from a marine ecosystem, they examine human activities that can upset the balance...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Activity 1-Cold Water, Hot Water and Super-Heated Water!

For Teachers 7th - 9th
Students investigate hydrothermal vents by observing a simple model designed to show that hot water rises when it's heated. First, students listen as the teacher explains hydrothermal fluids and vents. Students watch as the teacher...
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

And Now for Something Completely Different...

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students identify organisms that are typical a part of a hydrothermal vent. They examine why hydrothermal vents are short-lived.
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Where Did They Come From?

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students explain hydrothermal vents and the process in which species and the hydrothermal vents become isolated.
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

The Big Balancing Act

For Teachers 9th - 12th
Students describe chemical changes occurring in hydrothermal circulation systems. They make inferences about the significance of these systems to ocean chemical balance compared to terrestrial runoff.
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

AdVENTurous Findings on the Deep Sea Floor

For Teachers 5th - 6th
Students conduct investigations to observe formations of precipitates, then create models of developing hydrothermal vents. They compare the models with the actual hydrothermal vents developing along the Galapagos Rift.
+
Lesson Plan
Curated OER

Yo-Yos, Tow-Yos and pH, Oh My!

For Teachers 4th - 8th
Students explore how hydrothermal vents are formed and where they are located on the ocean floor. They study how scientists use CTDs to locate hydrothermal vents.
+
Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: O Logy: Journey to Deep Sea Vents

For Students 9th - 10th
Take a submersible down to the seafloor. As you descend, passing through the ocean's sunlight, twilight, and midnight zones, you can observe how temperature, pressure, and light levels change. When your submersible reaches the seafloor,...
+
Activity
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: Ocean Ad Ven Ture

For Teachers 6th - 8th
Students can learn about hydrothermal vents with this web quest that explores the deep ocean. Site allows students go on an ocean adventure to learn about the vents from scientist that study them.
+
Handout
Other

University of Delaware: Chemosynthesis.

For Students 9th - 10th
An explanation of how in the deep sea, where the sun's rays never reach, organisms make food from chemicals, a process called chemosynthesis.
+
Unit Plan
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: Find a Vent

For Students 9th - 10th
Learn all about hydrothermal vents deep in the ocean and how scientists locate them. Then take a virtual expedition to the Juan de Fuca Ridge in the north Pacific and see if you can discover a new deep sea vent.
+
Website
Smithsonian Institution

National Museum of Natural History: Ocean Planet

For Students 9th - 10th
Detailed website that was a companion to a 1995 traveling exhibit of the Smithsonian. Links to lesson plans and other educational materials are at the bottom of the page. Enter the exhibition to explore the world of the ocean.
+
Graphic
NOAA

Noaa: Ocean Explorer: Sea Floor

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource page has numerous links to pictures and videos of the sea floor. Topics include geologic features, habitats, bacteria mats and hydrates.
+
Handout
Natural History Museum

Natural History Museum: Hydrothermal Vents

For Students 9th - 10th
This resource is part of a larger online exhibit on the world of oceans. The information on this page is very brief in relation to hydrothermal vents, but the site links to a full-length pdf format article on the subject. The article is...
+
Activity
Natural History Museum

Natural History Museum: The Oceans

For Students 9th - 10th
This online exhibit from the Natural History Museum is home to ten units covering various aspects of the world's oceans including frozen oceans, deep oceans, barnacles, coral reef, deep-sea fish, sponges, vents, and more.
+
Lesson Plan
Science Education Resource Center at Carleton College

Serc: New Millennium Observatory (Ne Mo) Education

For Teachers 9th - 10th
This digital curriculum is an interactive deep-ocean mystery based on daily reports from expeditions at sea and results from NeMO and consists of four parts: Introduction and Background Information, Classroom activities, Movies and...
+
Handout
NOAA

Noaa: Ne Mo: Chemosynthesis

For Students 9th - 10th
Deep under the ocean there is no light for plants to perform photosynthesis. This site is a good overview of the alternative energy method, chemosynthesis. Read all about it.
+
Handout
NOAA

Noaa: Ne Mo: Hydrothermal Vents

For Students 9th - 10th
Clearly describes hot springs on the ocean floor called hydrothermal vents. Details characteristics of the vents and how they work.
+
Interactive
American Museum of Natural History

American Museum of Natural History: Hydrothermal Vents O Logy Card

For Students 3rd - 8th
Check out this interactive OLogy card to learn about hydrothermal vents, also known as black smokers.
+
Handout
Other

University of Texas at Dallas: Why Is the Sea Salty?

For Students 9th - 10th
A clear and concise explanation of why some of the earth's waters are salty and others are not.