When Captain John Smith visited the Chesapeake Bay in the summer of 1608, what types of animals and habitats did he encounter? Your young historians will analyze primary source documents to answer this question, as well as compare...

How do plants and animals survive in habitats with very little water? Explore arid ecosystems and the way their inhabitants have adapted with a lesson and science experiment. After kids listen to a presentation about adaptation, they...

Oceans represent more than 80 percent of all habitats, yet we know less about them than most other habitats on the planet. The instructor introduces the epipelagic, mesopelagic, bathypelagic, twilight, and midnight zones in the ocean....

Larvae transportation on the New England seamounts is based on the density of the water. Scholars calculate density and graph salinity versus temperature to better understand the distribution of organisms in a water column....

How does weather play a role in the lives of land and sea creatures? Find out with a lesson focused on habitats and the ways animals from different homes are connected. Here, learners explore how the life of a jaguar and howler...

Explore ocean habitats with a lesson that showcases the home of manatees and loggerhead turtles in Belize. Here, pupils compare and contrast the homes of ocean animals to those of humans, listen to an original short story about...

Scientists recently discovered several previously unknown species at the Bear Seamount off the coast of New England. Scholars research these new species — benthopelagic, benthic, and seamount fish — and find out what makes them...

Global warming isn't just an issue on land; deep ocean waters are also showing troubling signs. Young scientists learn more about deep water corals and the many recent discoveries researchers have made. Then they examine data related to...

Young scientists discover how sea otters' habitats have changed due to human impact. Through conversation, video observation, and story reading, scholars identify how human interactions change a specific ecosystem in both positive and...

How much does the sun heat up a lake or ocean? Scholars use a cup and a strong lamp to investigate the heat transfer and thermal layers in the ocean to come up with the answer. They collect data and graph it in order to better understand...

Due to the isolation of seamounts, their biodiversity offers a great deal of information on the development of biological and physical processes. Pupils use simple cluster analysis to rate the similarity and differences in biological...

Introduce learners to the debate format with an activity that uses the National Park Service's controversial Channel Islands restoration program as a topic. Class members learn how to generate provocative debate questions, how to prepare...

Turn your students into flocks of migratory birds for this fun lesson on animal migration. Prior to the activity, the teacher creates four different migration routes in the classroom or any available open space, labeling nesting...

What better way to learn about ecosystems than by getting outside and observing them first hand? Accompanying a field trip to a local park or outdoor space, this series of collaborative activities engages children in...

A lot of people think of insects as pests. But actually, some insects are beneficial because they get rid of pests! After learning about beneficial insects, class members research given insects to find out if they are pests or predators.