Wildwood Trust
Habitats
The circle of life is all around us, from the black bears in the nearby mountains to the pile of dead leaves in the backyard. Encourage young scientists to take a critical look at the world around them with a set of lessons about natural...
Curated OER
Great Lakes Food Web
Young scholars identify species and components of a Great Lakes food web. Using note cards, they place themselves in the correct order of the food chain based on the species present. They discuss what they believe happens to various...
Michigan Sea Grant
Food Web II
A food web consists of complex food chains and the more complex the web, the better likelihood of survival. Learners compare and contrast food webs and food chains and discuss concepts like the predator-prey and consumer-producer...
Curated OER
Aquatic Life
Students explore aquatic life. In this science lesson, students visit an aquatic ecosystem and collect animals found there. Students create a food chain for the aquatic ecosystem.
Curated OER
Forest Food Web Activity
Students gain knowledge of food webs and ecological interconnections in the forest, and place different life forms in their proper place in a food chain. Students appreciate the balance of nature and how humans are affected by extinct...
Ask a Biologist
It’s a Plankton Eat Plankton World
For as small as they are, plankton sure play an enormous role in maintaining marine ecosystems. Dive into an investigation of these tiny organisms with a hands-on life science activity in which children cut out pictures of sea animals...
Curated OER
Salmon Life Cycles
Learners list salmon life cycle stages in order, list three threats that salmon face throughout their lives, and examine important role native fish play in aquatic food chains throughout their life cycles.
Curated OER
Weave an Aquatic Food Web
Young scholars explore organisms that are part of interconnected food webs. In this food web lesson, students choose an animal and research what the animal eats. Young scholars begin with the food chain and branch out into the...
Curated OER
From Eggs to Frogs
Third graders receive a small container of tapioca pudding, they are to pretend that it is frog eggs. The students pretend they are birds who see the eggs, and eat some of them. They discuss what would happen if these were really frog...
Curated OER
Life in the Kelp Forest
Students research and create a marine food web to learn about plants and animals in a kelp forest. In this marine food web lesson plan, students draw lines between kelp forest predators and prey and show the flow of energy in the food...
Curated OER
Aquatic Science
What a terrific way to explore the pond habitat! Learners discuss the animal and plant life found in the Long Island area. They also discuss vocabulary terms, identify pollution concerns, and resource conservation.
Curated OER
Aquatic Ecosystems
Students study ponds and wetland ecosystems and examine the food chains and webs in them. In this aquatic ecosystems lesson students answer questions about the diversity of the flora and fauna in a pond.
Curated OER
Eutrophication Lab
Middle schoolers examine the effects of detergents and fertilizers on aquatic life and describe algae. Students define the term eutrophication as the process by which a body of water, such as a pond, lake, stream, or river, has a sudden...
Curated OER
Pond Water Web
Learners identify the different organisms in the food web. In this biology lesson, students create food chains using the information on cards. They explain what happens if an organism is removed or added in the web.
Teach Engineering
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch
The Great Pacific Garbage Patch is one of several garbage patches around the world where garbage accumulates naturally. As part of a GIS unit that combines oceanography, environmental science, and life science, class members investigate...
Curated OER
The Science Behind Dolphins
Students discover facts about marine mammals, specifically dolphins. In this K-2 lesson plan, students identify the different species of Cetaceans, focusing on dolphins. Students answer true/false questions regarding cetaceans and...
Georgia Aquarium
The Ocean's Nursery
Linear perspective, estuaries, and water ways converge in a science-inspired art project. The class uses what they've learned about eco-systems, estuaries, and the food chain to create scale models of a local marsh. While the lesson is...
Curated OER
Life In Extreme Environments
Students work together to design and participate in experiments to determine the rate rotifers eat. After completing their experiments, they record and analyze their data and identify any challenges faced during the procedure. They...
Curated OER
The Wonderful World of Slugs
Examine a slug? Of course, what else would a 2nd grader do with it? Pupils use clues and go on a slug hunt, read a slug story, or make a cooperative group mural of a slug's habitat. While older learners catalog slugs, go on a slug hunt,...
Curated OER
Empty Oceans
In groups of four, pupils brainstorm about seafood. They view the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch website to examine the problems caused by the seafood industry. Learners are then brought back together to discuss what they...
Curated OER
Monitoring Aquatic Ecosystems Lesson Plan
Learners perform an experiment to test the quality of the water in a marsh.
Curated OER
Blubber Gloves
The ways that animals adapt to their environments is quite remarkable. In this life science lesson plan, fifth graders take a look at some of the ways that aquatic animals that live in Arctic or Antarctic waters survive. They perform an...
Kenan Fellows
Microorganisms in Pond Water
That is living in the water? Groups of two to three view pond water with microscopes in order to find microorganisms. They draw pictures of the ones they find in their slides. The groups compare their drawings to pictures of common pond...
Curated OER
Pond Water Web
Students familiarize themselves with the common organisms that live in a pond and discover their importance in a balanced aquatic habitat as they create food webs. They also investigate how an environmental change affects the habitat as...