Curated OER
Water Quality and Dissolved Oxygen
Students investigate the relationship between dissolved oxygen and organic materials and aquatic organisms. This is a 3-lesson series in which students explore dissolved oxygen and then design an experiment testing the effects of changes.
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Taxonomy Project
Students act as a taxonomist and, given a certain situation, classify existing organisms.
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Is Your Water Clean?
Students compare water quality of different sources. They test water samples for odor, phosphates, pH, bacteria, and dissolved solids. they fill out a data table and answer questions about their findings.
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Storm Drain Dumping
Young scholars conduct an experiment to show how water gets contaminated through neighborhood runoffs.
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Mighty Macroinvertebrates
Seventh graders identify the names and features of macroinvertebrates found in Turtle River. In this ecology lesson students use digital microscopes and take pictures of invertebrates.
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Estuaries, Estuarine Habitats, and Adaptations
Students conduct research on estuaries. They design and construct an estuary, describe the physical characteristics of an estuary, and create a diagram illustrating an estuarine food web.
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Eye On Conservation Drainage Basin
Students are able to describe the importance of wetland vegetation. They describe the impacts human activities have on water systems. Students compare and contrast the effect of different soil types on water filtration.
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Pond Ecosystem Field Trip
Students investigate the environment by participating in a class trip. In this pond ecosystem lesson, students define a list of vocabulary terms associated with ponds such as invertebrate and metamorphosis. Students attend a field trip...
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Save the Bay!
Students explore environmental protection by creating a presentation in class. In this Chesapeake Bay lesson, students discuss the current threats from human beings towards the delicate balance of life near the bay. Students identify the...
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Relating Number of Insect Species to Water Quality
Students are asked to respond to questions such as:" Have there been surveys of the area to inventory the species?" (For example, for a wetland area, do they know what amphibians live there and how abundant they are?) Are there any...
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Determination of Overall Water Quality Using a Quantitative Macroinvertebrate Survey
Students examine water samples from a local stream. They identify various types of macroinvertebrates found in that water ecosystem and perform a quantitative macroinvertebrate survey to determine the stream's water quality.
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Don't Cry Over Spilled Oil
Students study the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill while evaluating oil spill clean up activities. They discover the long term impact can have on an ecosystem by completing this experiment.
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Wetlands Project
Students discover how wetlands filter out contaminants before they can reach other bodies of water. In groups, they design and build a model of a stormwater wetland. They test the water quality and inform their classmates about the...
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Water Quality
Students are presented with a hypothetical situation to investigate the water quality of the James River. They are given data to analyze and put into the graphic organizer that is included to help solve the problem. The activity includes...
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Missing Macroinvertebrates
High schoolers investigate the concept of a macroinvertebrate. They observe the presence of increases or decreases in population in order to test for factors that contribute to the extinction of a species. Students predict the likelihood...
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Beyond the Tap
Students explain the basic properties of a watershed including how water flows from higher to lower elevations and how watersheds are interconnected. They comprehend how the placement of buildings, roads, and parking lots can be...
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Water Trash
Pupils examine how plastic waste affects the marine environment. They describe techniques that reduce plastic waste in this environment after examining plastic waste that accumulates in their own homes.
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Collecting Field Trip
Students identify and describe each marine habitat. They name organisms that can be found in each habitat and discover ways in which to protect them. They participate in an activity to complete the lesson.