Fourth graders study the characteristics of five coastal communities. They use logic cards and matching activities to identify the proper community for plant and animal species.

Students experiment to determine the positive and negative impacts of human activities on environmental change. They examine how physical and biological processes such as decomposition affect soil characteristics while looking at the pH...

Here is a document full of teaching notes on water quality and bodies of water that you can use in your ecology curriculum. It has information specific to the Hudson River area, but can easily be adapted to any local body of water....

Third graders conduct an experiment to determine how water moves through different soils found in the Apalachicola River watershed. They read a scenario, conduct the experiment, answer follow-up questions, and draw the water movement...

In this biomes worksheet, students use an on line source to complete a table of the Earth's biomes. Students include the types of plants in each biome, the types of animals, the climate and any details about the biomes. Students answer...

Students observe organisms found in the water. In this lesson on organisms, students collect water from local streams and tributaries in order to study the organisms found in the water. As a culminating activity, students create a...

Students study beluga whale populations and the issues they face.  In this beluga lesson students compare the issues that the whales are facing and name ways people can help.

In this riparian buffer learning exercise, learners click on the links to learn about why we should maintain the riparian buffer and answer short answer questions about it. Students answer 7 questions.

Students create a plant or animal that would be well adapted to a habitat they selected. They first learn about Mangroves and their specific adaptations that help them survive in their habitat.

Learners creat a plant, animal, or other living organism that would be well adapted to a habitat that they previously selected. First they learn about adaptations of Mangroves.

Eighth graders examine Sakinaw Sockeye as species at risk, participate in role playing exercise to consider different perspectives of various interest groups, and try to come to consensus on how to deal with dwindling Sakinaw sockeye...

Students examine the Great Lakes Basin and water conservation. In this Great Lakes and water lesson, students study the location of the lakes before reading the book, The River Ran Wild. They discuss the associated vocabulary and in...

Fourth graders create an electronic story showing the interrelationship of species within the marine environment. They utilize the educational software, 'Destination Ocean' during this engaging lesson.

Young scholars research and investigate invasive species, with specific focus on the exotic plant Phargmites australis and its impact on Piermont Marsh near the community of Piermont, New York.

Students describe and identify the link between land use activities within a watershed and water quality. They evaluate the quality of a "water sample" ( a bag of skittles), graph their results, and form a hypothesis about the land use...

Students learn about the feeding relationships in an estuary ecosystem with this interactive energy pyramid activity. A second activity involves research and a video clip to elaborate the learning.

Learn about estuary ecosystems. Find out about plants, animals, adaptations, and conservation efforts.

Illustrated tutorial explains estuary ecosystems. Animations and illustrations help students become more familiar with the plant and animal communities which make up this coastal habitat.

A complete learning module where students watch an introductory video, take an estuary quiz, learn about landforms related to the environment, and use maps and real-time data to study estuary ecosystems in the United States.

In this interactive learning module, students discover the effects of the changing tides on the life and health of an estuary ecosystem.

Learn about estuaries, where the fresh water rivers meet the salt water of the oceans. The unique features of estuaries are explained, followed by a look into estuarine food webs. Next find out about the different plants and animals that...

Make learning about Earth's biomes fun and easy with video clips, photographs, and diagrams. Learn about estuaries, the water environments formed where freshwater from rivers or streams mix salt ocean water. [6:38]

In this lesson, find out about the life and vitality of oyster reefs in estuary ecosystems. Includes teacher and student materials for download.

Watch a series of videos to learn about the importance of phytoplankton in estuary ecosystems. Then test your understanding by identifying different species of plankton.