It's About Time
How Do Plate Tectonics and Ocean Currents Affect Global Climate?
What do plate tectonics and ocean currents have to do with global climate? This fourth installment in a six-part series focuses on how plate tectonics and ocean currents affect global climate, both now and in the past, outlines an...
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Ocean Currents
Young scholars determine how water and wind affect ocean currents. In this science investigation lesson, students follow the provided steps to enable them to consider how explorers may have used ocean currents to their advantage.
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Driving Currents
Students conduct a variety of investigations to see how water, heat, and salinity affect the flow of the world's ocean currents,as well as, explore many factors that affect the flow of the world's ocean currents. They also describe in...
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Deep Ocean Currents
Students observe the interactions of different temperatures of water using colored ice and a thermometer and then compare the results with global ocean current solar heating. They identify where floating ice would be found in the ocean,...
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Estuarine Currents
Students experiment observing a demonstration on models of density-driven currents which are typically found in an estuarine system of water flow. They compare/contrast water temperature and salinity to the formations of estuarine currents.
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Temperature
In this temperature worksheet, students conduct an experiment including water, measuring cups, a funnel, and more, to see how temperature affects ocean currents. Students read 5 directions and answer 7 questions.
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One World Ocean
Students compare and contrast the properties of salt water in the oceans/seas and freshwater elsewhere on the planet. They also analyze mixing caused by currents in the ocean, including the effects of warm and cold water as well as with...
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Water Currents
Middle schoolers demonstrate how ocean currents are influenced by changes in density. They discover that temperature and salintiy affect density as well. They participate in a short experiment to end the lesson.
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Understanding Oceans
Students investigate how ocean currents affect our world. For this ocean currents lesson, students perform an experiment to show how cold water is near the poles and warm water is near the equator. Students use water, food coloring, ice...
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Estuarine Currents
Students explore an estuarine system to gather data on density driven currents. This type of current is contrasted with temperature and wind driven currents.
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Current Interactions
High schoolers design an experiment to see how wind, temperature, and salinity work together to influence ocean currents and present it in a report format. They explain to their classmates how experiment findings relate to ocean currents.
Polar Trec
Do You See What Icy?
Here is a lesson that kicks off with a question. "How does ice floating on the ocean act as it melts?" As learners investigate this natural phenomenon, they'll discover that it has a lot to do with temperature, salinity, and the effect...
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Density Stratification and Ocean Circulation
Students examine how circulation currents of the ocean. They use a tub of hot and cold water to demonstrate the currents. They discover how salinity and temperature of water affect its movement.
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Erosion: Slip Sliding Away
Fourth graders investigate the causes of erosion. Through several demonstrations including one using sugar cubes and warm water, they observe the effects of erosion. In groups, 4th graders conduct similar experiments and record their...
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Water Cycle
Students identify and define evaporation, condensation, precipitation and also, how these interact to complete the water cycle. They identify that water moves in a contimuous cycle, which is powered by the sun. Finally, students name...