Students will use this lab to collect data on a body of water in their own area and perform a primary productivity test, which is a standard test to measure health of an aquatic environment. They will then compare their data to that of the McMurdo Dry Valleys (MCM) Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) website. Students can: calculate the amount of carbon captured by photosynthesis by looking at the ... Full description.

In this activity, students will develop an experiment that will test the ability of bacteria to survive various temperature extremes. They will grow the bacteria in nutrient broth, which will be placed in different temperatures for at least 24 hours and then spread on nutrient agar plates and incubated at 37 degrees Celcius for an additional 24 hours. Students will: learn how to formulate and test ... Full description.

This resource explains that all plants and animals that live in the Chesapeake Bay region have specific needs that must be met in order for them to live there, and also that an area has to have the right combination of food, light, temperature, water, nutrients, shelter and other necessities to be a good habitat. Students will discover that in the Chesapeake Bay region there are five major categories ... Full description.

This lesson plan is designed to help students understand the interrelatedness of food webs and to see how populations of organisms affect each other. Students assume the roles of the various organisms in the ecosystem; the ones that are dependent upon each other are symbolically connected by lengths of yarn. A materials list, instructions, assessment ideas, and educational standards are provided. Full description.

This activity will help students to understand and graph population change over time according to habitat availability. Students will discover that many factors affect the ability of deer or other wildlife to survive over time. Weather conditions, disease, predators, pollution and habitat destruction are some examples. Habitat is the key to wildlife survival and population size. Habitat is defined ... Full description.

This activity will help students understand algal blooms. They will devise their own experiments to test the effects of nutrients on algal growth, or younger students may follow the steps outlined in a sample activity which is provided. Students will be reminded that they need to have controls and replicates in their experiments. As a result of this activity, students will come to understand the requirements ... Full description.

This activity will help students understand that harmful algal blooms (HABs) can negatively impact organisms in a variety of ways, ranging from cell and tissue damage to death. Students will also realize that toxic blooms are caused by algae. The potent toxins produced by these algae can cause massive fish kills, marine mammal deaths, and human illness. Students will participate in a game based on ... Full description.

This activity is designed to help students understand the numerous impacts of harmful algal blooms (HABs), learn about the techniques being used and tested to deal with them, recognize the consequences of various treatment techniques to the environment, and appreciate the complexity in choosing an appropriate detection or treatment technique to deal with these blooms. Students will compile a list ... Full description.

This site considers the flora and fauna of the northern regions, which are unique because their environments are extreme and finely balanced. It looks at the major factors involved in the biological evolution of circumpolar ecosystems, such as cold temperatures and low precipitation, lack of solar energy during much of the year, a rich marine environment along an extended coastline, constant and ongoing ... Full description.

The Canadian Arctic Shelf Exchange Study (CASES) is an international effort under Canadian leadership to understand the biogeochemical and ecological consequences of sea ice variability and change on the Mackenzie Shelf. After an introduction to the program, this site lists the objectives of the program which covered the assessment of several potentials including the impact of increased UV radiation ... Full description.