In this lesson students investigate sea ice communities in the Arctic Ocean to determine what organisms and ecosystem processes characterize them. They will learn to identify major groups of organisms found in these communities, describe major physical features and how these features change during summer and winter, and explain how these changes affect biological activity. Students will also be able ... Full description.

This activity will help students understand that increases in the ozone hole will result in damaging ultraviolet-B (UV-B) rays penetrating deep into the ocean, and harming young marine life, such as floating fish eggs, fish larvae, juvenile fish, and shrimp larvae, and affecting phytoplankton movement. Students will discover how others in the Antarctic food web will be affected if phytoplankton are ... Full description.

This lesson plan is part of the DiscoverySchool.com lesson plan library for grades 6-8. Using research on environmental conditions of the prairie ecosystem (strong winds, hot and dry summers, cold winters, and plants and animals), students will design an imaginary animal, detailing how its physical and behavioral characteristics make it well adapted to the prairie. They will illustrate their animals ... Full description.

In this lesson, students examine the rich array of marine wildlife that lives in waters surrounding the Indian subcontinent, explore the relationships among organisms in coral reefs, and learn about environmental dangers to coral reefs and research methods to protect them. Students will use the Internet to conduct research about scientific discoveries and environmental protection activities, discuss ... Full description.

In this lesson, students will explore the idea of fractals, and will make inferences about the importance of physical complexity to a seamount biological community. They will recognize that natural structures and systems often display recurrent complexity over many scales of measurement, infer the importance of structural complexity to species diversity and abundance in benthic habitats, and discuss ... Full description.

This lesson plan is part of the DiscoverySchool.com lesson plan library for grades 9-12. It is designed to introduce various publications that have had a profound influence on our attitudes toward environmental issues. Students write a brief essay explaining the effects these books might have had on science or society as well as their own personal reactions to what they've read. Included are objectives, ... Full description.

In this classroom activity students culture algal mats on microscope slides. They observe how snails can be used to control this growth and limit further expansion of the algae. They will also observe how snails themselves can act as pest species by feeding upon desired aquarium plants. This activity page will offer students experience in growing and culturing a film of algae, observing the grazing ... Full description.

This website is one of Public Broadcasting System's (PBS) Living Edens. The site includes material on turtles and other animals including crocodiles and caimans, ants, monkeys, poison dart frogs, quetzals, snakes, and butterflies. Users can also read about Arenal Volcano, and about visiting parks in Costa Rica including Arenal National Park, Poas Volcano National Park, Palo Verde National Park, Tortuguero ... Full description.

In this activity, students focus on the physical and chemical processes associated with the Charleston Bump, a series of rocky scarps, mounds, overhangs, and flat pavements that rise from more than 700 m at the surface of the Blake Plateau to within 400 m of the sea surface. They will be able to describe how the Charleston Bump affects the flow of water in the Gulf Stream, describe the potential biological ... 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.