This site is based at Reading Memorial High School in Reading, MA. It features general information defining and describing vernal pools as a habitat type, including an illustrated cartoon series. Resources for educators and students include suggestions for classroom and field trip activities, examples of school projects, field guides, and teacher resources such as workshops. While this site contains ... Full description.

These three lessons focus on the effect of fluctuations of temperature on aquatic life. Topics include effects on the growth and survival rate of aquatic plants, how the metabolic rate of clams is affected by a change in temperature, and the optimal temperature for the hatching and development of brine shrimp eggs. Full description.

The purpose of this resource is to classify and count the reproductive phenological phases of receptacles on selected seaweed species. Students will classify and count the reproductive phases of seaweed plants within a 1-meter x 1-meter plot in the inter-tidal zone. 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.

This lesson plan is part of the DiscoverySchool.com lesson plan library for grades 6-8. It focuses on icebergs and water salinity, as well as the environment of the continent of Antarctica. Students research this area and do an experiment demonstrating the relationship between water salinity and ice floating or sinking in the ocean. Included are objectives, materials, procedures, discussion questions, ... Full description.

This website integrates video footage and information with lesson plans and activities to teach students about the intertidal zone of the oceans. This zone is a habitat for only a few species due to extreme fluctuations in moisture level, heat, salinity, and sunlight. The activities in this unit are designed to enable students to investigate the creatures of these zones and how they have adapted to ... Full description.

In this activity students observe how respiration affects the gas composition of a closed system. They will discover that as seeds become metabolocally active, the released carbon dioxide diffuses into an indicator dye solution and the dye responds with a radical change in color. Students learn that as seeds germinate they use oxygen to breakdown molecules of sugar and that this reaction (respiration) ... Full description.

In this activity students will be challenged to record a path based upon olfactory cues. Most researchers believe that scents within the water are the primary cues upon which fish rely for homing to a specific stream. Scents placed at critical junctures will set the fixed path that each team must follow. The activity is performed on a grid that has been laid out on a large flat surface area. This ... Full description.

This resource features three sections devoted to learning about coral reefs: an online tutorial, an educational roadmap to resources, and formal lesson plans. The tutorial presents an overview of coral biology and threats to coral reefs. Topics include characteristics of corals, the relationship of corals and zooxanthellae, stony corals and reef formation, the importance of coral reefs, and natural ... Full description.

In this lesson, students will investigate the importance of coral reefs to the Earth as a whole and learn some possible explanations for the phenomenon known as "coral bleaching". They should be able to identify ways that coral reefs benefit human beings, identify major threats to reefs and discuss how they might be reduced or eliminated, describe the Coral Reef Early Warning System, and discuss why ... Full description.