The Darby Creek watershed encompasses an area of approximately 550 square miles in central Ohio. The Big and Little Darby Creeks are well known for their vast diversity and abundance of aquatic and terrestrial plants and animals. They are home to eighty-six species of fish, five of which are endangered. Forty-one species of freshwater mollusks live in these waters, eight of which are on the Ohio endangered ... Full description.

There are various local and regional climates on the Earth's surface. While the overall climate of the Earth is often the focus of research and discussion, individual local climates are important to consider when thinking of indigenous plants and animals. In this lesson, students will choose two locations, preferably in different climate zones, and compare real NASA satellite data for those two locations. ... Full description.

Phytoplankton, microscopic floating plant-like marine organisms (plankton means wanderer) are at the bottom of the marine food chain. They perform photosynthesis using water, carbon dioxide, and sunlight to produce glucose for their own use, as well as oxygen. Humans and all land animals and sea creatures are dependent on phytoplankton. The chlorophyll in phytoplankton can be observed by remote sensing ... Full description.

The seasons on Earth are caused by the tilt of the Earth on its axis as it revolves around the Sun. The differences in climate along similar latitudes can be explained by local variations in heat transfer, such as sea and land breezes. The absorption of solar radiation by different surface materials also contributes to variations in temperature along similar latitudes. Students will learn to correlate ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to build an instrument that can be used to measure water temperature. Students construct a soda-bottle thermometer, which is similar to the thermometer used by GLOBE schools. Both are based on the principle that most substances expand and contract as their temperature changes. This experiment also demonstrates the principle of heat transfer. The intended outcome is ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to learn about visualizations by designing and drawing one. Students draw a visualization based either on their interests and ideas about the world or based on actual GLOBE data. They are asked to justify the design choices they make and to interpret the visualizations of their peers. Intended outcomes are that students learn to identify and communicate important patterns ... Full description.

This is an interactive computer game which illustrates how human actions affect water quality within a community. Players take on the role of a city planner, and must make choices about recreational, agricultural, industrial, and residential development projects. The choices made by players will determine how much of a negative impact the project will have on the water and habitat within the community. ... Full description.

Ocean Planet's six lesson plans are adapted from several themes in the Smithsonian Institution exhibition created to share with the public what recent research has revealed about the oceans and to encourage ocean conservation. "Sea Secrets" explores ocean geography; "Sea Connections" looks at the plants and animals that live in different marine ecosystems. "Ocean Market" identifies and values many ... Full description.

The purpose of this activity is to observe the type and cover of clouds including contrails. Students observe which of ten types of clouds and how many of three types of contrails are visible and how much of the sky is covered by clouds (other than contrails) and how much is covered by contrails. Intended outcomes are that students learn how to make estimates from observations and how to categorize ... Full description.

This USGS site contains graphs, tables, and charts for the following ground water topics: What is ground water, ground water flow diagrams, importance of groundwater, and trends in ground-water use. Ground water quality, pesticides, aquifers, waterwells, artesian wells, sinkholes, and land subsidence are also covered. There are a variety of links within all of the above topics and a very complete ... Full description.