Educator Resource Database
Developed by partners in the Alaska CoastWatch for Action Project
Marine and coastal K-12 educators collaborated to create this database. It is designed to help teachers and informal community educators engage youth in community resiliency, climate change adaptation, and mitigation of coastal hazards.
Search and filter
- Next Generation Science Standards—NGSS alignments are available for most lesson plans and activities
- Grade level
- Topic—coastal hazard types and other topics
- Resource type—lesson plan, citizen science data collection protocol/data sheet, poster
Search the database
Note: As you search for and filter options, it takes a second or two for the table to refresh.
Partners and funding
Ocean Acidification in Alaska
Facts about ocean acidification in Alaska that can be used for student research projects: What is it? How will Alaska be affected by it? How will marine organisms be affected by it?
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s):
Grade Band(s): HS, MS
Topic(s): Ocean Acidification
Lesson Type(s): Article, Weblink
Ocean Acidification Lab (CACS CoastWatch Curriculum)
Demonstration and lab activities that introduce students to the basic chemistry and impacts of ocean acidification on marine invertebrates.
NGSS PE(s): MS-LS2-4, MS-PS1-2
Grade Band(s): 3-5, HS, MS
Topic(s): Ocean Acidification, Ocean Chemistry
Lesson Type(s): Activity
Download
Ocean Acidification Resources for Alaska Educators
Links to selected curriculum on ocean acidification deemed relevant to understanding potential effects on Alaska’s marine ecosystems and the chemistry of the ocean at higher latitudes.
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s): MS-LS2-4, HS-ESS3-6
Grade Band(s): 3-5, HS, MS
Topic(s): Ocean Acidification, Ocean Chemistry
Lesson Type(s): Activity, Presentation, Video
Ocean Full of Debris (CACS CoastWatch Curriculum)
Fun game to introduce and reinforce different sources of marine debris.
NGSS PE(s): 5-ESS3-1, K-ESS3-3
Grade Band(s): 3-5, MS
Topic(s): Marine Debris, Marine Shipping
Lesson Type(s): Activity
Download
Ocean Impacts
Students plan a research project about a current issue related to human interaction with the ocean, using Internet and library resources. The unit includes a student research project guide and project scoring rubrics for a student poster and the supporting documentation and research narrative.
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s):
Grade Band(s): 3-5
Topic(s): Science & Engineering Practices
Lesson Type(s): Activity
Our Changing World unit
A series of five Alaska Seas and Watersheds investigations included in the Climate Literacy and Energy Awareness Network (C.L.E.A.N.) Collection. Students explore different impacts of climate change on arctic sea and the Bering Sea ecosystem and on glacial ice, model changes in landscapes and read a case study about how changes in a glacial watershed affects a salmon population. In the activity Ch-Ch-Ch-Changes, students graph and analyze sea ice extent data, students explore thermal expansion of water as a lab and then observe how a scientist collects long-term data on a bird population. The lessons demonstrates how Arctic sea ice and glaciers are changing and helps students understand how those changes may impact climate, wildlife, and human activities.The sea ice index data can be updated here.
One activity provides guidance for interviewing Alaska Native Elders and other long-term residents on local communities to document local environmental changes and to compare historic photographs of local areas. Alaska Sea Grant.
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s): DCI MS-LS2.C1, MS-ESS3-3, MS-ESS3-5
Grade Band(s): MS
Topic(s): Climate Change, Salmon, Sea Ice
Lesson Type(s): Activity, Video
Our Nearby Ecosystem
n this 4-5 day investigation, students prepare for fieldwork and then go into the field to practice and apply science skills. Depending on local opportunities, the field trip may take the form of an ecosystem mapping exercise, a river or stream walk, or a coast walk survey. Students return to the classroom to analyze and share their data after the field trip.
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s):
Grade Band(s): 3-5
Topic(s): Science & Engineering Practices
Lesson Type(s): Activity, Field Trip
Outlaw Algae in Alaska Waters
Interactive website with “offiial gang descriptions” involving “rap sheets” and “mug shots” of six species of harmful algae to learn their identifying characteristics and then take an online quiz organized as “the line up” with “witness statements.”
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s):
Grade Band(s): HS, MS
Topic(s): HABs
Lesson Type(s): Images & Visualizations, Weblink
Permafrost Change: What It Means to Alaskans and How We Can Adapt
Factsheet on the potential effects of thawing permafrost on Alaska’s permafrost on vegetation, water supplies, transportation, infrastructure, and human health with a discussion of how Alaskans can adapt. Free download from Alaska Sea Grant Bookstore.
Link: Visit websiteNGSS PE(s):
Grade Band(s): HS
Topic(s): Climate Change, Coastal Erosion
Lesson Type(s): Article