NOAA Sea to Sky: Education resource database

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Welcome to our searchable database of education resources created by NOAA and our partners. If you have issues or feedback, please let us know by filling out our feedback form offsite link or sending us an email at education@noaa.gov.

Tips for using the database

Searching for terms that contain more than one word.

Use quotation marks around multiple-word phrases you want to search. For example, searching “climate change” will return resources about “climate change.” If you don’t include quotation marks, it will return resources that include either the word “climate” or “change.” 

Opening resources in a new tab.

 Follow the instructions below for the device you are using.

  • PC: Hold down the control (ctrl) key while clicking the link. Or, right-click the link and select “open in new tab.”
  • Mac: Hold down the command key while clicking the link.
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  • Android device: Press and hold the link. Select “open in new tab” from the pop-up menu

Expanding categories.

Each category has a plus sign (+) to expand the available filters within the category. Some categories have subcategories. Look for the plus sign (+) to see more filterable items.

Making the most of the filterable categories.

There are several categories you can use to filter through the resources. 

  • “Audience” filters by grade level, including postsecondary education, and also has a filter option for adult learners.
  • “Subject” filters by the general subject area, such as Arts, Earth science, Math, and more.
  • “Resource Type” filters allow you to look for resources ranging from activities, lessons, and units to videos or background information.
  • “Topic” filters are more specific than subject. They include filters such as climate, freshwater, and weather and atmosphere.
  • “NGSS DCI” filters by Next Generation Science Standards Disciplinary Core Ideas. Only activities, lessons, and units (and no other resource types) have NGSS DCI associated with them. Not all activities, lessons, and units have this alignment.
  • “Special categories” offers additional filters for specific types of resources and topics, such as printables, resources available in other languages, and safety/preparedness.

Exploring activities, lessons, and units.

Activities, lessons, and units are bundled together under resource type. You can expand to filter for only one type. Activity/demonstration refers to straightforward activities with little or no classroom strategy or pedagogy. Lesson refers to structured activities that are intended for a classroom audience. Module/unit refers to a collection of lessons that can build upon each other over multiple class periods or times of instruction; some people might call this a curriculum. 

Understanding instructional strategies.

Within special categories, there is an expandable filter called “instructional strategies.” This includes special filters that are applicable for some lessons, activities, and units, including things like “outdoor education” and “uses data.”

 

Audience

Adults
College+
Grade 9-12
Grade 6-8

Subject

Social studies
Life science
Physical science

Resource type

Webinar
Multimedia

Topic

Marine life
Ocean and coasts
Ecosystems
Marine mammals
Aquatic food webs
Ocean floor features

Special categories

Education at home
Instructional strategies

Collection name

National Marine Sanctuaries Webinar Series: Archived webinars

Long-term small-boat based studies in the main Hawaiian Islands have revealed amazing information on 11 resident species of whales and dolphins, as well as migratory and open-ocean species that visit the islands. Studies in the Northwestern Hawaiian Islands have been more limited due to logistics of vessel surveys. Comparisons of sightings and tagging data from the two areas suggest that there are resident populations of many species of dolphins and whales in Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument that have yet to be recognized. Join research biologist Robin Baird of Cascadia Research Collective who will compare what is, and isn't, known about whales and dolphins throughout the Hawaiian archipelago.

Audience

Adults
College+
Grade 9-12
Grade 6-8
Grade 3-5
Grade K-2

Subject

Math
Engineering and technology
Earth science
Life science

Resource type

Easy-to-use data product
Data product

Topic

Marine life
Sharks, rays, and skates
Fish
Ecosystems
Sea turtles
Aquatic food webs

The Global Tagging of Pelagic Predators (GTOPP) program is an international, multidisciplinary collaboration among biologists, engineers, computer scientists, and educators, which allows users to view and interact with animal tracking data, oceanographic datasets, and marine life observation. By combining data from a diverse number of highly migratory species and overlaying them with oceanographic data, it is possible to glimpse the processes that influence how open ocean ecosystems work.

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12

Subject

Arts
Earth science
ELA (English Language Arts)
Life science
Math
Physical science
Social studies

Resource type

Activities, lessons, and units
Activity/demonstration
Lesson plan
Module/unit

Topic

Marine life
Aquatic food webs
Entanglement
Ocean and coasts
Ocean currents
Ocean pollution and marine debris

NGSS DCI

ESS2: Earth’s Systems
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
ETS1: Engineering Design
LS2: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
LS4: Biological Evolution: Unity and Diversity
PS1: Matter and Its Interactions

Special categories

Citizen science
Instructional strategies
Education at home
Hands-on
Informal
Models
Outdoor education

The guide is designed to be a resource for activities and information that can fit into existing lesson plans or can be followed verbatim as its own set of lesson plans. Whether you have one hour, one day or one week, the information and activities in this guide will allow you to develop a personalized marine debris education program.

Audience

Grade 6-8
Grade 3-5
Grade K-2

Subject

Life science

Resource type

Background information

Topic

Marine life
Fish
Fisheries and seafood
Aquatic food webs

This is a marine biology book for kids. Learn all about two special rockfish. Discover how rockfish grow and change. Find out about what they eat and who eats them. Explore the different rockfish hangouts in the ocean and learn why these rockfish live in different habitats throughout their lives. All this is shared with you by a couple of intelligent mermaid marine biologists.

Audience

Adults
College+
Grade 9-12
Grade 6-8

Subject

Life science

Resource type

Background information

Topic

Marine life
Fisheries and seafood
Aquatic food webs

Special categories

Printable
Education at home
Instructional strategies

Its size is tiny, but its significance is colossal. Krill – a shrimp-like crustacean – forms the basis of the marine food web for whales, seabirds, fish, squid, seals, and sharks throughout the world’s ocean. Along California’s coast, the California Current ecosystem’s unique springtime wind and circulation patterns generate upwelling of nutrient-rich, deep ocean waters to the sunlit upper layers, which results in an extraordinary explosion of biological productivity. And in this system, krill is king.

Audience

Grade 9-12
Grade 6-8
Grade 3-5

Subject

Earth science
Physical science

Resource type

Career profile

Topic

Marine life
Ocean and coasts
Aquatic food webs
Ocean pollution and marine debris
Ocean floor features
Ocean acidification

What does an oceanographer do?

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Life science
Physical science

Resource type

Multimedia
Webinar

Topic

Marine life
Aquatic food webs
Ecosystems
Fish
Marine mammals
Salmon

Special categories

Instructional strategies
Education at home

Collection name

National Marine Sanctuaries Webinar Series: Archived webinars

Over 18 months, the Seattle Times took a deep look at the southern resident orca extinction crisis to explore and expose the roots of why these animals, the top predator in our marine waters, are struggling to survive. Lynda Mapes, the lead journalist on the newspaper's award-winning series Hostile Waters will explain what the newspaper learned and solutions that will benefit people and orca alike. Lynda Mapes is the environment reporter at the Seattle Times. She has won numerous international and national awards for her work covering environmental topics, and is the author of five books, including Orca forthcoming from the Mountaineers Books in Spring, 2021.

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Resource type

Video

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Marine life
Marine mammals
Sharks, rays, and skates
Aquatic food webs

Special categories

Other languages
Spanish

Collection name

Ocean Today
Ocean Today: Marine life

Even the top predator can become prey. Watch as an orca encounters a great white shark.