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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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

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

Resource type

Video

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Marine life
Technology and engineering
Fisheries and seafood
Fish
Invertebrates

Special categories

Other languages
Spanish

Collection name

Ocean Today
Ocean Today: Go fish

U.S. commercial fishing generates billions of dollars and millions of jobs. While the U.S. is a world leader in sustainability, with NOAA Fisheries managing and improving fish habitats and stocks, our marine scientists are at the cutting edge of research that’s keeping our seafood supply safe.

Audience

Adults
College+
Grade 9-12
Grade 6-8

Subject

Earth science

Resource type

Related story

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Ocean floor features

Three seamounts in the Pacific Ocean now bear names honoring the contributions to science made by NOAA and its partners in ocean exploration during a campaign led by the NOAA Ocean Exploration.

Audience

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

Resource type

Video

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Technology and engineering
Tides
Ships and planes

Special categories

Other languages
Spanish

Collection name

Ocean Today
Ocean Today: Fix the ocean

Learn how NOAA's Air Gap system helps huge container ships safely enter and leave U.S. ports.

Audience

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

Resource type

Video

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Maritime archaeology and history
Ocean exploration

Special categories

Cultural heritage
Other languages
Spanish

Collection name

Ocean Today

Ocean Today host Symone Johnson introduces the Shipwrecked video collection, which explores various shipwrecks in our ocean.

Audience

Grade 6-8

Subject

Life science
Math
Social studies

Resource type

Activities, lessons, and units
Lesson plan

Topic

Marine life
Ecosystems
Fish
Ocean and coasts
Maritime archaeology and history

NGSS DCI

LS2: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics

Special categories

Instructional strategies
Hands-on
Models

This lesson highlights the use of shipwrecks as artificial reefs. Students conduct a mock biological survey of fish populations using practiced methods of visual census transects and stationary quadrats. Students will apply and practice data sampling, collection, and analysis techniques. Students will make observations of similarities and differences between surveys and then make informed conclusions based on the data.

Audience

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

Subject

Earth science

Resource type

Video

Topic

Ocean and coasts
Marine life
Climate
Climate change impacts
Cryosphere
Sea level rise
Endangered species
Marine mammals

Special categories

Other languages
Spanish

Collection name

Ocean Today

As Arctic ice continues to melt, it will cause ripple effects across the planet for both animals and people. Here are some of the impacts.

Audience

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

Resource type

Video

Topic

Marine life
Climate
Climate change impacts
Cryosphere
Weather systems and patterns
Sea level rise
Endangered species

Collection name

Ocean Today

How does melting sea ice impact animals, their habitats, and sea level rise?

Audience

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

Subject

Engineering and technology
Earth science
Life science

Resource type

Podcast
Video
Collection
Lesson plan
Activities, lessons, and units
Multimedia

Topic

Marine life
Ocean and coasts
Entanglement
Fish
Ecosystems
Sea turtles
Marine mammals
Coral reef ecosystems
Aquatic food webs
Ocean currents

Collection name

ELP grantee
Signals of Spring ACES (Animals in Curriculum-based Ecosystem Studies)

A collection of lessons, videos, podcasts, and audio clips on sustainability, seafood, sea turtles, marine mammals, ecosystems and more, which use NOAA remote sensing data. Students use Earth imagery to explain the movement of animals that are tracked by satellite with NOAA's ARGOS monitoring system.

Audience

Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Physical science

Resource type

Career profile

Topic

Climate
Carbon cycle
Climate change
Climate change impacts
NOAA careers
Ocean and coasts
Ocean acidification

A career profile of NOAA oceanographer Simone Alin, Ph.D., about the ocean's changing chemistry.

Audience

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

Subject

Engineering and technology
Earth science
Life science
Physical science

Resource type

Easy-to-use data product
Data product

Topic

Technology and engineering
Marine life
Ocean and coasts
Fish
Marine mammals
Ocean pollution and marine debris

Listen to exemplar sound clips of marine sounds, taken from passive acoustic recorders.