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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.
- iPhone or iPad: Press and hold the link. Select “open in new tab” from the pop-up menu.
- 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.”
- Climate (275)
- Freshwater (164)
- Marine life
(481)
- Adaptations (11)
- Aquatic food webs (58)
- Coral reef ecosystems (85)
- Conservation (31)
- Ecosystems (116)
- Endangered species (20)
- Entanglement (17)
- Fish (99)
- Fisheries and seafood (111)
- Invasive marine species (9)
- Invertebrates (90)
- Life in an estuary (36)
- Marine mammals (135)
- Plankton (15)
- Salmon (23)
- Sea turtles (64)
- Seabirds (31)
- Seaweed, algae, and aquatic plants (24)
- Sharks, rays, and skates (39)
- NOAA careers (28)
- Ocean and coasts
(665)
- Earth processes (16)
- Harmful algal blooms (19)
- Maritime archaeology and history (35)
- Ocean acidification (66)
- Ocean chemistry (16)
- Ocean currents (95)
- Ocean exploration (81)
- Ocean floor features (84)
- Ocean pollution and marine debris (176)
- Ocean sounds (15)
- Oil spills (58)
- Rip currents (22)
- Sea level rise (41)
- Tides (59)
- Tsunamis (56)
- Space (50)
- Technology and engineering (288)
- Weather and atmosphere (326)
- Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System (1)
- Great Lakes Meteorological Real-Time Coastal Observation Network (ReCON) (1)
- Great Lakes photo gallery (1)
- H.O.M.E.S. at Home webinars (1)
- Ocean Today (2)
- Sanctuaries 360 virtual dives (1)
- Sanctuaries LIVE Interactions (1)
- Sea Grant podcasts (1)
- Teaching Great Lakes science (1)
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View or print these digital posters of food webs for each of the Great Lakes and Lake St. Clair from the Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory! They briefly describe the major species in each lake, and include a diagram summarizing the ecosystem energy flow (who eats or is eaten by whom!). These diagrams are based on a model from a paper published in 2003 supported by both NOAA and the Great Lakes Fishery Commission.
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Use the Great Lakes Coastal Forecasting System to view real-time data and forecasts for any of the Great Lakes. For most locations, you can view forecasts for wind, waves, ice, surface temperature, surface currents, temperature profiles, and water levels.
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This web-based tool creates visuals that capture lake level changes that range from six feet above to six feet below historical long-term average water levels in the Great Lakes. Potential shoreline and coastal impacts are also provided through a social vulnerability index and a business layer that shows numbers of employees in coastal areas. This information can be used to think about appropriate preparations, including zoning restrictions, infrastructure improvements, and habitat conservation.
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View real-time and recent satellite images from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS) instrument. Download high-resolution images in multiple formats.
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This expansive Great Lake photo collection includes a wide variety of photo galleries, including harmful algal blooms, fish, historical images, ice, environmental sampling, shipwrecks, restoration, and more. The collection is curated by the NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory.
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The National Weather Service Great Lakes Portal has an interactive map to explore real-time data and forecasted conditions, with a focus on hazards. View the data in the interactive map, in a data table, or in text.
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View real-time images and data collected by Great Lakes buoy stations or explore the data collected by the stations over the past 15 years. This real-time Great Lakes observational data is collected over time by sensors on coastal buoys as part of NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory's Real-Time Coastal Observation Network (ReCON). Each of ReCON’s 16 buoy stations has a webcam, collects meteorological data, and provides sub-surface measurements of chemical, biological, and physical parameters (things like wave height, dissolved oxygen, chlorophyll, and water temperature).
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Join Michigan Sea Grant for a series of fun-filled, family-friendly videos jam-packed full of Great Lakes (Huron, Ontario, Michigan, Erie, and Superior or “H.O.M.E.S.”) fun facts, activity suggestions for your family, and daily challenges. Each video provides a high-energy experience that engages people of all ages in learning about the Great Lakes and activities you can do right at home! Anyone who completes five challenges will be emailed a Great Lakes Jr. Scientist certificate to print and proudly display at home.
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Interesting facts and statistics about the Great Lakes. Each piece of information is paired with a graphic that helps viewers visualize the statistic or fact.
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Many people, including a large portion of those who live close to the Great Lakes, do not have a basic understanding of the individual characteristics of and the differences between the lakes. Since it is difficult to understand many of the Great Lakes issues, such as global climate change, pollution, and water use without a basic understanding of the lakes, this activity is designed to help visualize the differences in volume, shoreline length, human population distribution, and fish populations of the Great Lakes.