Education Commons^™

Investigating The Functions Of Wetlands, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade level: 2-5

Subject area: Life Science

Students will perform two experiments using models of wetlands to learn about the ability of wetlands to prevent erosion, control flooding, and soak up pollutants. They will apply this knowledge in an activity using metaphors to describe a wetland.There is also an outdoor activity that may be added to teach students about a particular type of wetland, the saltmarsh, and adaptations for plants that live in those environments

Mitigating Marshes Against Sea Level Rise: Thin-Layer Placement Experiment, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Students will learn about thin-layer placement restoration techniques by using data from the first year of a plot-based thin-layer restoration science project being conducted by the Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve in Virginia (CBNERR-VA). In groups, students will analyze images of vegetation plots exposed to different treatments and decide which is performing best and could be used as a possible restoration technique to combat sea level rise in the marsh. Students will also interpret graphs of vegetation percent cover, and use classroom discussion to come to a conclusion using critical thinking.

Watershed Activity Set, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade level: 2-5

Subject Area: Life Science

This lesson plan contains 3 activities which can be used together or separately. The first activity demonstrates the overall concept of a watershed by having students build a simple model, the second connects watersheds with habitats and pollution - asking students to design their own watershed. The third module examines more closely human activities and their impacts on watersheds using an Enviroscape(TM) model.

Understanding Changes In Seagrass Communities: Impacts From Local Environmental Factors, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade Level: 7-12

Subjects: Life Science, Biology, and Environmental Science

Students will work in groups to determine what happened to seagrass communities during June and August in 2010 and 2011. Students will estimate percent cover visually at four locations along a mock transect and analyze trends in the data collected. Students will use water quality data to help understand the trends in seagrass cover.

Examining Sea Level Rise Scenarios Through Mock Marsh Transects, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grades: 9-12

Subjects: Earth Science | Environmental Science | Oceanography

Students will work in groups to survey a mock, locally relevant, marsh habitat that includes dominant plant community types. Students will use elevation data to construct and interpret a profile of the mock landscape. Students will understand local vegetative species found in each marsh zone, and how sea level rise may impact the marsh habitat. Students will be able to interpret elevation and elevation changes in a real world, hands-on example.

Assessing The County’S Readiness For A Climate Related Event, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade Level: 9-12

Subject Area: Earth Science, Environmental Science

Students will participate in a role playing scenario in which they represent different stakeholder groups, including emergency responders, land planners, and watermen. Using a variety of provided resources, students are given a task to present on, whether it be creating an evacuation route for their county and identifying shelters, establishing new areas for development, or locations for the best catch of crabs in the year 2050.

Lesson plan has 2 parts.

York River Water Quality Curriculum: Using Real Water Quality Data To Investigate Water Quality Cycles And Answer Applied Marine Science Questions, Bob Carroll, Sarah Mcguire

Reports

Considering that Virginia has approximately 50,000 miles of rivers and streams, 2,500 square miles of estuarine water and 100 lakes greater than 100 acres, water quality monitoring with your students is a great hands-on activity that gets students thinking about the properties and processes occurring in classroom aquaria, lake, stream, river, estuarine and marine environments. It can be difficult to elucidate water quality patterns or trends with student generated data due to the low number of samples taken, the possibility of inaccurate results due to user error or expired test kit reagents as well as the innate lack of accuracy …

Oyster Reef In The Classroom – A Hands-On Laboratory Approach, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia

Reports

Grade Level: 7

Subject Area: Life Science

Students will examine different species found on an oyster reef in the Chesapeake Bay. Students will use a microscope and a dichotomous key to help them determine the different organisms being viewed. Students will draw conclusions based on the observed adaptations of the organisms about how the organism utilizes the oyster reef. Students will practice scientific sketching and become familiar with how to use a field guide and dichotomous key.

Estuarine Aquarium Keeping For Beginners, Sarah Mcguire

Reports

This information was created as an introduction to estuarine, or brackish water, aquarium keeping for the beginner using simple aquarium gear. Estuarine aquarium set-up and maintenance is easy as long as you have access to brackish water and you have time to devote to the tanks. The following information has been obtained from practical experience gained while maintaining estuarine aquariums using basic systems. You can add more sophisticated aquarium gear and keep animals that require more precise water quality, food and care as your wet thumb improves from experience and through information obtained from other sources.

Sea Turtle Science : A Research-Based Middle And High School Classroom Resource, Susanna Musick, Lisa Lawrence

Reports

Sea turtle quick facts, biology, turtle species, nesting behavior, hatching activity, classroom activities.

Blue Crabs In The Chesapeake - An Introduction To The Blue Crab, Lisa Lawrence, Vicki Clark, Jacques Van Montfrans, Susanna Musick

Reports

A classroom resource covering crab anatomy and glossary, life cycle of Callinectes sapidus, data tables, data analysis guides, and illustrations.