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Full-Text Articles in Life Sciences
Antimicrobial Sensitivity Testing: The Search For Antibiotics, Amanpreet Kohli
Antimicrobial Sensitivity Testing: The Search For Antibiotics, Amanpreet Kohli
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Life Science | Biology
Examining agar plates, students determining the effectiveness of antibiotics for fish pathogens.
Case Of The Stressed-Out Larva: A Study Of Climate Change Effects On Oyster Cellular Physiology, Annie Schatz
Case Of The Stressed-Out Larva: A Study Of Climate Change Effects On Oyster Cellular Physiology, Annie Schatz
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Advanced Biology | Chemistry | Oceanography
Using a jigsaw puzzle approach, students will piece together the results of three molecular measures to understand how warming and acidified waters affect the health of oyster larvae.
Marsh Migration Mania!, Emily Goetz
Marsh Migration Mania!, Emily Goetz
Reports
Grades: 6-12 Subjects: Life Science | Environmental Science
In this lesson, students investigate sea-level rise and migration of saltmarsh invertebrates in a "ghost forest."
Sunny-Side-Up: Temperature & Lobster Egg Development, Abigail Sisti
Sunny-Side-Up: Temperature & Lobster Egg Development, Abigail Sisti
Reports
Grades: 6-12 Subjects: Biology
This lesson allows students to use math and science to characterize the effects of temperature on lobster egg development. Students will measure features of lobster eggs at different time points and plot how they change across development. This development will be compared between lobsters from different environments, and students will be asked to draw conclusions about how these differences may relate to lobster performance and climate change.
Fish Census: Monitoring Finfish Populations In Chesapeake Bay, Rachel Dixon
Fish Census: Monitoring Finfish Populations In Chesapeake Bay, Rachel Dixon
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Life Science | Biology | Oceanography
In this activity, students will utilize data collected from a scientific survey to explore where different fishes live in a coastal estuary, and how their populations change over time.
Migrating To Motherhood: The Story Of Female Blue Crabs In Their Ecosystem, Alex Schnieder
Migrating To Motherhood: The Story Of Female Blue Crabs In Their Ecosystem, Alex Schnieder
Reports
Grades: 6-12 Subjects: Life Science
This lesson guides students through an investigation of the migratory patterns of blue crabs, their life stages, ecosystem use by life stage, harvest, and human impacts to their population.
Watercolors: Relating Properties Of Light To Organic Matter And Ecosystem Production, Derek Detweiler
Watercolors: Relating Properties Of Light To Organic Matter And Ecosystem Production, Derek Detweiler
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Chemistry | Biology | Oceanography | Environmental Science
Using properties of light, students will determine the source and composition of dissolved organic matter in estuaries influenced by different land types its subsequent relationship with ecosystem production.
Etiology In Action: Identifying Aquaculture Disease Threats Through Data Analysis, Malina Loeher
Etiology In Action: Identifying Aquaculture Disease Threats Through Data Analysis, Malina Loeher
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
How do scientists identify emerging disease threats? In this lesson, students will examine fish health, aquatic disease ecology, and aquaculture practices to answer this question.
Dial C For Collaboration: Finding Unknowns With Your Fellow Scientists, Brianna Stanley
Dial C For Collaboration: Finding Unknowns With Your Fellow Scientists, Brianna Stanley
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Chemistry | Mathematics | Oceanography
In the sciences, collaboration is key. This exercise allows students to explore scientific collaboration and how to use "knowns" to measure an unknown using a linear equation.
Growing Up Is Hard: Vertical Accretion In Salt Marshes, Alex Smith
Growing Up Is Hard: Vertical Accretion In Salt Marshes, Alex Smith
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
In this exercise, students will use graphing to examine the importance of natural environmental feedbacks on marsh survival.
High To Low: Exploring Estuarine Gradients, Cristin Wright
High To Low: Exploring Estuarine Gradients, Cristin Wright
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Earth Science | Biology | Oceanography
In this lesson, student scientists will examine nutrients, suspended sediment, and phytoplankton level then plot their results to track estuarine gradients.
The Code In The Water: An Investigation Into Harmful And Non-Harmful Algal Blooms, Samantha Fortin
The Code In The Water: An Investigation Into Harmful And Non-Harmful Algal Blooms, Samantha Fortin
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
Algal blooms can be detected using the DNA extracted from water samples. This activity allows students to identify algae and understand the causes of algal blooms.
Feeding Time: How Nutrients Drive Phytoplankton Growth, Brianna Stanley
Feeding Time: How Nutrients Drive Phytoplankton Growth, Brianna Stanley
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
This lesson plan helps students make the connection between the amount of nutrients present in an ecosystem and the resulting growth of phytoplankton in our coastal waters. This lesson takes this concept a step deeper, by exploring how the proportions of nitrogen and phosphorus in the environment create the ideal conditions for phytoplankton growth. Students will explore the concept of limiting factors and will work on both their graphing skills and their ability to compare ratios.
Dichotomous Keys: An Essential Tool For Fish Detectives, Jackson Martinez
Dichotomous Keys: An Essential Tool For Fish Detectives, Jackson Martinez
Reports
Grades: 6-8 Subjects: Life Science | Biology
How do scientists identify an unknown fish?
In this activity, students will utilize a dichotomous key to identify unknown fishes from the Chesapeake Bay and will then characterize their trophic levels based on feeding preferences and adaptations. Students will gain an understanding of organism classification, trophic level interactions, and how fishes may play different trophic roles throughout their lives.
Isotopes In The Estuary: Conception And Application Of Stable And Radioactive Carbon, Derek Detweiler
Isotopes In The Estuary: Conception And Application Of Stable And Radioactive Carbon, Derek Detweiler
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Chemistry | Environmental Science | Oceanography
In this interactive estuary-focused activity, students will examine stable and radioactive isotope data which provide information about the source and age of environmental samples such as plant and soil matter. Students will calculate average isotope ratios from five reference land types (forest, wetland, agriculture, industry, aquatic) and an unknown site within an estuary. Students will graph their calculated ratios and determine the land type that most impacts their estuary based on reference-to-unknown comparisons.
Trees Of The Seas, Michelle Woods
Trees Of The Seas, Michelle Woods
Reports
Grades: 6-8 Subjects: Biology | Life Science
What are harmful algal blooms and why do they occur?
In this lesson plan, students will run their own experiments to investigate how eutrophication can cause harmful algal blooms and investigate strategies for preventing them.
What's In The Muck? Benthic Sediment Characterization And Community Structure, Cristin Wright
What's In The Muck? Benthic Sediment Characterization And Community Structure, Cristin Wright
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
Sediment classification and grain size can affect the types of organisms that live in the sediment. Some organisms prefer sandier sediment, while others love the fine-grained mud.
In this activity, students will classify sediment samples by grain size and plot their findings on a ternary plot. The students will then further investigate which benthic organisms live in the different sediments and which may be more resilient to a change in sediment classification.
Zoop Soup (And Poop!), Kristen Sharpe
Zoop Soup (And Poop!), Kristen Sharpe
Reports
Grades: 6-12 Subjects: Biology | Life Science | Environmental Science | Oceanography
Microscopic poops with a global impact!
Students learn about the ecological and global importance of zooplankton and their fecal pellets in the ocean carbon cycle. Students are guided through the scientific method while participating in an activity that simulates real sediment trap fecal pellet research. Students hypothesize where a sediment trap was set based on the "fecal pellets" contained in their sample, identify source species using a dichotomous key, count and weigh biomass of pellets, and graph and share results with classmates.
Wave Fever: The Climate Induced Range Expansion Of The Atlantic Marsh Fiddler Crab, Kayla Martinez-Soto
Wave Fever: The Climate Induced Range Expansion Of The Atlantic Marsh Fiddler Crab, Kayla Martinez-Soto
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
In 2014, scientists found that the Atlantic marsh fiddler crab had extended its northern limit by ~90 miles to New Hampshire, which is in the Gulf of Maine. Range expanding species can alter salt marsh characteristics such as biodiversity and food webs. In this lesson, students will combine sea surface temperature data from a federal database and fiddler burrow densities from field photos to determine the relationship between ocean warming and range expansions.
Tiny Killers, Sarah Pease
Tiny Killers, Sarah Pease
Reports
Grades: 9-12 Subjects: Biology | Environmental Science | Oceanography
What different methods and new technologies are used to monitor harmful algae and the toxins that they produce?
Students will learn about how harmful algae threaten human health through the processes of bioaccumulation and biomagnification. In small groups, they will design a harmful algae monitoring program based on mock harmful algae data, and then they will test their monitoring program and discover some of the challenges and limitations of any monitoring plan that attempts to measure variable, natural events.
Trawling Through The Five Gyres: A Microplastic Research Study. Subjects: Life Science, Earth Science, Marine/Ocean Science - Grade 6, Meredith Seeley
Trawling Through The Five Gyres: A Microplastic Research Study. Subjects: Life Science, Earth Science, Marine/Ocean Science - Grade 6, Meredith Seeley
Reports
This activity challenges students to help researchers understand what types of plastics are polluting the oceans!
Teachers will prepare samples of microplastics that were collected in each of the 5 ocean gyres, mimicking plastic concentrations actually found in the oceans! Working as a group, students will count the items of plastic and graph their results. They will share their results with the class to compare their gyre to the other four gyres. Finally, students will understand the link between ocean microplastic pollution, and our use of single-use plastics.
This activity can be completed in 45 minutes in the class. An …
Prismatic Little Plankton. Subjects: Life Sciences, Physical Science/Chemistry; Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 9-12, Kristen Sharpe
Prismatic Little Plankton. Subjects: Life Sciences, Physical Science/Chemistry; Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 9-12, Kristen Sharpe
Reports
This is a hands-on interdisciplinary activity that incorporates the fun of biology into physics!
Students participate in chromatography experiments to investigate the properties of plant pigments found in various fruits and vegetables, representing pigments commonly found in various species of marine phytoplankton. The students then apply what they've learned to create and analyze a chromatogram of a mystery "algal" sample to determine which species of phytoplankton are in the sample based on the pigments present. This activity simulates phytoplankton community analysis research done using High Performance Liquid Chromatography at VIMS.
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Whose Fish? Subjects: Life Science, Environmental Science, Marine / Ocean Science, Shelby White
One Fish, Two Fish, Red Fish, Whose Fish? Subjects: Life Science, Environmental Science, Marine / Ocean Science, Shelby White
Reports
This activity invites students to assume the role of various stakeholders in fisheries management and actively discuss the influence of economics, ecology and human interactions in decision-making.
Students will demonstrate their argument for/against a certain regulation by participating as a specific stakeholder (i.e. commercial fisher, recreational fisher, scientists/researcher, environmental group, management agency, and citizen). Students will recognize that stakeholders tend to advocate based on their individual needs, often making it difficult for proposed policies to satisfy the needs of all stakeholders and achieve sustainability goals.
Mitigating Marshes Against Sea Level Rise: Thin-Layer Placement Experiment, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia
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.
Atlantic Wolffish: A Tale Of Missing Teeth. Subjects: Life Science, Biology, Marine/Ocean Science - Grades: 6-8, Kate Bemis
Reports
This lesson plan asks students to make observations based on photographs of real specimens from a natural history collection.
Students collect data to make graphs, which allow them to compare trends for how different variables impact the ecology of Atlantic Wolffish.
Understanding Changes In Seagrass Communities: Impacts From Local Environmental Factors, Chesapeake Bay National Estuarine Research Reserve In Virginia
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.
Microscopic Hitchhiking: Taking A Trip With Microbes And Plankton. Subjects: Life Science / Biology, Environmental Science, Marine / Ocean Science Grades: 6-8, Lucia Safi
Reports
This lesson plan develops concepts on food webs and ecological relationships, giving special attention to microorganisms and Chesapeake Bay species and dynamics. Students will conduct investigations, generate their own data and find out more about species they constantly see!
Plastic As A Habitat For Bacteria And Human Pathogens. Subjects: Life Science / Biology Grades: 6-8, Amanda Laverty
Plastic As A Habitat For Bacteria And Human Pathogens. Subjects: Life Science / Biology Grades: 6-8, Amanda Laverty
Reports
This lesson plan invites 7th grade life science students to investigate marine plastic pollution as a habitat for bacteria and human pathogens. Students will examine the hazards of marine plastic pollution and learn about current science. They will have the opportunity to use data to create graphs and discuss patterns.
Can’T Catch My Breath! A Study Of Metabolism In Fish. Subjects: Environmental Science, Marine/Ocean Science, Life Science/Biology Grades: 6-8, Gail Schweiterman
Can’T Catch My Breath! A Study Of Metabolism In Fish. Subjects: Environmental Science, Marine/Ocean Science, Life Science/Biology Grades: 6-8, Gail Schweiterman
Reports
This lesson plan invites high school students to ask questions and formulate hypothesis regarding the drivers behind observed differences in metabolism in different fishes. Students will practice calculating metabolic rate, making biologically relevant inferences about the lifestyles of different fishes based on their findings, and formulate questions that would guide future studies.
Sexual Dimorphism In Shrimp. Subjects: Life Science / Biology Grades: 9-12, Soloman Chak
Sexual Dimorphism In Shrimp. Subjects: Life Science / Biology Grades: 9-12, Soloman Chak
Reports
Best suited for advanced high school students, this lesson offers an example of how a biologist uses morphometrics to test hypotheses about sexual selection and evolution in snapping shrimp. Students use software (ImageJ) to measure carapace and claws of two shrimp species with contrasting lifestyles. Students can take measurements themselves using ImageJ, and then analyze using Excel.