K-12 Curriculum
How can we prevent balloons from ending up in the environment?
Students learn about balloons that become marine debris, and then identify solutions that would prevent these objects from ending up on the beach. (Gr 4-12)
Bring the beach into the classroom.
Instructions for creating table top boxes full of marine debris and natural materials found on a beach. (all ages)
How do environmental and ecological factors affect ocean deoxygenation off the Oregon Coast?
Students explore the causes and effects of hypoxia in the coastal ocean through a case study based on real-world events. (Gr 6-7)
How does coastal upwelling impact ocean temperature and productivity?
Students learn the causes and effects of upwelling and apply this knowledge in other applications. (Gr 9-12)
Do Aiptasia with symbiotic algae grow better than those without symbiotic algae?
Students explore how scientists use sea anemones as a model organism to understand coral bleaching. (Gr 9-12)
How can we use copepods as a model to learn about how marine organisms tolerate extreme hypoxia?
Students explore how scientists use intertidal plantkon as a model organism to understand adaptations to hypoxic stress. (Gr 9-12)
Do my choices in clothing affect fish in the deep sea?
Students learn about the sources, transport, and fate of microfibers that end up in the bodies of deep sea lanternfish. (Gr 6)
What can tiny plankton tell us about past and present ocean climate?
Students learn about marine heatwaves and how the distribution of foraminifera species in the fossil record and in deep sea sediment cores helps researchers understand changes in ocean climate. (Gr 9-12)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
ORSEA: Hybrid Beachgrass Discovery
How does a newly-discovered beachgrass hybrid affect coastal ecosytems?
Students investigate how the hybrid species differs from its parents, and how the grass may impact the ecosystem. (Gr 9-12)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
ORSEA: Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy Sites
Where should we put the wind turbines?
Students consider the impacts of offshore wind energy in Oregon within the context of coastal economics and fisheries management. (Gr 9-12)
Are green crabs invading Oregon estuaries and causing harmful impacts?
Students explore the presence and impacts of non-native green crabs in Oregon estuaries. (Gr 9-11)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
What factors affect biodiversity and community structure in West Coast kelp forests?
Student learn about how food webs, competition for resources, and environmental factors shape communities, especially in kelp forests. (Gr 9-12)
How are the inhabitants of a polar ecosystem affected by rising global temperatures caused by climate change?
Students learn about the critical role that krill play in Antarctic ecosystems, and how krill populations have changed over time. (Gr. 6-7)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
ORSEA: Managing Whales at Risk
How does population genetics inform marine policy and management?
Students learn how whale populations are defined, and how how knowing the status of the population to which an impacted whale belongs can inform how managers respond to threats. (Gr 9-12)
What factors drive differences between an urban estuary and a protected estuary reserve?
Students explore how and why water quality varies in two coastal estuaries. (Gr. 6-8)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
What factors contribute to spatial variability in plankton abundance?
Students use plankton abundance data collected off Oregon and California to learn about ecological sampling and interpretation. (Gr. 7-8)
ORSEA: Population Fluctuations in Salmon
Why can’t all salmon be managed in the same fashion?
Students learn how the life cycles and population histories of different salmon species affect how they respond to ecosystem disturbances. (Gr. 9-10)
Alert: Some lesson links may be unavailable during website migration.
How do sea stars affect rocky intertidal ecosystems?
Students explore data from tidepools and learn about the importance of predators in coastal ecosystems. (Gr 6-8)
ORSEA: Tides, Waves, and Floods
What causes changes in sea level over short and long periods of time?
Students explore the causes of variability in sea level and learn how scientists measure sea level. (Gr 9-12)
How can we prevent the escape of plastic wads into the environment?
Students learn about plastic wad marine debris, and then identify solutions that would prevent these objects from ending up on the beach. (Gr 4-12)
Tsunami Quests are located in Clatsop, Lincoln, and Coos Counties
Engaging self-guided walks in which participants have a positive outdoor experience learning about earthquake and tsunami safety at the coast. (all ages)
Turn plastic bags into high quality materials.
Guidance for upcycling discarded plastic bags into sturdy, useful, attractive items of higher value that can continue to be used. (Gr 4-12)
How can we prevent the escape of yellow rope into the environment?
Students learn about yellow rope marine debris, and then identify solutions that would prevent these fragments from ending up on the beach. (Gr 4-12)