NANOOS Lesson Plans
The Northwest Association of Networked Ocean Observing Systems (NANOOS) is the Regional Association of the national Integrated Ocean Observing System (IOOS) in the Pacific Northwest, primarily Washington and Oregon. Here are lesson plans you can use to bring NANOOS regional data into your educational activities.
In this activity, students can take on the role as a resource manager or scientist, tasked with deciding if razor clam harvesters should go out onto the beach to harvest razor clams.
Habitat, Habitat, Have to Have a Habitat!
The coastal ocean of the Pacific Northwest (PNW) is a very dynamic place. In this activity students will develop an understanding that the ocean is dynamic and investigate, through role play, how different ocean conditions may impact organisms at different trophic levels.
Is It Warm Enough???? Shellfish Spawning Data Scavenger Hunt
If you are a shellfish (oyster) grower, it is important to determine where shellfish will reliably grow, and understand the conditions in which they will spawn. In this data scavenger hunt, you will be exploring the marine conditions in Puget Sound to determine a good place to locate the host tribe mega-shellfish feed on the beach for the upcoming canoe journey.
Ocean Acidification: A Systems Approach to a Global Problem Overview
In this curriculum module, students in high school life and marine science courses act as interdisciplinary scientists and delegates to investigate how the changing carbon cycle will affect the oceans along with their integral populations.
Presentation and information on marine heatwaves and its impacts.
In partnership with the Washington Acidification Center, this presentation outlines marine environmental stressors.
Ocean Acidification and the Intertidal Zone
In partnership with the Washington Acidification Center, this presentation outlines ocean acidification and the intertidal zone.
Ocean Acidification and the Salmon Race
In partnership with the Washington Acidification Center, this presentation outlines ocean acidification and the salmon race.
This activity will help familiarize students with methods scientists use to study the coastal ocean in the Pacific Northwest, and will encourage them to pose and investigate their own questions about the ocean.
What’s a Water Column Profile? Lesson Plan
In this activity students explore the relationship between temperature, salinity and density in coastal marine waters. Students access and retrieve water column profile data from the NANOOS and/or the WA Department of Ecology’s Marine Water Monitoring database. Using this data, students construct water column profiles and provide plausible explanations for the trends seen.
In this activity students investigate the relationship between winds, surface currents, sea surface temperature and upwelling and downwelling off the coast of OR and WA. Students analyze data to make predictions on today’s upwelling or downwelling conditions.