Education
Activity or Mini-Lesson

Ocean Ecosystem Card Sorting Activity

Sunrise over the ocean
Credit
Ocean Exploration Trust

Kick-off any lesson with these one-page, observation-building, problem-solving STEM prompts — whether or not you’re teaching an ocean topic. The ocean covers over 70% of the surface of our planet, but if you don’t live near the ocean, it can be hard to understand the relevance or importance of the ocean.  We are all connected to the ocean, depending on it for food, recreation, and regulation of our planet. Teach your students about the many different ecosystem services provided by the ocean through this card sorting activity.

Objectives & learning outcomes

After the activity, students should be able to answer the following questions:

  1. Why is the ocean important to all humans?
  2. What are ecosystem services?
  3. What are some examples of provisioning, regulating, cultural, and supporting ecosystem services provided by the ocean?
  4. What can we do to sustain the ecosystem services provided by the ocean?

Disciplinary Core Ideas

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Scale: one of three
Prep time and materials cost minimal, may require printing.

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