Session Descriptions & Downloads
Communicating Ocean Science in K-8 Classrooms
Session 1: Teaching Ocean Science
This session begins with students sharing and discussing their ideas about what is ocean science and what should be included in teaching ocean science. The goals of the course and the rationale for teaching ocean science, including its interdisciplinary nature are discussed. The students then engage in three different grade-level appropriate inquiry-based, hands-on activities: "Seashore Sleuthing" representing an earth and physical science activity appropriate for K-1, "Oyster Beds" a nature of science activity for grades 2-3, and "Red Fish Roundup" a physical science activity for grades 4-5. Students then discuss how the exemplar activities differ by grade level and how the activities differ from the way they experienced science in elementary school.
Session 1: Teaching Ocean Science (PDF, 175 KB)
Session 1 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 4.45 MB)
Session 2: The Nature and Practices of Science
The session begins with students in small groups, sharing and discussing their ideas about Science. They then analyze a variety of statements to generate a discussion about what makes a statement scientific. The whole class together develops the understanding that science is based on testable evidence. They then take part in the "Ice Cubes" activity from the GEMS unit, Ocean Currents. This activity demonstrates the meticulous nature of scientific exploration and debate, and the use of evidence and explanation to make hypotheses. Students also reflect on the principles they discovered by doing the investigation and the importance of these principles to ocean sciences. The session ends with a discussion of the scientific method as an iterative process, which adds to the body of scientific knowledge built by the scientific community.
Session 2: Nature and Practices of Science (PDF, 173 KB)
Session 2 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 834 KB)
Session 3: Teaching and Learning
The session begins with students accessing prior information about teaching and learning by thinking back on how different teaching approaches affected them as learners. They are challenged to think about a model for how people learn which can be used to structure learning in the classroom. They then rotate through four activity stations focused on salinity, which illustrate different teaching approaches. The presenter then leads a discussion about the stations eliciting their ideas about the four teaching approaches and how each affected their interest and conceptual understanding. Participants then do an activity from the MARE/GEMS On Sandy Shores unit called "Sand on Stage" as an exemplar of how these teaching approaches can be used effectively to increase conceptual understanding. The instructional model known as a learning cycle is then introduced and tied in to the participants’ experience with the station activities and "Sand on Stage".
Session 3: Teaching and Learning (PDF, 435 KB)
Session 3 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 9.97 MB)
Session 4: Building Towards Inquiry
This session of Communicating Ocean Science focuses on inquiry, or learning science by doing science. Much of the session focuses on a kit carousel, in which participants look at many of the lessons they can use during the classroom part of the course and examine them for aspects of inquiry. Participants then do an inquiry-based activity, Crayfish Investigation, and discuss how scientific inquiry can be incorporated in the classroom.
Session 4: Inquiry (PDF, 343 KB)
Session 4 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 687 KB)
Session 5: Constructing Knowledge, Building Understanding
The session begins with a discussion that encourages students to think about how people learn and change their ideas. Activities from the GEMS guide Earth, Moon and Stars are used to illustrate several ideas and concepts about astronomy-related topics. They then watch and discuss a 20-minute video, A Private Universe, which features interviews of university graduates and faculty, as well as high school students who are asked to explain the phases of the moon and the seasons. After discussing the video, students brainstorm methods and strategies for dealing with student misconceptions and are offered further ideas about how to set-up effective learning situations. They discuss how these ideas fit in with the Learning Cycle model highlighted in the previous session. Students are then given various props to use to describe and illustrate their understanding of what causes the tides. Students are challenged to create a model they can present to the rest of the class that illustrates how tides are formed.
Session 5: Constructing Knowledge, Building Understanding (PDF, 176 KB)
Session 5 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 659 KB)
Session 6: Questioning Strategies
The session starts off with an activity in which the students are asked to notice the different effects of broad and focused questions with regard to their own thinking and participation in the discussion. Two brief role-plays are then acted out, depicting the interactions between a professor and a student who has come for help during office hours. One illustrates the "sage on the stage" approach to teaching, while the second illustrates, the "guide on the side" approach. During a follow up discussion, students learn how a teacher’s approach can influence the types of question s/he asks students. The class is then introduced to the idea of using a questions "map" to lead successful discussions. Next the students explore buoyancy and density concepts through hands-on experiences in "Water, Water Everywhere" and are then challenged to create 3-dimensional plankton in "The Great Plankton Race" that will drift as slowly as possible through the water column. They then refine their plankton based on observations of actual plankton. Finally, they use what they’ve learned about questioning strategies to plan a series of questions they will ask elementary students visiting during the next session as they lead them through the same activity.
Session 6: Questioning Strategies (PDF, 279 KB)
Session 6 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 312 KB)
Session 7: Questions Lab
In this session the course participants practice their questioning skills with actual elementary student volunteers who are invited to attend the class. The session begins with a "tape recorder" to initiate the interaction between the course participants and the volunteer students. The participants then use the question plans crafted during the previous session, to lead the students through the buoyancy/density/plankton activity. As the participants observe, the presenter gathers the elementary students and leads a debrief of the activity, in order to demonstrate effective discussion-leading techniques. The presenter then introduces an open-ended, exploration activity using live rocky seashore organisms with the whole group. The course participants again use questions to guide the students’ investigations. The presenter asks the elementary students to share phenomena they witnessed during their live animal investigations, and to share their explanations to model discussion techniques, which lead to increased student understanding.
Session 7: Questions Lab (PDF, 165 KB)
Session 7 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 333 KB)
Session 8: Designing a Lesson
In this session, participants focus on applying some of the insights and understandings they’ve gained in the course so far to the development of a lesson with a partner. Participants are guided in the development of their designed lesson using a COS Lesson Design Starter, in an environment of support from their peers and instructors. This activity and design template helps them understand the complexity of designing lessons to address a science concept effectively. They are guided to incorporate the pedagogy presented in previous sessions, including the learning cycle and effective teaching approaches, while designing their lesson to help learners come to some level of understanding of a science concept.
Session 8: Designing a Lesson (PDF, 218 KB)
Session 8 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 10.18 MB)
Session 8: Adaptations for Movement Activity (PDF, 680 KB)
Session 8: Adaptations for Movement Images (PDF, 9.58 MB)
Session 9: Promoting Discussion
This session is focused on how to respond to students’ answers to questions, and introduces a variety of practical discussion leading strategies. Through a series of role plays, strategies are modeled and background information supporting their use are provided. The session closes with a science lesson "Oil on the Beach" focusing on human interaction with the environment, which includes exemplars of good questioning techniques. The students experience the activity as their students would, while also trying to analyze the various strategies used by the instructor.
Session 9: Promoting Discussion (PDF, 231 KB)
Session 9 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 785 KB)
Session 10: Assessing for Learning
This session provides participants with background on and experiences with the important topic of assessment. The session begins with a group assessment activity in which participants review and discuss the topics covered thus far in the course. They examine a real-world example of being assessed and think about some of the reasons for using particular assessment methods. Participants learn the advantages of using different types of assessment measures and how they can reveal a broader range of understanding and skills. They also examine student work samples to evaluate how well they reveal student ideas in science. Throughout the session participants gain a sense of the importance of formative classroom assessment and how it can best be used to support student learning.
Session 10: Assessing for Learning (PDF, 138 KB)
Session 10 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 1.41 MB)
Session 10: Student Work (PDF, 1.65 MB)
Session 11: Classroom Conversations
This session introduces participants to more pedagogical information and experiences highlighting the importance of classroom discussions, while also modeling strategies that participants can use with their own students. Participants explore the role of dialogue in learning by: reading and sharing short excerpts from research; observing a video of a classroom lesson and analyzing coded transcripts; and taking part in a density investigation and discussion. They examine common patterns of teacher student exchanges during discussion, the benefits of teacher guidance in learning science, and the importance of peer-to-peer discourse. At the end of the session, they review all the strategies used in the session that they can also use in classrooms with children.
Session 11: Classroom Conversations (PDF, 263 KB)
Session 11 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 356 KB)
Session 12: Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment
This session delves into the realm of diversity in the classroom and how to address the needs of all students. The emphasis in this session is on language acquisition and developmental issues. The MARE/GEMS activity "Apples and Oceans" is presented entirely in Spanish to illustrate techniques designed to increase all students’ comprehension of high–level science concepts. (There are two versions of this session–the language acquisition session and an alternate session focusing on cultural differences.)
Session 12: Creating an Inclusive Learning Environment (PDF, 610 KB)
Session 12: Apple and Ocean Activity (PDF, 795 KB)
Session 12 Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 638 KB)
Session 12 Apples and Oceans Power Point Presentation (Power Point, 3.57 MB)
Session 13-14: Students Present Their Designed Lessons
Session 15: Wrap up–Rocky Seashore Field Trip (optional)
Additional Content Information:
Here are some topics we have addressed through adult learning activities and activity exemplars that students may use in their outreach activities.
- Physical oceanography:
- Water density, stratification, and global ocean circulation
- Earth, Moon, Sun and tides
- Light in the ocean
- Geological oceanography:
- Continental margins and ocean basins
- Topography of ocean floors
- Coasts: estuaries, marshes, and sandy beaches
- Chemical oceanography:
- Seawater chemistry and salinity
- Biological oceanography:
- Structure and function of planktonic invertebrates
- Structure and function of benthic invertebrates (survey of organismal diversity)
- Structure, function and evolution of fishes
- Ecology of rocky intertidal environments
- Ecology of sandy beach environments
- Ecology of open ocean environments
- Ecology of kelp forest environments
- Interdisciplinary:
- Human impacts on marine environment
