NOAA Ocean
Acidification Grant
Teach Ocean Acidification in
Creative and Innovate Ways to
Address Climate Change
Through the NOAA Ocean Acidification Grant, UCI Science Project partnered up with The Ocean Agency and designed elementary and secondary lessons to teach students about ocean acidification in culturally relevant ways. The lesson series aim to active student agency and encourage collective action toward climate change. Please use and share these resources widely!
Grades PK-2
Glowing for Attention: Seeing the Changes in Our Ocean
Engage lower elementary students with these hands-on lessons with opportunities to discuss ocean acidification through art and reading! Students will learn how their daily actions, such as recycling, could help the ocean. Students will answer the driving question:
“What is happening on land and in the ocean that is causing coral to fluoresce?”
Grades 3-5
Our Magnificent Ocean: What’s in a drop of water?
Explore water and the ocean through a new and creative lens with upper elementary students! Students will learn the about the fundamentals of climate change and how ocean acidification is affecting marine environments and food webs. Students will answer the driving question: “What role do phytoplankton have in providing us with the air we breathe and how we protect their
ecosystem?”
Grades 6-8
Hidden Messages: Learning About Our Changing Ocean Through Coral Clues
Investigate the global effects climate change can have on the incredible coral reef ecosystem and analyze real-world data collected by UCI faculty! Students will assess the impacts ocean acidification has on the health of coral reefs and generate a collective call to action to address climate change. Students will answer the driving question: “Why are we projected to lose up to 90% of all the coral reefs in the world and what can be done?”
Grades 9-12
Creative Communication and Climate Change: The Ocean as Climate’s Heart
Discover the intersection between art and science and learn how to communicate climate data and solutions to reach a wider audience! Students will dive deep into learning about the changing chemistry of the ocean and how individual efforts to mitigate carbon emissions can inspire collective action across global communities. Students will answer the driving question: “How does the ocean serve as climate’s heart and what are the ways that we can advocate for the health of the ocean?”
Ready to implement these lessons on ocean acidification?
We want you to feel confident in the content so that your students continue to build agency within your classroom!
7 Things Absolutely Everyone Should Know About Ocean Acidification
Watch this short video about Founder and CEO of The Ocean Agency as he walks through the “7 Things Absolutely Everyone Should Know About Ocean Acidification” toolkit, which is featured in each of the grade band lesson plans listed above.
Register for the online professional learning webinar!
UCI Science Project is inviting teachers to attend a 1-hour online professional learning workshop to learn more about the ocean acidification lesson and resources. Educators who join will receive access to the free, ready to use curriculum centered around ocean acidification, including the Ocean Acidification Toolkit.
Registration for PK-5 is currently open – Register Today! bit.ly/TOAELEMENTARY2
Registration for 6-12 is currently closed.
This was produced by UCI Science Project under award No. NA22OAR0170210 from the Ocean Acidification Program of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), U.S. Department of Commerce. The statements, findings, conclusions, and recommendations are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the views of NOAA or the U.S. Department of Commerce.