Oceanography is an interdisciplinary science that involves the study of the entire ocean, from the shallow coastal areas to the deepest trenches. It involves geology, biology, chemistry, and physics. Students will learn about some of the important discoveries that oceanographers have made and some areas that they are still investigating. They'll use two Web sites to gather this information, including National Geographic's Blue Frontier site. They will conclude by making posters explaining how oceanography is used and why it's important.

Geography, earth science, life science

Standard 18: "How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future"

Two to three hours

• Computer with Internet access
• Construction paper and drawing materials

Students will

• brainstorm the reasons why oceanography is important;
• create "oceanography journals" based on information that they gather at the two Web sites; and
• create posters explaining how oceanography is used and why it's important.

Write the word "oceanography" on the board, and ask students if they know what this word means. Explain that oceanographers are people who study the ocean's landforms and life from the shallow coastal areas to the deepest trenches.

Ask students, either in small groups or as a class, to brainstorm the reasons why oceanography might be an important topic for people to study. What aspects of the ocean are important to know about? How can knowing about the ocean help us take care of it? Ask them to list their ideas and discuss them as a class.

Have students go to National Geographic Blue Frontier. Ask them to click on "Equipment" at the top of the screen. They'll see a picture of DeepWorker. Explain that this vessel takes one person into very deep parts of the ocean to study the landforms and life down there. Tell the class that in a few minutes, they'll be learning about some research that DeepWorker is helping oceanographers and other scientists undertake.

Ask students to take out at least two pieces of blank paper. They will use this paper to make their "oceanography journals." They should write "Oceanography Journal" at the top of the first page.

Below are instructions for how students can get to Web pages describing oceanography-related research projects and discoveries. Have students write the name of the research location (for the Blue Frontier pages) or the oceanographic phenomenon (for the Office of Naval Research pages) at the top of a blank page in their journals.

Under the name of each location or phenomenon, ask students to write answers to these questions: What did scientists learn, or what do they hope to learn, in this study of the ocean? Why is this useful or important for people to know about? It may be helpful to discuss these questions as a class before having students write the answers.

If you have older (5th grade) or advanced students, they can read the Web pages individually or in small groups. If you work with younger students, have them look at the different Web pages as a class and paraphrase the text for them. If your students don't have computer access, you may print and copy these pages, although some pages at the second site have animation that won't come through when printed.

National Geographic: Blue Frontier

• Link to "Expeditions" from the top of this page.
• Choose Monterey Bay from the map.
• Select "Research" from the bottom of the page.
• Read the paragraph about research (or your teacher will tell you about it).
• Write "Monterey Bay" at the top of your first journal page.
• Answer these questions in your journal: What did scientists learn, or what do they hope to learn, in this study of the ocean? Why is this useful or important for people to know about?
• Repeat the above steps for one of the other expeditions, using a new journal page and giving it the name of the new place you're learning about (e.g., the Channel Islands, Florida Keys, or West Florida Shelf).

Office of Naval Research: Science and Technology Focus—Oceanography

• Select "Ocean in Motion" from the left.
• Select "coastal currents." Read the paragraphs about coastal currents and look at the picture (or your teacher will tell you about it while you look at the graphics).
• Write "coastal currents" at the top of your third journal page.
• Answer these questions in your journal: What did scientists learn, or what do they hope to learn, in this study of the ocean? Why is this useful or important for people to know about?
• Repeat the above process for tsunamis, using a new journal page and giving it the title "tsunamis."

If time permits, allow students to choose one or more additional features from the Office of Naval Research site (or choose some for the entire class to look at) and have them add these ocean phenomena to new pages in their journals.

Discuss what students have written in their journals and compare their statements with their brainstorms about why oceanography is important. Ask them to describe some of the lessons that oceanography can teach us and to explain why it's an important science. Make sure students realize that they've just learned about a very small portion of the areas that oceanographers actually study.

Ask each student or pair of students to choose one of the oceanographic discoveries or investigations they've entered in their journals. Have them create small posters entitled "Oceanography is important because?" that include text and pictures describing the oceanographic phenomenon they've learned about and why it's useful or important. As an alternative, they can include more than one journal entry in their posters, forming a "collage" of oceanographic knowledge.

• For grades 3-5: Ask students to imagine this scenario: You're with a group of friends, and one of you (either yourself or a friend) exclaims "I want to be an oceanographer." Everyone else in the group says "Huh? Why??What's that, anyway?"
  
  Have students write a paragraph or two explaining what they or their friend would say to the rest of the group. Their paragraphs should explain why oceanographers are important and describe some of the work they do and the discoveries they've made or hope to make.
  
  
• Adapting the lesson for grades K-2: Read the class a story (fiction or non-fiction) about the ocean. It could be about ocean animals, exploration, or any other related topic, but it should be realistic rather than fantasy. After the story, ask students how they think people know these things about the ocean. What types of activities would people have to do to learn about the ocean? They might mention scuba diving, boating, or collecting animal specimens by fishing. Have students look at some of the pictures from the Web sites in this lesson, and discuss the ocean phenomena that the pictures show (e.g., currents, tsunamis, and marine life). Also show them the picture of the DeepWorkers. Explain that scientists called oceanographers use boats and special equipment like DeepWorker to study many things in the ocean. They do these studies to learn as much as possible about what the ocean is like and to help make the ocean a better place for animals, plants, and people. Have students write and illustrate stories pretending they are oceanographers who are planning a research expedition, either by diving or on a boat. Their stories should discuss the things they hope to discover.

This lesson is made possible by a generous grant from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration National Marine Sanctuary Program.

National Geographic Blue Frontier
Office of Naval Research: Science and Technology FocusOceanography