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Using Scientific Data Collected in the Marine National Monuments

November 06, 2018

Educational resources and lesson plans for grades 7-12 to learn about the variety of marine life, their values, and functions in the Monuments using scientific data.

Educational Materials |
Pacific Islands

The 7-12 grade lesson plans are available for educators that introduce students to the concept of marine protected areas, expanding students' appreciation and understanding of the value of ocean resources. The lessons use scientific data collected in the Marine National Monuments to help students connect the ecosystem benefits provided by these areas to those they receive from their local environment, and are aligned with the National Ocean Literacy Principles.

Topics include tectonics evolution, island fish, seabirds, guano, ocean currents, marine debris, biodiversity, marine technology, sea turtles, and coral reefs in the Marianas Trench, Pacific Remote Islands, Papahānaumokuākea, and Rose Atoll Marine National Monuments.

Marianas Trench Marine National Monument

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Click on lesson plan topic title to download PDF.

Lesson Plan Topic Summary Supplementary Files
1 Tectonic Evolution This lesson seeks to have students build their own understanding of how the convergent plate boundary at the Mariana Trench creates the unique benthic environments found throughout the area, many of which are now protected as part of the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY
  4. Student Datasheet
  5. Mariana Trench Monument
  6. Overview
2 Island Fish In this lesson students will learn about the islands and coral reef ecosystems that make up large parts of the Marianas Trench Marine National Monument.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY
  4. Student Datasheet
  5. Mariana Trench Fact Sheet
  6. Island ID Cards
  7. Island Fish Graphs
3 Viscous Volcanoes Students will describe mud volcanoes, contrast them with magma volcanoes, and explain how these structures, the Mariana Islands, and the Mariana Trench are related to the motion of tectonic plates
  1. Lesson Plan
4 Exploring Live With The Okeanos Explorer

Students can become active ocean explorers while viewing live video feeds during Okeanos Explorer expeditions. Also they will learn about bathymetry and create and bathymetric map and a model of some undersea geologic features studied in ocean exploration.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Mapping the Ocean Floor: Bathymetry 
5 Serpentine Volcanoes Serpentine Volcanoes Students will describe mud volcanoes, contrast them with magma volcanoes, and explain how these structures, the Mariana Islands, and the Mariana Trench are related to the motion of tectonic plate. 
  1. Lesson Plan
6 Submarine Ring of Fire 2014 – Ironman Expedition

National Treasure: Learn about carbon dioxide from deep-ocean volcanoes and its effect on ocean acidity

Microbes of Iron: Ecological role of iron-oxidizing bacteria in hydrothermal vent ecosystems

Volcanoes, Acids and Champagne!: Carbon dioxide from deep-ocean volcanoes and its effect on ocean acidity
  1. National Treasure Lesson Plan
  2. Microbes of Iron Lesson Plan
  3. Volcanoes, Acids and Champagne! Lesson Plan
7 Tubeworms Tube worms are plentiful in the Mariana Trench. Although this lesson plan is based of an expedition in the Gulf of Mexico, the same principles apply in the Marianas Trench. Students will learn about chemosynthesis and the relevance to biological communities near cold seeps, construct a graphic interpretation of age-specific growth, and estimate the age of a tube worm, identify at least five organisms typical of these communities and the anatomy of vestimentiferans and how they obtain their food. 
  1. This Old Tubeworm
  2. Let's Make a Tubeworm

Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument

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Click on lesson plan topic title to download PDF.

Lesson Plan Topic Summary Supplementary Files
1 Seabird Biology In this lesson students will learn about the islands and atolls that are a part of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument. They will get a basic introduction to the location and size of the islands and atolls.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet and Case
  4. Study ANSWER KEY
  5. Seabirds of Jarvis PowerPoint
    Case Studies
2 Guano and Nutrient Cycling  This lesson introduces students to the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument through the lens of seabird guano.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY
  4. Nutrient web cards
  5. Plotting Worksheet
  6. PRIMNM Monument Overview
3 Ocean Currents  This lesson seeks to show students how the islands of the Pacific Remote Islands Marine National Monument are integral to interactions between the human and the natural environment.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Voyage Plan
  3. Student Voyage Plan ANSWER KEY
  4. Ocean Current Images

Rose Atoll Marine National Monument

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Click on lesson plan topic title to download PDF.

Lesson Plan Topic Summary Supplementary Files
1 Sea Turtles In this lesson, students will explore the life history of sea turtles and the importance of Rose Atoll as a nesting ground.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet and Case
  4. Study ANSWER KEY
  5. Seabirds of Jarvis PowerPoint
    Case Studies
2 Coral Reefs  This lesson focuses on the general health and life history of coral reefs and explores the reef at Rose Atoll. 
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Coral Biology Tutorial
  3. Student ReefGrow Lab
  4. Student ReefGrow Lab ANSWER KEY
  5. Rose Atoll PowerPoint
3 Marine Protected Areas   This group of lessons has focused on the natural ecosystems found in Pacific Marine National Monuments and the research being conducted there, and has provided background information on what it means to for an area to be designated as a Marine National Monument or a Marine Protected Area.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Rose Atoll Presidential Proclamation
  4. Hawaiian Marine Resource Management Article
  5. Samoan Marine Resource Management Article
  6. Definition and Classification of MPAs Handout

Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument

Read Lesson Plan Overview

Click on lesson plan topic title to download PDF.

Lesson Plan Topic Summary Supplementary Files
1 Marine Debris This lesson serves as an introduction to Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and to one of the most difficult management challenges facing the Marine National Monument system, Marine Debris.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY
  4. Marine Debris Photos
  5. Overview of Plastic Types
2 Biodiversity  The objective of this lesson is for students to understand the concept of biodiversity, its importance, and how changing biodiversity affects an ecosystem. 
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY    
  4. Biodiversity PowerPoint
  5. Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index Spreadsheet Blank
  6. Shannon-Wiener Diversity Index Spreadsheet ANSWER KEY
3 Science and Technology This lesson serves as an introduction to Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument and scientific tools and techniques that are used to help understand this unique environment.
  1. Lesson Plan
  2. Student Worksheet
  3. Student Worksheet ANSWER KEY
  4. Four Cruise Summaries
  5. Student Research Topics
  6. French Frigate Shoals Bathymetry
  7. RV Oscar Elton Sette Spec Sheet

Last updated by Pacific Islands Regional Office on 09/14/2022