Human activity is causing damage to our planet in many ways. Rising temperatures, degraded water quality and habitat destruction are drastically altering many habitats – from warm, tropical waters to the cold, Arctic Sea. Students will engage in a hands-on activity to recognize signs of coral bleaching, analyze the effects of rising temperatures on animals and discover how coastal engineering can play a role in protecting our marine ecosystems and our own infrastructure.
Georgia Standards of Excellence
- S6E5. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to show how Earth’s surface is formed.
- e. Develop a model to demonstrate how natural processes (weathering, erosion, and deposition) and human activity change rocks and the surface of the Earth.
- S6E3. Obtain, evaluate, and communicate information to recognize the significant role of water in Earth processes.
- a. Ask questions to determine where water is located on Earth’s surface (oceans, rivers, lakes, swamps, groundwater, aquifers, and ice) and communicate the relative proportion of water at each location.
Next Generation Science Standards
MS-ESS3-5. Ask questions to clarify evidence of the factors that have caused the rise in global temperatures over the past century.