Discover the Ocean in Your Backyard
 Kindle the excitement of ocean discovery in your students with the 2004 Oceans Day learning unit. Discover how mapping your connection to oceans can be integrated into science, technology, geography, history, art, language, and even physical activity.
Ocean Treasures—Yours to Discover!
Treasure! The word conjures up spine-tingling images of adventure and discovery on wild coastlines—swashbuckling pirates and oak chests spilling gold and gems onto sun-drenched sand. Children love the excitement of treasure maps and the eager pursuit of a scavenger hunt.
We can have fun fantasizing about ocean treasure hunts for long-lost pieces of eight. But healthy oceans also offer us a very real treasure here and now–a trove of biodiversity that we tend to take for granted:
- Oceans provide us with fish and shellfish, the world’s greatest sources of dietary protein.
- Ocean flora and fauna provide life-saving pharmaceuticals such as anti-cancer drugs.
- The oceans’ algae absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen on a massive scale . These tiny species contribute directly to the air we need to breathe.
- Oceans and their creatures connect us to our rich cultural heritage though history, music, and stories.
- Ocean shores provide opportunities for recreation, relaxation, and spiritual renewal.
In spite of how valuable our ocean treasures truly are, our behaviour continues to threaten them. Surprisingly, the greatest threats often arise, not on the oceans themselves, but far inland. As we forget or ignore our links to living oceans, we:
- poison ocean waters with chemicals and waste waters from our homes, schools, farms, and businesses;
- increase erosion and siltation by removing shoreline vegetation from inland waterways;
- destroy critical habitats by building houses and cottages on ecologically sensitive shorelines;
- hasten global climate change by burning fossil fuels; and
- deprive our migratory ocean wildlife, especially fishes and birds, of the healthy inland habitats they need to complete complex life cycles.
Learning About Oceans, Unit 10
The teaching materials in this unit are organized into three progressive sections: Ocean Awareness, Ocean Threats, and Ocean Actions. The lessons take a “discovery” approach, beginning with the child’s own experience. They describe various mapping activities that help students make physical connections between their own backyards and Canada’s oceans and conceptual connections between their own actions and ocean health.
Basic Concepts and Curriculum Links
This teacher’s guide is based on the following key elements from the Canadian Association of Principals’ publication entitled Fundamental Learning About Oceans (see www.schoolfile.com/lessonplans/oceans/learning.htm).
- Oceans are essential to life. (Science)
- Watersheds—streams, lakes, rivers, and wetlands—empty into oceans, forming vital transportation links. (Geography, Social Studies)
- Oceans influence our social, economic, historical, international, and political development. (History, Social Studies)
- Oceans are threatened by pollution, particularly from the land. (Environmental Education, Science)
- Protecting and promoting oceans is our global and civic responsibility.
Download a copy of the "Discover the Ocean in Your Backyard" learning unit, here (PDF format, large file – 15 MB).
Download the “Ocean Creature” cards to use with the “Creature Connections Discovery Tour” game board here:
To order a print copy of this unit and/or a copy of the “Creature Connections Discovery Tour” game board contact CWF.
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