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Coral Reefs: Science and Conservation (3-7)


 

Materials

  • curriculum binder
  • 3 large coral specimens
  • 18 small coral specimens
  • 35 handlenses
  • 8 ZOOB kits
  • "Where in the World Is Coral" display board
  • 8 sets of the "Coral Polyp Reproduction" game
  • 8 sets of "The Ecosystem of Coral Reefs" game
  • 8 sets of the "Fragile Coral Reef" game
  • Books: "Coral Reef Fishes by Ewald Lieske and Robert Myers; "Coral Reef Food Chains" by Kellet MacAulay and Bobbie Kalman; "A Coral Reef" by Jen Green; "One Small Square: Coral Reef" by Katy Muzik and Katherine Brown-Wing; and "DK 24 Hours: Coral Reef" by Caroline Bingham
  • Videos: "Coral Reefs: Their Health, Our Wealth" and "Rainbows in the Sea: a Guide to Earth's Coral Reefs"
  
 

Activities


A Close Look at Coral Skeletons: Examine the skeletal structure of hard coral specimens, discover where the coral polyps live, and practice your observation skills.

Coral Symbiosis: Build a Coral Polyp: Learn about the anatomy of a coral polyp and the symbiotic relationship between corals and zooxanthellae as you build a delicious edible model of a coral polyp.

Coral Polyp Reproduction: Build a Coral Colony": Learn about sexual and asexual reproduction in coral with this fast-paced game.

Where in the World Is Coral: Practice reading and interpreting world maps as you learn the locations of coral reefs and the connections between living and non-living components of an ecosystem.

The Ecosystem of Coral Reefs: Discover some of the beautiful fish that inhabit coral reefs through this memory game.

The Fragile Coral Reef: Explore natural and human impacts on coral reef ecosystems in this exciting game.

 
 

California Content Standards

Grade Three

Life Sciences

  • 3a. Students know plants and animals have structures that serve different functions in growth, survival, and reproduction.
  • 3b. Students know examples of diverse life forms in different environments, such as oceans, deserts, tundra, forests, grasslands, and wetlands.
  • 3c. Students know living things cause changes in the environment in which they live: some of these changes are detrimental to the organism or other organisms, and some are beneficial.
  • 3d. Students know when the environment changes, some plants and animals survive and reproduce; others die or move to new locations.

Investigation and Experimentation

  • 5c. Use numerical data in describing and comparing objects, events, and measurements.
  • 5d. Predict the outcome of a simple investigation and compare the result with the prediction.
  • 5e. Collect data in an investigation and analyze those data to develop a logical conclusion.

Grade Four

Life Sciences

  • 3a. Students know ecosystems can be characterized by their living and nonliving components.
  • 3b. Students know that in any particular environment, some kinds of plants and animals survive well, some survive less well, and some cannot survive at all.
  • 3d. Students know that most microorganisms do not cause disease and that many are beneficial.

Grades Kindergarten through Fifth

Historical and Social Sciences Analysis Skills: Chronological and Spatial Thinking.

  • 4. Students use map and globe skills to determine the absolute locations of places and interpret information available through a map's or globe's legend, scale, and symbolic representations.

Grade Six

Ecology (Life Sciences)

  • 5e. Students know the number and types of organisms an ecosystem can support depends on the resources available and in abiotic factors, such as quantities of light and water, a range of temperatures, and soil composition.

Grade Seven

Life Sciences

  • 2a. Students know the differences between the life cycles and reproduction methods of sexual and asexual organisms.