Free Lessons, Activities and Data Sets About the Great Lakes
Free Lessons, Activities and Data Sets About the Great Lakes
Learn About: Source, sink, fruit belt, lake effect ice cover and water temperatures.
Explore Data Sets: Precipitation, Water temperature, Water levels and Water flow.
Storm Surges And Seiches: Wind blowing across the water surface causing water to pile up at the downwind side of the lake is called a storm surge. After the wind has stopped, the oscillation of water as it reaches equilibrium is called a seiche. In this module, students will investigate storm surges and seiches in the Great Lakes using weather data and NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory models.
LESSONS:
Great Lakes Climate and Weather
Watersheds, Wetlands and Water Quality
DATA SETS:
Learn About: Wind, sun and seasonal temperature changes
Explore Data Sets: Physical and chemical changes
Oxygen Levels and Seasonal Changes: Areas without enough dissolved oxygen to support fish and zooplankton are known as dead zones. In this unit, students use water temperature and dissolved oxygen data to explore Lake Erie.
LESSONS:
DATA SETS:
Learn About: Primitive fish (lake sturgeon), introduced fish (salmon) and the importance of fish habitat
Explore Data Sets: Changes in plankton-eating fish community and salmonids (chinook and coho salmon) populations
Fish communities and monitoring populations: Monitoring fish populations involves using technology, including collecting data about fish habitat, water temperature and water quality. Charter fishing businesses depend on using data from satellites to predict fish locations.
LESSONS:
DATA SETS:
Learn About: Natural resources management and beach health.
Explore Data Sets: Beach cleanup data for Lakes Michigan, Huron, Erie and Superior
Voluneering and Stewardship: Preserve a stream, river or lake near you. Volunteers learn about water quality, plants, fish and birds. Many volunteer efforts provide opportunities to work with others on fun and interesting projects in some of the most beautiful places in the world.
LESSONS:
DATA SETS:
Toolkit: Resources and Guided Inquiry
Resources
Guided Inquiry Tools