During this unit students will gain experience in observing the structure and function of organisms along the coast and in the kelp forest, to construct explanations about how organisms survive, how the kelp forest protects our shorelines, and how the fisheries within the kelp forest are important to San Diego. When traveling to the coast, students will be able explore the importance of the kelp forest from land – by looking for evidence of it’s impact on the coast, and continue to explore how organism survive there when they visit the Ocean Discovery’s Living Lab.
Platform: Kelp Forest
NGSS Alignment
- Cross-Cutting Concepts: Understanding Structure and Function
- Science and Engineering Practice: Constructing Explanations & Designing Solutions
- Integrates the following DCIs:
- Physical Science: 4-PS4-1 Waves and Their Applications in Technologies for Information Transfer
- Life Science: 4-LS1-1 From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
STEM Discovery Process: Make a Difference, Explore & Wonder, Investigate & Analyze
Unit Summary
Students will study why the kelp forest is important and how we can protect it. Content will focus on how the kelp forest acts as a habitat for organisms, how waves interact with this habitat, and how organisms are adapted for this environment.
In the classroom, students build community by making an explorer bracelet, getting to know their instructors, and fishing for organisms in the kelp forest.
At the La Jolla Cove, students will explore the connections between the kelp forest, waves, and fisheries as marine scientists – observing waves, constructing an explanation of how waves moves, observing the structure and function of animals that feed on organisms within the kelp forest, and exploring the coastline (as part of highly organized solo hike) to learn about important CA fisheries. Edit this as a small blurb about each station.
At Ocean Discovery’s Living Lab, students make a difference through growing their understanding of the importance of kelp as habitat to organisms along our coastline and becoming an engineer to design a solution for protecting our future coastlines from wave action. During their experience, they meet diverse professionals who use science and conservation to make our world a better place. Edit this based on curriculum changes.
Students love becoming marine biologists and engineers, exploring the outdoors, using binoculars, running experiments in a wave tank, meeting actual scientists, asking questions and making a million observations!