What do you get when you combine knowledge, passion, experience, and some fantastic graphics? A friend sent me the link to a TED video of Robert Ballard’s talk on Exploring the Ocean’s Hidden Worlds. I thought I was fairly knowledgeable, but during his riveting talk, it became apparent how little we actually know about the seafloor. As he states, we know more about the surface of the moon than about the floor of the ocean. People enjoying a summer day at the beach have very little knowledge or appreciation of what lies beyond (and below). This is a frontier that we should be exploring, for the resources that lie below the ocean floor as well as for the study of the fantastic life forms there. This video is well worth 20 minutes of your time or your students’ time (yes, it can be downloaded).
The Internet has many other resources, but you can find relevant ones on exploring the ocean floor by logging into SciLinks and using the keyword ocean. Regardless of the grade level, you’ll find websites that are interesting, even if you don’t live near the oceans. Some of my favorites include Ocean Explorer from NOAA (which has archives of explorations starting with 2001), Dive and Discover: Expeditions to the Sea Floor from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (I’ve spent a lot of time poking around this one, including the teacher section), and Sea Floor Mapping from NOAA (this game-like activity is designed for younger elementary students).
To increase your own background knowledge, check out NSTA’s Science Objects. These free (yes, free) online resources for teachers are self-directed and provide relevant information on many topics. Related to oceanography, you’ll find topics in Earth Science such as Plate Tectonics (I’ve done these five Objects myself) and Oceans Effect on Climate and Weather (a series of four Objects). Also look at the Life Science list. The four Coral Reef Ecosystem objects review the physical and biological factors in the formation of coral reefs.
The part that I appreciated the most in Ballard’s presentation was his plea for more “jaw-dropping” moments in our schools (he mentions middle schools in particular), when our students are inspired by scientific learning and explorations and begin to make connections between this knowledge and their own lives. Having been a middle school teacher, I can agree that this enthusiastic age is the time for laying the groundwork for this sense of wonder and for an interest in further study in the sciences, whether as a career or an area of personal interest. What happens to the sense of curiosity and wonder of younger students as they progress through school?