Teaching Resources

Teaching environmental issues in your classroom is a critical component of providing your students a Meaningful Watershed Educational Experience. Discover a wealth Chesapeake Bay related books, multimedia, curriculum guides, individual lesson plans and online data sources.

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1 - 19 of 19

Seasons of a Chesapeake Bay Waterman Activity Guide

An activity guide designed to promote an understanding of the lives of historic and contemporary Chesapeake Bay watermen.

Subject(s): Social Studies
Type(s): Curriculum Guide
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Maryland
Keywords: oyster, blue crab, culture and watermen

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Oyster Reef Communities in the Chesapeake Bay (multimedia CD-ROM )

This CD includes three main sections: Oyster Reefs: Community Centers for the Estuary, Science in Action: Putting the Puzzle Together and Saving Our Bay: The Next Steps. Learn about the wonders of oyster reef communities.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Multimedia
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: oyster

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The Bay's Decimated Oyster Population Graph

Bar graph showing the oyster harvest from the 1800's to 2000. See how disease and advancing in oyster harvesting techniques influences the oyster population

Subject(s): Mathematics, Science, Social Studies
Type(s): Multimedia, Data
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Keywords: oyster, culture and watermen

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Oyster Wars of the Lower Chesapeake Information

Learn about the "Oyster Wars" of the lower Chesapeake Bay, waged by the Virginia Commonwealth against dredgers from 1882 to 1883.

Subject(s): Social Studies
Type(s): Multimedia
Level(s): Middle School, High School
Keywords: oyster, culture and watermen

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Particulate Matters Lesson

Perform a live filtering experiment and watch how the oyster is able to filter materials from the environment and selectively process them as food or pseudofeces. Requires a live oyster.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: adaptation, oyster, experiments and investigations

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Virginia Oyster Gardening Guide

This guide shows you how to start and maintain an oyster garden.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Books and Publications
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: oyster, restoration

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Amazing Oysters - Build an Oyster Reef Activity

Students construct a paper oyster reef habitat and learn about the critters that call the reef home.

Subject(s): Art, Science
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: oyster, ecosystem and biomes, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships

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Oystering on the Chesapeake - Explorations 6 - 10

The Oystering on the Chesapeake Curriculum is series of multi-disciplinary lesson plans designed to introduce students in grades 4, 5, and 6 to the economic, environmental, and cultural significance of the oystering industry of the Chesapeake Bay. This includes explorations Oyster Wars, In the Can, Mystery of the Disappearing Oyster, Oyster Times, and It's About Time.

Subject(s): Science, Social Studies
Type(s): Curriculum Guide, Lessons and Activities
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Maryland
Keywords: oyster, culture and watermen

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Oystering on the Chesapeake - Explorations 1 - 5

The Oystering on the Chesapeake Curriculum is series of multi-disciplinary lesson plans designed to introduce students in grades 4, 5, and 6 to the economic, environmental, and cultural significance of the oystering industry of the Chesapeake Bay. These explorations include On board a Skipjack, Dead Reckoning, Payday!, From Bay to Table, and A Day in the Life of an Oyster Packinghouse.

Subject(s): Science, Social Studies
Type(s): Curriculum Guide, Lessons and Activities
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Maryland
Keywords: oyster, culture and watermen

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Line Graph of MD Oyster Harvests 1952 - 2007

This handout contains data and a line graph showing the oyster harvest from 1952-2008.

Subject(s): Mathematics, Science
Type(s): Multimedia, Data
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Keywords: oyster, culture and watermen

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Oysters and a Clear Bay Lesson

Guide students through this constructivist, hands-on activity that meaningfully demonstrates the value of the Chesapeake's most valued mollusk, the oyster. Students will learn about the historic oyster harvest in Maryland.

Subject(s): Language Arts, Science
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): National Science Education
Keywords: oyster

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Oyster Gardens: No Soil Required Lesson

Using data from Maryland Sea Grant Oyster Gardening Program, students will calculate oyster survivorship rates in Chesapeake Bay rivers.

Subject(s): Science, Social Studies, Technology
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: oyster, schoolyard habitat

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Oyster Bar Community Lesson

Students will read an informational article on the Internet about oysters. They will understand the characteristics, life cycle, habitat, and dangers oysters encounter.

Subject(s): Language Arts, Science, Technology
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): Elementary School, Middle School
Keywords: oyster

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Chesapeake Bay Field Guide

A comprehensive list of the plants and critters that call the Chesapeake home. Just click on a critter for details about the organism you're interested in.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Multimedia, Books and Publications
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Keywords: invasive species, oyster, blue crab, beaver, biodiversity, habitat and niche, predator prey relationships, wildlife

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Making the Grade Lesson: Health Indicators in the Chesapeake Bay Watershed Lesson

This lesson focuses on how human actions affect environmental conditions. Students will examine industrial and residential runoff, underwater bay grasses (SAV)and decreased oyster production, and piece together a "report card" for the Chesapeake Bay.

Subject(s): Science, Social Studies
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): West Virginia
Keywords: pollution, oyster, blue crab, aquatic grass SAV, water quality

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Living Bay Online Curriculum

Explores concepts of water science through five story focused lessons.

Subject(s): Language Arts, Science
Type(s): Curriculum Guide
Level(s): Middle School
Keywords: oyster, habitat and niche, wildlife

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Juvenile Oyster Disease: A Growing Problem Lesson

Students will determine if oyster size, time of planting, or water temperature is significant in relation to the onset of juvenile oyster disease using data from the University of Maine.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Lessons and Activities
Level(s): High School
Aligned with the following standard(s): Virginia
Keywords: oyster

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Estuaries: Scenes of Transition Poster

The EPA provides "Estuaries: Scenes of Transition Poster" free of charge at this site.

Subject(s): Science
Type(s): Posters and Maps
Level(s): Early Learning, Elementary School, Middle School, High School
Keywords: oyster, blue crab, biodiversity, ecosystem and biomes, habitat and niche, wildlife

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The Last Waterman

A true story about a Waterman who lived on the Chesapeake Bay by Glenn Lawson.

Subject(s): Language Arts, Science, Social Studies
Type(s): Books and Publications
Level(s): Middle School
Keywords: boats, canoes and kayaks, oyster, blue crab

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