NOAA Sea to Sky: Education resource database

Welcome to our searchable database of education resources created by NOAA and our partners. If you have issues or feedback, please let us know by filling out our feedback form offsite link or sending us an email at education@noaa.gov.

Audience

Grade K-2
Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science

Resource type

Activities, lessons, and units
Activity/demonstration
Data product
Easy-to-use data product

Topic

Climate
Climate change
Climate change impacts
Ocean and coasts
Technology and engineering
Mapping and charting
Weather and atmosphere
El Niño and La Niña
Hurricanes

Special categories

Lesson includes
Education at home
Informal
Uses data
Printable

A spherical projection is the best way to view Earth data, simply because Earth is a sphere! When you attempt to make a map of the world flat, certain locations become distorted, appearing bigger or smaller than they actually are. This hands-on activity allows you to explore the idea of Earth data and the difficulty associated with flat maps, and to enjoy the process of making a little globe. Several of Science On a Sphere’s most popular and important datasets are available for printing.

Audience

Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Social studies

Resource type

Background information
Collection
Data product
Easy-to-use data product
Intermediate data product

Topic

Climate
Changing seasons
Climate change
Climate change impacts
Climate data monitoring
Resiliency and mitigation
Weather and atmosphere
Drought
Fires
Hazards and safety
Weather observations
Weather systems and patterns

Special categories

Safety/preparedness

Heat related illnesses and death are largely preventable with proper planning, education, and action. Heat.gov serves as the premier source of heat and health information for the nation to reduce the health, economic, and infrastructural impacts of extreme heat. Heat.gov is the web portal for the National Integrated Heat Health Information System (NIHHIS). This website includes data, forecasts, safety information, and much more.

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12

Subject

Earth science
Social studies

Resource type

Activity/demonstration
Coloring/activity book

Topic

Climate
Changing seasons
Climate change impacts
Resiliency and mitigation
Weather and atmosphere

NGSS DCI

ESS2: Earth’s Systems
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
ETS1: Engineering Design

Special categories

Lesson includes
Education at home
Informal
Outdoor education

Think about where you live. Have you ever been in a strong storm? Have you experienced flooding, a wildfire, or really hot days? These types of environmental hazards are happening more often because of climate change. Even though these events can be scary, there is so much you can do in your own community to make it better able to handle these challenges. When we work together to protect our communities from environmental hazards, we are building community resilience. In this activity book, you will learn all about community resilience and discover ways that you can make a difference. As you do the activities, keep track of your points. You will earn a badge at the end!

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12

Subject

Earth science
ELA (English Language Arts)
Engineering and technology
Life science
Math
Physical science

Resource type

Activities, lessons, and units
Lesson plan
Module/unit
Collection

Topic

Climate
Carbon cycle
Climate change impacts
Freshwater
Water cycle
Marine life
Coral reef ecosystems
Life in an estuary
Ocean and coasts
Ocean acidification
Weather and atmosphere
El Niño and La Niña

NGSS DCI

ESS2: Earth’s Systems
ESS3: Earth and Human Activity
LS1: From Molecules to Organisms: Structures and Processes
LS2: Ecosystems: Interactions, Energy, and Dynamics
PS1: Matter and Its Interactions

Special categories

Lesson includes
Hands-on
Informal
Inquiry
Models
Uses data

Collection name

Data in the Classroom

Data in the Classroom has structured, student-directed lesson plans that use historical and real-time NOAA data. The five modules address research questions and include stepped levels of engagement with complex inquiry investigations with real-time and past data.

Audience

Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Life science
Social studies

Resource type

Collection
Multimedia
Video

Topic

Climate
Climate change
Climate change impacts
Cryosphere
Resiliency and mitigation
Marine life
Aquatic food webs
Coral reef ecosystems
Ecosystems
Fish
Fisheries and seafood
Invertebrates
Marine mammals
Sea turtles
Seabirds
Sharks, rays, and skates
Ocean and coasts
Harmful algal blooms
Maritime archaeology and history
Ocean acidification
Ocean currents
Ocean exploration
Ocean floor features
Ocean pollution and marine debris
Oil spills
Rip currents
Sea level rise
Tsunamis
Technology and engineering
Weather and atmosphere
El Niño and La Niña
Hazards and safety
Hurricanes
Weather observations
Weather systems and patterns

Special categories

Cultural heritage
Safety/preparedness

Collection name

Ocean Today

Watch. Explore. Discover. View the beauty and mystery of the ocean realm captured on video around the globe. Videos are organized into collections to help educators.

Audience

Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12

Subject

Earth science

Resource type

Activities, lessons, and units
Lesson plan

Topic

Climate
Climate change impacts

NGSS DCI

ESS3: Earth and Human Activity

Special categories

Lesson includes

This learning module is a cooperative effort between NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory and NOAA’s National Ocean Service. It informs about sea level rise, its causes, and impacts; and challenges students to think about what they can do in response. This module features an integrated educational package of grade level-appropriate (6-12) instruction and activities centered on a 23-minute video presentation. Note that the video has scheduled pauses so educators may facilitate discussions of presented topics. Discussions will extend the total viewing time of the video.

Audience

Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Engineering and technology
Life science
Physical science
Social studies

Resource type

Career profile
Collection

Topic

Climate
Climate change
Climate change impacts
Climate data monitoring
Cryosphere
Marine life
Ecosystems
Ocean and coasts
Ocean acidification
Ocean chemistry
Ocean exploration
Ocean floor features
Technology and engineering
ROVs, AUVs, and drones
Ships and planes
Weather and atmosphere

Learn all about the incredible staff who work for NOAA Research! This page provides dozens of career profiles from many fields within NOAA.

Audience

Grade K-2
Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Social studies

Resource type

Collection
NOAA Education resource collection

Topic

Climate
Climate change
Climate change impacts

This resource collection from NOAA Education dives into why climate change is happening and how it is impacting different parts of the Earth and society, including food, water, and health. Though we often think about human-induced climate change as something that will happen in the future, it is an ongoing process. Ecosystems and communities in the United States and around the world are being impacted today. 

Audience

Grade K-2
Grade 3-5
Grade 6-8
Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Life science
Physical science

Resource type

Collection
NOAA Education resource collection

Topic

Climate
Climate change impacts
Marine life
Ocean and coasts
Ocean acidification

This resource collection from NOAA Education explores the chemistry behind ocean acidification and how this impacts living things animals, algae, and ecosystems. In the 200-plus years since the industrial revolution began, the concentration of carbon dioxide (CO2) in the atmosphere has increased due to human actions. During this time, the pH of surface ocean waters has fallen by 0.1 pH units. This might not sound like much, but the pH scale is logarithmic, so this change represents approximately a 30 percent increase in acidity.

Audience

Grade 9-12
College+
Adults

Subject

Earth science
Social studies

Resource type

Multimedia
Story map

Topic

Climate
Climate change impacts
Freshwater
Great Lakes ecoregion

Millions of people rely on the Great Lakes for recreation, industry, and drinking water. Changing water levels can have positive or negative impacts on industries like tourism and transportation in the region. At present, anthropogenic climate change is affecting precipitation events and temperatures throughout the Basin and future predictions suggest this will continue. While it is presently unknown how water levels will change in the Great Lakes Basin, it is important to continue to monitor them as they are an integral part of life in the Great Lakes Basin.