NOAA Sea to Sky: Education resource database

Like all animals, fish need to survive and grow large enough to reproduce. Fish that make it to adulthood and to spawning time use a range of strategies to ensure successful reproduction. This lesson looks at the factors that go into keeping a fish species alive while examining the life cycle of Great Lakes fish.

Flash floods are a worldwide hazard, and are the number one hazardous weather related killer in the United States. They occur when heavy rainfall in a short period of time causes water to rapidly rise. The National Severe Storms Laboratory (NSSL) researchers include hydrologists and hydrometeorologists to address the complicated problem of forecasting and warning for these events. Learn more about their research projects.

Flooding is a coast-to-coast threat to some part of the United States and its territories nearly every day of the year. This site will teach you how to stay safe in a flood event. If you know what to do before, during, and after a flood you can increase your chances of survival and better protect your property.

An interactive water pollution simulation as seen thru the experiences of “Fred the Fish” as he travels downstream encountering obstacles along the way. Students will learn about human impacts on aquatic ecosystems and discuss how to be better watershed stewards. Find additional supporting materials for the Fred the Fish video under "Classroom Activities" on this page offsite link.

These lessons acknowledge the enslaved Africans who were seeking freedom. This project is a part of a larger professional development effort to train educators to increase their knowledge of the Great Lakes and environmental issues while incorporating Environmental Justice Education (EJE) approaches to K-12 teaching. These lessons introduce an innovative way students can engage in place-based learning, by developing their understanding of their local history with the Underground Railroad and the connection to the Great Lakes.

FROZEN features the global cryosphere, those places on Earth where the temperature doesn't generally rise above water's freezing point. As one of the most directly observable climate gauges, the changing cryosphere serves as a proxy for larger themes. The movie brings the Earth alive, projected onto spherical movie screens hanging in the center of darkened theaters. Turning in space, the sphere becomes a portal onto a virtual planet, complete with churning, swirling depictions of huge natural forces moving below.

View interactive maps, numerical data, and graphs and figures collected by teachers and students participating in the GLOBE Program and long-term air temperature and precipitation observations from the Global Historical Climate Network (GHCN). While lessons for data collection and other activities are a part of the GLOBE website, specific lessons for manipulation of this data are not provided at this link.

A collection of infographics from the GOES-R satellite program on satellites, weather, and climate. Some infographics are appropriate for a broad audience, while others are more appropriate for an older audience.

These detailed bathymetry maps of the Great Lakes can be viewed digitally or printed as color posters (full-size and mini). You can also download bathymetry contours as Esri Shapefiles.

The Great Lakes Environmental Response Management Application (ERMA) is a tool for visualizing environmental contaminant data in the region, as well as information on natural resources, habitats, weather, water levels, and currents. Great Lakes ERMA is used to facilitate pollution response, cleanup, and restoration and is the most comprehensive collection of contaminant data in the region. NOAA’s ERMA is a critical tool for equipping experts to coordinate with partners and natural resource managers, including the Environmental Protection Agency, NOAA Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory, and State and Tribal partners, across the Great Lakes region.