Curriculum

1824 Map of the St. Louis River Estuary

This is a copy of one of the first hand drawn maps of the St. Louis River Estuary. It was drawn by Admiral Henry Bayfield in 1824. Pay close attention to the inscription on the map. Curriculum download is a PDF version of the map.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
1. The Great Lakes, bodies of fresh water with many features, are connected to each other and to the world ocean.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.

Algae: What is it and how can it affect a human?

This is a brief read and understand on algae and cyanobacteria focusing on both cell structure and affects on humans. Curriculum download is a PDF version of this information sheet.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
4. Water makes Earth habitable; fresh water sustains life on land. :
5. The Great Lakes support a broad diversity of life and ecosystems.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.

Amphibian Trivia: What’s there to know about frogs and why are they important?

As partners, students will work to understand materials about frogs. Then, partners will be separated to form two groups to play the amphibian trivia game. Students will learn about the importance of amphibians such as frogs as well as how frogs differ from toads. Curriculum download is a brief lesson plan including a reader about amphibians.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
4. Water makes Earth habitable; fresh water sustains life on land. :

Analyzing Animal Tracks

This is a short guide to using measurements to figure out what animal may have left a track in the snow. Curriculum download is a PDF version of this tracks worksheet.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
5. The Great Lakes support a broad diversity of life and ecosystems.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.

Aquatic Vertebrates: Who am I? Game

There are 5 critters from the Lake Superior watershed just waiting to meet you! A series of characteristics are read aloud, while guesses are taken, then the aquatic vertebrate is revealed. Curriculum download is a PDF version of the clue cards with images that can be printed on the back of the clue cards.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
5. The Great Lakes support a broad diversity of life and ecosystems.

Attack of the Purple Loosestrife!

Wild rice is a keystone species in the ecosystem. If it were removed, many other species would be negatively impacted. In our region, it is being threatened by a number of different factors, a couple of which, purple loosestrife and Canada geese, will be covered in this lesson. Students will act out a small scale ecosystem in order to learn about the issues facing wild rice in our area. Curriculum download is a lesson plan with which to run this lesson.

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Subject Areas:
Grade Levels: ,
Topics: , , ,

Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
1. The Great Lakes, bodies of fresh water with many features, are connected to each other and to the world ocean.
5. The Great Lakes support a broad diversity of life and ecosystems.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.
8. The Great Lakes are socially, economically, and environmentally significant to the region, the nation and the planet.

Bathymetry of the Great Lakes

The curriculum download is a PDF document that will help your students explore bathymetric maps of the Great Lakes! There are a few instructions on how to get things set up for the students to explore (it's easy, I promise!) but after that the students can explore the Great Lakes.

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Subject Areas: ,
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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
1. The Great Lakes, bodies of fresh water with many features, are connected to each other and to the world ocean.
2. Natural forces formed the Great Lakes; the lakes continue to shape the features of their watershed.

Bedrock and Geologic Past Maps

These maps are great resources and go with the Geology Unit Lesson Plan curriculum. Curriculum download is a PDF infographic about Wisconsin's geologic past. The Supporting File download is a PDF map showing the composition of Wisconsin's bedrock.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
2. Natural forces formed the Great Lakes; the lakes continue to shape the features of their watershed.

Big Floods, Big Lake (flooding)

What causes Lake Superior flooding? By taking a look at evidence from the flood of 2016 in the Twin Ports area and learning about the characteristics of floods, the mystery will be solved. Curriculum download is a PowerPoint slideshow teaching guide with links to all you need to do the lesson with your class.

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Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
3. The Great Lakes influence local and regional weather and climate.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.
8. The Great Lakes are socially, economically, and environmentally significant to the region, the nation and the planet.

Can a fish pay for your college education?

This lesson will guide students through learning about Lake Whitefish, a valuable fish for commercial fishermen, and how climate and profit impacts fishermen’s livelihood. Students will learn facts about whitefish, learn about local fishing businesses, and apply what they’ve learned using economics to decide whether their business can continue to stay open with different scenarios. Curriculum download is a PDF lesson to run this with your class. Supporting file download is a PDF document with fact cards and question cards all about whitefish and fishing in the region.

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Subject Areas: , ,
Grade Levels: ,
Topics: , , , ,

Great Lakes Literacy Principles:
3. The Great Lakes influence local and regional weather and climate.
4. Water makes Earth habitable; fresh water sustains life on land. :
5. The Great Lakes support a broad diversity of life and ecosystems.
6. The Great Lakes and humans in their watersheds are inextricably interconnected.
8. The Great Lakes are socially, economically, and environmentally significant to the region, the nation and the planet.