Utilizing the Lake Superior watershed and the St. Louis River as a foundation for learning
Students will learn about temperature and temperature changes using the Lake Superior thermocline. Concepts and vocabulary covered are: water column, thermocline, metalimnion, epilimnion, hypolimnion, lake turnover, dimictic, and lake stratification. The curriculum download is a PDF of the plan for this lesson.
Attached is a lesson plan and worksheet for investigating Thompson Reservoir. This will prepare students for a more detailed chemistry investigation by gathering a physical inventory of the Reservoir and a chance to experience a virtual overview of the upstream watershed. The lesson also introduces the study of sediments. Use the curricula titled "Google Earth Tour of the St. Louis River" for the virtual tour. Sediment core is optional. The curriculum download is a PDF including the lesson plan and worksheet for data collection.
Students will begin to understand the water cycle by exploring one stage of it, runoff/infiltration. The curriculum download is a PDF of the plan for this lesson.
Although other places in the country and in the world have lots of snow, they aren’t as special as ours. Our Great Lakes give us extra lake effect snow! So, the next time you are around the Great Lakes and it’s snowing, try to remember how special our area really is! The curriculum download is a PDF containing everything you need to run this lesson with your class, including a link to a video lesson to share with your students.
If you live around the Great Lakes, you are familiar with snow….lots and lots of snow. The Greats lake region often has more snow than other areas throughout the country because we have something called “lake effect snow.” But just what exactly is lake effect snow? In this lesson students will investigate this phenomenon to understand how the lake effect causes heavy snow in the areas around the Great Lakes by focusing on phase state change from liquid to vapor. The curriculum download is a PDF of the lesson plan. The supporting file is a PDF of the student worksheets.
Students will use the cards to assist them in using words to describe what they see, feel, and smell outside. This will help guide them when they write a descriptive paper. The curriculum download is a PDF including the lesson plan and student writing sheet. The supporting file is a PDF that is a variation of this lesson for younger learners.