TOOLKITS

Ocean Learning Toolkit

Introduction

This toolkit has been developed for teachers and students in Kindergarten to Grade 12 education communities, coastal and inland, across Canada. The aim of this toolkit is to engage learners in ocean education, deepen their awareness of and connection to the ocean, and to inspire action in the classroom community and beyond. It is designed to meet curricular outcomes for numeracy and literacy, sciences and social studies, health and more. This toolkit also incorporates Indigenous and place-based knowledge and provides hands-on learning opportunities for students. Designed to be accessible to both the ocean-enthusiast and to the educator who is taking their first dip, these ready-to-go learning activities and pedagogical strategies will engage students and inspire action in their everyday lives.

Read and use the Ocean Week Canada key messages to help guide your learning journey.

Learning Objectives

Incorporating ocean-themed resources in your lessons:

strengthens students’ knowledge about the global ocean and local waterways
raises awareness of the connections between human well-being and the health of the ocean
inspires students to care for and protect marine and aquatic ecosystems, including water resources in their communities

Five Central Themes

The activities in this toolkit are organized under five central themes, including: Exploring Relationships, Ocean is Life, Technology, Sustainability, and Ecosystems.

Cyclical Learning

To make the most of this toolkit, we suggest that the curated resources are used for cyclical learning, rather than for linear learning.

What is cyclical learning? Watch this 1 minute animated clip.

Five Central Themes

The activities in this toolkit are organized under five central themes, including: Exploring Relationships, Ocean is Life, Technology, Sustainability, and Ecosystems.

Cyclical Learning

To make the most of this toolkit, we suggest that the curated resources are used for cyclical learning, rather than for linear learning.

What is cyclical learning? Watch this 1 minute animated clip.

Curricular Connection

Explore curricular connections through your provincial/territorial education lens.

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Theme 1: Exploring Relationships

Place-based learning, holistic education, and Indigenous teachings all emphasize the importance of developing relationships with the land and sea. Below are four learning resources and activities to help deepen students’ understanding of stewardship and place-based ways of knowing.

Theme 1: Exploring Relationships

Traditional Coastal Territories: Monitor, Protect, and Restore

Coastal First Nation communities along the 25,000km of the Pacific Northwest coastline are the eyes and ears on the land and sea. Coastal Guardian Watchmen uphold and enforce traditional and contemporary Indigenous laws and work together to monitor, protect, and restore the cultural and natural resources of these coastal territories. Watch this video to discover the critical role Coastal Guardian Watchmen play to ensure resources are sustainably managed, rules and regulations are followed, and land and marine use agreements are implemented effectively.

If you like this and want to learn more, check out the Ocean Week Canada Indigenous Water Guardians video collection.

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

Photo credit: Evermaven / Oceana Canada

WATCH THE VIDEO

Discover Your Ocean Connection

This lesson uses “mind mapping” to help personalize our connections to the ocean. Students describe how their personal lives are interconnected with and influenced by the ocean.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

GET STARTED

Water: The Sacred Relationship

Guided by a circle of Cree Elders and led by a team of Aboriginal and Western scientists, Water: the Sacred Relationship explores how reconciling the relationship between “Aboriginal people and the rest of Canada” can lead to healthier water.

Grade Level: Elementary, Middle

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

WATCH THE VIDEO

Clam Gardens

For thousands of years, the ocean has provided food and shaped cultural practices for Inuit and coastal First Nation peoples. Explore this collection of resources to learn about the traditional practice of clam gardening on the west coast. The spirit of reconciliation guides how Indigenous and non-Indigenous partners are working together to revive this practice.

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Theme 2: Ocean is Life

We are all ocean people no matter where we live. Explore how the arts allow us to express this connection.

Theme 2: Ocean is Life

We are all ocean people no matter where we live. Explore how the arts allow us to express this connection.

Marine Garbage Transformed

What do you do with marine plastic garbage? Tackle this challenge with an optimistic spirit and allow the art of Pete Clarkson to inspire your own classroom of upcycled art projects!

Grade Level: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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My Octopus Teacher

Watch the trailer of this touching tale of interspecies friendship, and examine where we, as humans, place ourselves in the natural world. Beautiful underwater cinematography and ocean imagery inspires wonder. To view the full film, Netflix is offering subscribers the opportunity to host educational community screenings free-of-cost.

Download the Discussion Guide.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

WATCH THE TRAILER

Marine Detective

What do beauty and mystery have in common? The ocean of course! These underwater photographs from diver, naturalist, and educator, Jackie Hildering, are sure to instill a sense of wonder for the marine environment. See it first hand with the “Find the Fish Fridays” Instagram challenge.

Grade levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Lauren Hudson

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Marine Garbage Transformed

What do you do with marine plastic garbage? Tackle this challenge with an optimistic spirit and allow the art of Pete Clarkson to inspire your own classroom of upcycled art projects!

Grade Level: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

My Octopus Teacher

Download the Discussion Guide.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

Marine Detective

Grade levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Lauren Hudson

LEARN MORE

WATCH THE TRAILER

LEARN MORE

Theme 3: Technology

Understanding the ocean helps us understand the planet. Examine the technologies that reveal many ocean properties and the biodiversity of ocean ecosystems.

Theme 3: Technology

Understanding the ocean helps us understand the planet. Examine the technologies that reveal many ocean properties and the biodiversity of ocean ecosystems.

Ocean Sampling Technology

Spark discussion about ocean exploration by sharing this infographic of ocean sampling technologies.

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

Photo credit: Ocean Exploration Trust, Northeast Pacific Seamount Expedition Partners

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Ocean Data in the Classroom

Although there are many ways to know the ocean, data collection through scientific instrumentation is an important aspect of learning about and understanding the ocean. Invite a guest teacher from Ocean Networks Canada to deliver a free virtual presentation about ocean data coming in from the three coasts of Canada.

Grade Level: Middle

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Tidal Power and Atmospheric Connections

Track and analyse live data everyday! The Fundy Ocean Research Centre for Energy site includes sensor data on wind speed/direction, temperature, barometric pressure, and more.

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Submarine STEM

Explore submersible journeys undertaken as part of the XL Catlin Deep Ocean Survey off Bermuda, the Sargasso Sea, and the east coast of Canada. Learn the scale and depth of the ocean, investigate the creatures which inhabit this environment, and explore how forces go into submersible design.

Grade Level: Elementary

Photo credit: Ocean Networks Canada

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Coral Explorer

This lesson introduces students to the wonders of the coral reef and the adventures of the XL Catlin Seaview Survey. Students will embark on their journey to become coral explorers, finding out where coral reefs can be found, and learning from the experiences of scientists and the expedition team. They will then take part in their first virtual dive.

Grade Level: Elementary

Photo credit: Fabrice Dudenhofer / Ocean Image Bank

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Theme 4: Sustainability

The ocean is full of precious resources. Understand your impact and your role in preserving the global ocean’s resources.

Theme 4: Sustainability

The ocean is full of precious resources. Understand your impact and your role in preserving the global ocean’s resources.

Ocean Wise Sustainable Seafoods

Taste the ocean and feel good about making sustainable food choices. Explore this collection of resources.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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The Ocean as a Highway

Discover the importance of the ocean as a main transportation route around the world. The videos and blog on marine shipping in Canada provide an excellent source of information for an exploration of this important topic through an inquiry lense.

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit: Ocean Networks Canada

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Marine Protected Areas of Canada

What do a healthy marine environment and nature-based solutions to address the impacts of climate change have in common? They are the result of Marine Protected Areas (MPA). Use this infographic to examine MPAs in Canada.

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

LEARN MORE

Ocean Wise Sustainable Seafoods

Taste the ocean and feel good about making sustainable food choices. Explore this collection of resources.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

The Ocean as a Highway

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit: Ocean Networks Canada

Marine Protected Areas of Canada

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Theme 5: Ecosystems

Creatures beyond your imagination and secrets of well-known species are revealed in this collection of resources. Explore ecosystems, as well as living organisms.

Theme 5: Ecosystems

Creatures beyond your imagination and secrets of well-known species are revealed in this collection of resources. Explore ecosystems, as well as living organisms.

Arctic Marine Atlas

Canada’s Arctic Marine Atlas offers a comprehensive look at an environment undergoing dramatic shifts due to climate change. The Atlas describes the ecology of this region within the context of humans’ interaction with the natural world and is a useful resource for understanding the importance of Canada’s Arctic marine environment.

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit: UVic Photo Services

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The Secret Life of Plankton

New videography techniques have opened up the global ocean’s microscopic ecosystem, revealing it to be both mesmerizingly beautiful and astoundingly complex. Marine biologist, Tierney Thys, has used footage from a pioneering project to create a film designed to ignite wonder and curiosity about this hidden world that underpins our own food chain.

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

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Project WET

Do you want to teach about waterways but don’t know where to start? Are you looking for creative ways to add to your lessons? This collection of lesson plans and activities is an essential resource for educators to explore everything wet!

Grade level: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Arctic Marine Atlas

Grade Level: Secondary

Photo credit: UVic Photo Services

The Secret Life of Plankton

Grade Level: Middle, Secondary

Project WET

Grade level: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

LEARN MORE

Connect & Share

Coastal Reads

From Indigenous knowledge to ecosystem explorations, these read aloud storybooks weave tales that will delight, inform, and inspire young learners.

Grade level: Elementary

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Ancient Fishing Technologies in Balance with Nature

This video and accompanying lesson plans share a cultural and archaeological treasure in the K’ómoks estuary on the traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation.

Grade levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

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Picking Up the Pieces – The Breakdown on Microplastic Pollution

From microplastic facts to interviews with science experts, learn how Ocean Diagnostics is developing innovative technologies for community scientists to collect data on microplastics. Bite-sized Instagram posts or website interviews put microplastics under the microscope.

Grade Levels: Middle, Secondary

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Creatures of the Deep: Mini Bites

Use these short (~60sec) videos of creatures below the waves to launch discussion and spark interest in amazing marine life.

Grade Levels: Elementary, Middle, Secondary

Photo credit: Ocean Networks Canada

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The Nature of Things – S59 E7 Under Thin Ice

Follow Canadian extreme divers and cinematographers, Jill Heinerth and Mario Cyr, on a journey to investigate how Arctic wildlife is adjusting to global warming. This diving duo takes you below the Arctic ice to examine the impacts of climate change. This documentary can be watched in short segments or as a whole.

Duration: 45 minutes

Grade levels: Middle, Secondary

Photo credit: Ocean Networks Canada

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Take Me Outside Workshops

By taking your classroom outdoors, students see how we are a part of nature and not separate from it. These virtual workshops and curriculum resources for educators aim to support your teaching practice with outdoor and place-based learning.

Photo credit : Ariane Shaw

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Loop back into other Ocean Week Canada activities

FIND AN EVENT

EXPLORE THE MAP

TAKE ACTION

FIND AN EVENT

EXPLORE THE MAP

TAKE ACTION