What Do You Know About Oceans?

 

Goals:

  1. Identify students' prior knowledge of oceans, seas, the Caribbean, and mapping terms.
  2. The students will reflect on the ocean.
  3. The students will enhance their knowledge of the geography of the world through a mapping activity.
  4. The students will work cooperatively with other students on problems to find solutions.
  5. The students will gain basic knowledge of the climate, general location, and the specific location of the Caribbean relative to the students' hometown or state.

 

Resources/Materials:

  1. Multiple copies of unlabelled world maps (enough for every student)
  2. Transparency of an unlabelled world map
  3. An overhead projector for the map
  4. A few copies of the general map of the world
  5. Multiple copies of a list of terms for the activity (enough for each group)
  6. Colored chalk and erasable markers
  7. List of questions for the activity
  8. One die
  9. Journals (one for each student)
  10. Poem - "My Ocean Speaks" by Olga Cossi
  11. Soft ocean music

 

Time:

 

Procedure:

  1. Write the four categories "Oceans," "Ocean/Sea Names," "The Caribbean," and "Mapping Terms" on the board.
  2. Divide students into groups of three or four and assign each group a different colored piece of chalk.
  3. Assign each group a category and ask them to write as many things that they can about that topic for two minutes. Rotate the groups to the next category until they have been to each category.
  4. After the groups are finished, discuss the topics they listed and relate them to the overall unit.
  5. Read and discuss the poem "My Ocean Speaks" by Olga Cossi.Ý Pick out unfamiliar words and discuss how the narrator feels about the ocean.
  6. Have the students write a reflective journal entry about their experience or inexperience with the ocean. (Optional: Play ocean music).
  7. Explain activity.
      a) Divide the students into groups of three or four.
      b) Give each student an unlabelled map of the world.
      c) Pass out to each group a list of terms that will be used to label the map. 
      d)Assign a number (1-6) to each member of the group.
      e) For the activity . . .
      1. Ask a question related to the map.
      2. Give students time to discuss the answer.
      3. After everyone agrees on an answer, have the students label their maps.
      4. Roll a die to determine the person who is to answer for each group.
      5. Ask those students for the answer that their group cam e up with.
      6. Have one student write the answer on the unlabelled world map transparency. If none of the groups are successful, ask the students to use the resource materials to find the answer. Continue this procedure until the questions are completed.
  8. To conclude, discuss the new things they learned.

 

Assessment:

  1. Observation of individual student participation in the chalkboard activity. (Criteria for success = Any movement forward by the students.)
  2. Each student will turn in his/her journal. (Criteria for success = At least one paragraph about the ocean showing some depth of reflection.)
  3. Each student will turn in a copy of their completed map and answers to location and distance questions. (Criteria for success = Correctly labeled map with terms used during the activity and compete answers to location and distance questions.)
  4. Informal observation of participation in group. (Criteria for success = Individual active listening and discussion with group members. Please see sample rubric.)

 

Curricular Strands and Major Concepts:

  1. Language Arts: Through discussion in their groups, the students work on communication skills. Students also use their writing skills and listen to poetry.
  2. Science: They determine the climate of the Caribbean as part of the mapping questions.
  3. Math: They calculate the distance from their hometown to an island in the Caribbean as part of the mapping questions.
  4. Social Studies: They utilize their map skills to locate and label oceans, seas, and continents. They also analyze the geography of the world.

 

Possible Extensions:

  1. Analyze the geography of the Caribbean in detail.
  2. Redo the activity throughout the course of the unit to review and determine what the students have learned.
  3. Incorporate more poetry that deals with oceans:
      Lessac, Frane. Caribbean Canvas. Lippincott, 1989.
  4. Journal or write what life might be like in the Caribbean.
  5. Information and maps on the internet:
      http://www.caribinfo.com/directory/cref.html

 

Back to Outline

 

Caribbean Cruisers - developed by Sara Bork, Carrie Kriescher, Candice Murphy, and Melissa Randall

 

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