What causes ocean currents? How do they affect the Earth's environment? And how have they affected the course of human history?
The answers to these questions can be found in Ocean Currents: Marine Science Activities for Grades 5-8. Part of UC Berkeley's GEMS series of curriculum development projects, the teacher's guide begins with an introduction to the vastness of the planet's one interconnected ocean and the importance of the ocean to all life on Earth. Students then learn how wind, temperature, salinity and density set water into motion.
Learning is placed in a real-world context as students predict and analyze routes taken by shipwrecked sailors and model how pollution dumped in one location can spread. At the end of the unit, students write "messages in a bottle" to illustrate what they've learned.
The 200-page book costs $21.
GEMS guides are developed at the Lawrence Hall of Science public science education center. For more information, contact UC Berkeley, GEMS, Lawrence Hall of Science #5200, Berkeley, CA 94720-5200; call (510) 642-7771; visit the Web site [www.lhsgems.org]; or contact sales agency Sargent-Welch at (800) SARGENT.
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