• What are some of the characteristics of this species’ diet, habitat, social system (gre- garious or solitary?), range, migratory patterns, etc.?


• How do you think these characteristics would affect the way we protect this species? (i.e., are species with larger ranges or migrations managed differently than species localized to a very small area?)


• What are some of the main conservation threats and human impacts on this species? Note: Examples may include overfishing, predation, invasive species, marine debris, habitat


loss, ocean acidification, climate change, etc.


• How do you think this species can be best protected? Note: This can include MPAs and/or other suggestions like pollution reduction or fisheries


management, depending on what the biggest conservation threats are for the species. • What are some socio-economic or cultural factors that you think may come into play


when protecting this species? Note: Encourage students to think about traditional uses of this ecosystem, especially by any indigenous or First Nations peoples; any economic, social, aesthetic or recreational value of the species/habitat; any well-established fisheries that commercial or recreational fishermen may be reluctant to change their fishing habits; etc.


Part 2: Group MPA planning (one hour)


1. After students have prepared their summaries, separate them into groups based on their species’ habitat/bioregion. For example, all students with California Current Ecosystem species may be in a group; those with subtropical species form another group; Arctic species another, and so on. In the case of a large group of one bioregion, separate the students into smaller groups at your discretion. Ideally, groups should consist of roughly four–six students.


2. Once in groups, students should be given 30 minutes to discuss the following in their groups (five–eight minutes per student, but more time can be given if needed): a. Briefly introduce your species to your group members. How did you pro propose to protect the species?


b. Do any of the species in your group share any conservation threats?


c. Do you expect any pushback from local communities? What socio-economic factors do you think may play into the decisions that protect your group’s species?


d. Out of all your species, which one do you think is the most important to protect? Why? Use the research that you conducted to share why you think that species should be a priority. (It is okay to pick your own species or another group member’s species, as long as you share why you think so.)


e. Are your priorities for protecting your species the same as those of your peers? Why or why not?


f. How might you create one MPA that will work for all your species in your group?


3. Debrief (20 minutes): After students have had time to discuss, ask them to share with the whole class the main takeaways that their group has discussed. Be sure that each group shares any- thing that surprised them when trying to plan their MPAs, including challenges or complexities that they had not expected.


Evaluate Activity: Student Assessments Time: May vary from two days to several weeks, depending on assessment type and student interest


Goal: To assess student learning and ability to synthesize new information. Refer to Performance Objective, Learning Objective, and Driving Question below for concepts that students should be able to


demonstrate through their projects: 1. NGSS Performance Objective: HS-LS2-7: Design, evaluate, and refine a solution for reducing the impacts of human activities on the environment and biodiversity.


2. Learning Objective: Students can define the term “Marine Protected Area” and describe how MPAs can reduce human impacts on the environment.


3. Driving Question: How are marine protected areas (MPAs) used to preserve biodiversity in the ocean?


You may use a variety of assessment types to determine if students are meeting the specified learning objectives. Those who do meet these objectives should be able to define the term “Marine Protected Area” and describe how MPAs mitigate human impacts on the oceans. Evaluation options are mostly project-based, and can take as little or as much time as is available to you. Ideally, students will create a project that synthesizes and applies their newfound understanding of the topic in a creative way


Green Teacher 121 Page 39


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