Addey and Stanhope School gave the Inspiring Seas project team an opportunity to pilot resources for our environmental citizenship based module - Protecting our marine future: what can we do? A day of stimulating, hands-on and engaging activities were undertaken, addressing issues with pupils such as the effect of climate change on our oceans and the impact of litter and other forms of pollution on marine life and the marine environment. All sessions were underpinned by the realisation that pupils could make a real difference to their contribution to the deterioration of our seas.
A talented group of year 9s were first up, exploring the impact of climate change on our oceans and the effect that global warming is, and will, potentially have on the role of the oceans as a climate regulator. Pupils were first introduced to the great ocean conveyor belt, explaining that differences in the density of water masses, driven by variation in temperature and salinity, drive ocean currents and that we owe our relatively mild climate in Europe to this occurring because of the process of convection between the seas and the atmosphere. Pupils actively explored the impact of temperature and salinity on the density of water, using little more than food colouring and four buckets of salty, fresh, warm and cold water.
Pupils got involved and undertook these simple experiments for themselves, allowing the effects of temperature and salinity on the density of water to be visualised rather than just talked about. Using this knowledge and scientific understanding, pupils modelled ocean circulation in a large tank using the same pieces of equipment. With a bit of imagination, pupils visualised how water travels around the globe and appreciated that this is driven by density differences in separate water masses. A further experiment included modelling how melting polar ice caps could potentially 'switch off' the great ocean conveyor belt, linking this theory to global cooling rather than warming - something the pupils said they had not thought about.
A final experiment examined the impacts of climate change on habitats and marine life, including a look at the impact of increased carbon dioxide levels on the acidity of the oceans - linking this to problems for shell forming organisms and coral reefs. Pupils added simulated carbonic acid to a piece of coral and noted down their observations. This helped pupils appreciate that increasing carbon dioxide levels will have huge repercussions for life in the oceans, literally causing some to dissolve away! This year 9 practical session was concluded by pupils creating a brochure on the impacts of climate change on the oceans and what can be done to help, designed to inform others of their role in creating a more sustainable future for our planet.
Kathryn Sullivan, science teacher at Addey and Stanhope School said "this class was a excellent example of how to use pieces of everyday laboratory equipment to illustrate a real problem". She continued "pupils really engaged with the session and loved the interactive and hands-on experiments. Pupils grasped the concepts being taught and enjoyed the slant of the lesson which examined the oceans and climate change". One of the year 9 pupils said "It was a great lesson that helped me understand climate change properly". Another added "I learnt a lot about climate change and sea creatures, and how we can all help. I really enjoyed the way we got to be involved". The oceans and climate change class undertaken with year 9s at Addey and Stanhope School can be downloaded for use under Module E of the Inspiring Seas website.
After a successful morning slot, the afternoon session at Addey and Stanhope School addressed a separate issue, but one which is equally an area we can all do our bit to help: marine pollution. Year 7 pupils were introduced to the different types of marine pollution and their effects, including oil, sewage and litter, and who in particular is primarily responsible for them entering the marine environment. After the stark realisation that we the public were the largest contributors of each type of pollution, pupils devised leaflets on marine animal templates to inform others on the effects of each type of pollution on the marine environment on one side, and everyday steps we can all take to reduce on contribution on the other. The marine pollution class undertaken with Year 7s at Addey and Stanhope School can be downloaded for use under Module E of the Inspiring Seas website.