Learning Resources

Whether you're visiting the Aquarium yourself, with your family or are organizing a class trip, here are some handy resources to help you before you arrive.

 

For educators:

 

Discovery Lecture Series Teacher and Community Resources
Please check back for learning resources on upcoming lecture topics

Lecture 18: Ovaries, Testes, and Copulatory Structures – Oh My! The Importance of Understanding Reproduction of Fishes
Library Pathfinder - Fish Reproduction

Lecture 15: Hugs and Drugs from Sea Slugs
Library Pathfinder - Nudibranchs

Lecture 11: The Vast Frontier: Tales From the Darkside
Library Pathfinder - The Vast Frontier

Lecture 9: If We Make Their Bed, They Will Lie In It: Restoration of Native Olympia Oysters in Southern California
Library Pathfinder - Olympia Oysters

Lecture 8: Aquaculture - The Fight for our Local Seafood
Lesson Plan - What Belongs on a Beach
Worksheet - What Belongs on a Beach
Worksheet - Mussel Coloring Sheet
Worksheet - Rock Scallop Coloring Sheet
Library Pathfinder - Aquaculture
Library Pathfinder - Sustainable Seafood

Lecture 7: California Drought - Are We In or Out?
Lesson Plan - Who Pollutes
Reading Handout - Who Pollutes Story
Lesson Plan - Ocean Acidification Experiment
Worksheet - Ocean Acidification Experiment
Library Pathfinder - California Drought

Lecture 6: Harmful Algal Blooms Along the California Coast
Lesson Plan - Beware of HABs
Graphic Phytoplankton ID
Graphic Zooplankton ID
Library Pathfinder on Plankton and Algae HABs
Lesson Plan - Diatom Art
Graphic Example of Diatom Art
Worksheet - Diatom Art Template
Worksheet - Phytoplankton Coloring Sheet
Lesson Plan - Mero Match-up
Worksheet - Meroplankton Match-up (for younger students)
Worksheet - Meroplankton Match-up Answer Key (for younger students)
Worksheet - Meroplankton Match-up (for older students)
Worksheet - Meroplankton Match-up Answer Key (for older students)

Lecture 5: "The Golden Shore - California's Love Affair with the Sea"
Lesson Plan - An Albatross Mystery
Reading Handout - Ka-ena Point
Lesson Plan - All Tangled Up
Lesson Plan - Animal Tales
Reading Handout - Animal Tales
Lesson Plan - Natural or Man Made
Worksheet - What Belongs on a Beach

Lecture 4: Explorations of Life in the Deep Sea
Lesson Plan - Ocean Food Chain Game
Worksheet - Ocean Food Chain Game
Worksheet - Ocean Food Chain Answer Key
Lesson Plan - Crazy Currents
Worksheet - Oceanic Surface Currents Map
Worksheet - Pacific Ocean Surface Currents Map
Graphic - Ocean Surface Currents Map Answer Key
Graphic - Pacific Ocean Current Map Answer Key
Reading Handout - The Great Pacific Garbage Patch

Lecture 3: Trends in Rocky Intertidal Communities
Lesson Plan - Life on the Rocks
Lesson Plan - It takes all Kinds
Lesson Plan - Color in Science
Worksheet - Tidepool Animals
Worksheet - Octopus Coloring Sheet
Worksheet - Parts of an Octopus
Graphic - Parts of an Octopus Answer Key
Graphic - Invertebrate Cut Out Cards

Lecture 2: Unearthing the Historical Wetlands of Southern California
Lesson Plan - Globetrotters A Lesson on Bird Migration
Reading Handout - Globetrotters of the Bird World
Worksheet - Adaptations of Birds' Beaks
Worksheet Answers - Adaptations of Birds' Beaks
Worksheet - Parts of a Bird Skeleton
Worksheet Answers - Parts of a Bird Skeleton
Worksheet - Bird Skeleton Coloring Sheet
Graphic - Migration Game Cards
CMA Saltmarsh Poster
Wetland Website Resources
Library Pathfinder on Wetlands

Lecture 1: Return of Big Predators to California Waters
Lesson Plan - JAWnormous
Lesson Plan - Swimming with Blue Sharks Migration
Lesson Plan - Shark Bingo and other JAWsome Activities
Reading Handout - Blue Shark
Reading Handout - How Megalodon Worked
Worksheet - Megalodon - Biggest Shark to Roam the Seas
Worksheet - Megalodon Crossword Puzzle
Worksheet - Parts of a Shark
Parts of a Shark Answer Key
Worksheet - Shark Coloring Sheet
Worksheet - Shark Word Search
Worksheet - Track a Blue Shark Lesson Activity
Shark Graphic - Cut and Paste Words
Library Pathfinder on Sharks

Our Educator Workshops are also an excellent resource to stay current on ocean science and issues facing our marine environment.

 

Wonder when the low tide is? Click here for a tide table for Cabrillo Beach.

 

Need links to other environmental organizations?