Earth Science Unit Study - Water Biomes

Week 18: We investigated water biomes.

A water biome is an area of water characterized by types of plants and animals which inhabit the area. IS THE WATER - Fresh or salty? Deep or shallow? Still or moving? Warm or cold? These questions related to water are prime factors in determining what type of life can thrive.

There are several short videos available which each focus on a different water biome from Untamed Science - a website with many quality introductory science videos for kids. If you cover science its worth checking out. (Not all the videos below are from Untamed Science.)

Fresh Water 
Wetlands
Streams and Rivers
Ponds
Lakes

Wetlands Biome (3 min)

Streams and Rivers (4 min)

Salt Water
Coastal
Intertidal
Near Shore
Coral Reef
Open Ocean
Deep Sea
Vent Communities

Intertidal Biome (7 min)

Coral Reef Biome (7 min)

The Deep Sea (6 min)

Hydrothermal Vents (6 min)

Biomes we Explored
At home and on vacation, we always try to pay attention to plants and animals in different biomes.

Pond Biome

This year on March 20th we got lucky and so did the frogs.

We found them during mating season in an area pond. They were busy in abundance. The pond was filled with frogs and they were easy to catch.

 Two months later (May 14th) we returned to a pond filled with tadpoles.

 By simply dipping hands in the water the children were able to catch many.

 The dark areas in the water are all live tadpoles on the bottom.

Using an empty water bottle the kids were able to get a closer look at the tadpoles.

 By June 4th the tadpoles had grown back legs.

June 18th the kids were excited to return and catch more tadpoles. The were surprised to find dime-sized frogs all over the grass.

Coastal Biome

 On vacation in Belgium a few years ago we were able to spend an evening at the seashore exploring.

 Barnacles stuck to a rock

Crab

 Shells

Just talking to the kids about experience with other biomes in conjunction with watching the videos really made them understand the differences.

Be sure to check out these blog hops for more great kid educational activities.


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