The Plants and Animals of Long Island Sound
Articles/Websites
Grades2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8Biology, Earth and Space Sciences
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Provided by Long Island Sound Study
What it is
- This resource is a 120-slide PowerPoint presentation with text, images, and maps that provide an overview of the plants and animals that live in Long Island Sound.
- It is divided into seven sections based on habitats: salt marshes, tidal flats, eelgrass beds, sandy beaches, rocky intertidal, submerged bottom, and open water.
Teaching tips
Positives
- Students will enjoy seeing the many images of animals and plants throughout the slides.
- Since the slides are separated into categories, teachers can easily choose them to fit their schedule.
Additional Prerequisites
- The slideshow is in English and Spanish.
- The slideshow is available to download in its entirety as a PowerPoint file or in sections as PDFs.
- Teachers must download the PowerPoint to see the speaker notes.
Differentiation
- For younger students, teachers can delete some text and focus on the images of the animals, plants, and habitats.
- With older students, teachers can share the more detailed information written in the presentation notes.
- Students can learn more about the Long Island Sound habitats and living creatures using the links to the Habitat Mapping Initiative in the first paragraph on the webpage. The Underwater Story Map is engaging, with an interactive map and underwater images.
- Life science classes can use this resource when learning about biodiversity, ecosystems, habitats, and Earth science classes can use it when learning about geologic features.
- Cross-curricular connections can be made with geography topics, as many of the habitats are geographical features significant to this region.
- To build connections between this resource and environmentalism, students can research how these plants and animals are impacted by climate change through rising temperatures, sea-level rise, or pollution.
From the scientist review
This resource from Long Island Sound Study is a pictorial tour showing the variety of habitats in the Sound and a sampling of the species that reside in each. A slideshow features a wealth of colorful photos, all with sources cited, and the attached PowerPoint file includes speaker notes for each slide. Two ArcGIS story maps are linked and provide a more interactive resource. The story map, titled “A Tapestry of Underwater Habitats,” is particularly well-sourced, with several peer-reviewed sources cited. This resource is grounded in sound science and is recommended for teaching.
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