EXPLORING THE OCEAN FLOOR

A Webquest for 5^th graders

Welcome to an exploration of the ocean floor. In this webquest, you will be travelling to the different levels of the ocean and examining the physical features of each level.

At the end, you will complete a worksheet labelling each of the different areas of the ocean and some of the prominent features on the ocean’s floor.

The exploration of the ocean and its features is called oceanography. Using this web quest you will become a beginning oceanographer by exploring the features of the ocean floor and learning about the zones that match them.

1. START HERE

Go to this web page and print the picture. You are going to complete it by writing the name of each numbered feature as you research about the ocean floor.

Click here to go to a map of the ocean floor and its features.

http://www.oise.utoronto.ca/~science/mups/78water/ocean.gif

2. LEARN ABOUT THE FEATURES OF THE OCEAN FLOOR

This website can help you complete the worksheet.

Http://www.onr.navy.mil/focus/ocean/regions/oceanfloor1.htm

These are the words you will be looking for:

Continental shelf Continenal slope Continental rise

Abyssal plain Trench Ridge

Seamounts Guyots

You can check your answers by them comparing to this image.

Http://www.ccom-jhc.unh.edu/unclos/html/images/fig2_1.jpg

3. THE OCEAN ZONES

After you have found the name of each of the ocean features on your map, it’s time to find out which ocean zone they fall in.

Look at picture 1 on your map. You are going to color in the three oceanic zones on this map.

Color the Euphotic Zone yellow.

Color the Disphotic Zone light blue.

Color the Aphotic Zone dark blue.

You can find out about these zones and what the names mean here.

http://mbgnet.mobot.org/salt/

Now that you’ve found the zones, label them with the common names that you find on the sight.

CONGRATULATIONS!

You’ve just completed your first research as an oceanographer. To learn more about our oceans, feel free to return to any of the websites to check out other information. Also browse the internet using these keywords.

Marianas Trench	The deepest canyon in the world is below the surface of the ocean. Find out how deep it goes.
Mid-Atlantic Ridge	Check out one of the biggest ridges and find out about some of the cool research going on.
Geothermal Vents	Learn about one of the most interesting features of the abyssal plain. See some of the really weird life that’s found down there.

Let me know what you think of this webquest mailto:Sean.Palmer@uvm.edu