Author Archives: oceanlifeeducation

School’s Guide to Ocean Events 2025

In a world increasingly focused on environmental preservation, educators like us play a pivotal role in inspiring young minds to care for our planet’s most precious resource—the ocean. By weaving engaging, ocean-themed events into the school year, we foster a love for marine environments and teach students why protecting the ocean is vital for life on Earth. Here’s your School’s Guide to Key Ocean Events in 2025 that will help bring marine conservation to life in the classroom.

Download your free Ocean Events 2025 Calendar by clicking the link at the foot.

UN Decade of Ocean Science (2021-2030)

The United Nations Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021–2030) is a global initiative designed to advance international collaboration in ocean science to address critical environmental challenges and achieve sustainable development goals. This initiative aims to enhance our understanding of the ocean, foster innovation, and build partnerships that contribute to creating sustainable solutions for marine and coastal ecosystems.

Goals of the Decade

The overarching vision of the Decade is to deliver the “science we need for the future we want,” ensuring that oceans remain healthy and resilient for current and future generations. Key objectives include:

A Clean Ocean: Identifying and significantly reducing sources of pollution.
A Healthy and Resilient Ocean: Understanding, protecting, and restoring marine ecosystems through sustainable management practices.

By prioritizing scientific research, technological innovation, and global cooperation, this initiative aspires to ensure that oceans can continue to support biodiversity, climate stability, and human livelihoods.

The Decade represents a call to action for researchers, policymakers, educators, and citizens worldwide to work together toward sustainable ocean stewardship.

Ocean Literacy for Schools

World Whale Day – 16 February 2025

World Whale Day, held annually on the third Sunday of February, celebrates the beauty and importance of whales while raising awareness about the challenges they face. Whales are vital to ocean health, contributing to carbon capture and nutrient recycling.

Activities for Schools:

*Host a whale-themed art or poetry contest.

*Discuss the role of whales in maintaining ocean ecosystems.

*Share resources and whale conservation efforts with students.

Link to Ocean Life Education’s whale resources

Clean Up Australia Day – 2 March 2025

Clean Up Australia Day empowers communities to remove litter from local environments, including beaches and waterways, to protect marine ecosystems.

Activities for Schools:

*Organize a school-wide clean-up day for nearby coastal or river areas.

*Teach students about the journey of marine debris and its impact on wildlife like turtles and seabirds.

*Create posters or social media campaigns to promote reducing waste.

Link to Ocean Life Education’s Human Impact Resources

SeaWeek – 1–9 March 2025

SeaWeek is Australia’s national marine awareness campaign. The 2025 theme centers on Ocean Literacy Principle 4: The ocean makes earth habitable.

This highlights the ocean’s role in regulating the planet’s climate and sustaining life.

Activities for Schools:

*Experiment with how ocean currents affect global weather patterns.

*Discuss how Queensland’s Great Barrier Reef contributes to biodiversity – click here to find out more.

*Partner with local marine organizations such as Coolum Coast Care or Sea Shepherd for workshops or talks.

*2o teaching activities for SeaWeek

*SeaWeek Australia website

World Ocean Day – 8 June 2025

The 2025 theme for World Ocean Day is “Reviving Our Ocean: Communities in Action.” This global event emphasizes collective action for sustainable ocean use.

Activities for Schools:

*Create an “ocean action plan” for your school community.

*Incorporate ocean conservation into STEM projects, such as designing reef-safe sunscreen or biodegradable packaging.

*Celebrate with an ocean-themed assembly or showcase.

*World Ocean Day website

World Sea Turtle Day – 16 June 2025

Honoring Dr. Archie Carr, the “father of sea turtle biology,” this day highlights sea turtles’ importance to marine ecosystems.

Activities for Schools:

*Hold a sea turtle trivia quiz.

*Explore the life cycle of turtles and the threats they face from climate change and pollution.

*Encourage students to design turtle-friendly beach signage.

Plastic Free July 2025

Plastic Free July challenges individuals and communities to reduce single-use plastics. Schools can play a critical role in raising awareness about plastic pollution.

Activities for Schools:

*Host a week-long challenge to avoid single-use plastics in lunchboxes.

*Run workshops on making reusable beeswax wraps or upcycling projects.

*Audit the school’s plastic usage and brainstorm ways to reduce it.

Ocean Life Education Resources

Shark Awareness Day – 14 July 2025

Sharks are vital to maintaining healthy marine ecosystems but are often misunderstood. Shark Awareness Day focuses on dispelling myths and emphasizing their ecological importance.

Activities for Schools:

Organize a debate on the portrayal of sharks in media.
Create educational posters highlighting their role as apex predators.
Discuss shark conservation efforts, including those in Queensland’s waters and the high profile ‘Nets Out Now’ campaign.

Ocean Life Education Shark Resources

Coastcare Week – December 2025

Coastcare Week celebrates the efforts of volunteers working to protect Australia’s coastlines and marine environments.

Activities for Schools:

*Host a workshop on how students can contribute to local coastcare initiatives.

*Conduct a field trip to a coastal area to study its biodiversity.

*Celebrate volunteer efforts by inviting local Coastcare representatives to share their stories.

Bring Learning to Life with Live Marine Experiences

Take ocean-themed education to the next level with hands-on learning. Ocean Life Education offer live marine animal programs led by qualified educators. These interactive sessions allow students to experience marine life up close while learning about conservation in a fun and engaging way.

By participating in these key ocean events in 2025, schools can inspire students to become advocates for marine conservation. Through hands-on activities and meaningful discussions, we can ensure the next generation values the incredible biodiversity and life-supporting functions of our oceans. Let’s make 2025 a year of action and connection with the sea! 🌊

For more resources and event details, check out Ocean Life Education.

We hoped you enjoyed reading our School’s Guide to Key Ocean Events in 2025!

CLICK HERE FOR YOUR FREE OCEAN EVENTS CALENDAR.

Here’s a link to our other news

Year 6 Science Incursions in Brisbane

Ocean Life Education’s Habitats Program

Ocean Life Education’s Habitats – Physical Conditions program elevates Year 6 students’ understanding of habitats by focusing on marine environments. Students will explore the specific physical conditions required for marine animals to survive and thrive. They will learn how changes to these conditions can negatively affect marine life, leading to poor health or even death. The program encourages discussions on strategies to prevent these harmful impacts in the future.

During our Habitats incursions, students will delve into a diverse range of physical conditions, including:

Temperature
Salinity
Light
Nutrients
Current flow
Waves
Turbidity
Depth

The Great Barrier Reef

Habitats Case Study: The Great Barrier Reef, Queensland

Our focus will be on Queensland’s coral reef habitat, particularly the Great Barrier Reef, the world’s largest fringing reef, located right at our doorstep. As one of the seven natural wonders of the world, it is essential to understand the physical conditions necessary for its survival so we can work to preserve it for the future.

What is Coral?

coral polyps

Though corals resemble plants on the ocean floor, they are actually marine animals related to jellyfish and sea anemones. Corals belong to the Cnidaria group, known for their stinging tentacles.

These invertebrates are colonial organisms, meaning many individuals live and grow connected in colonies. The Great Barrier Reef hosts around six hundred coral species which are made up of polyps, clear tube-like structures with stinging tentacles used for catching prey and defence.

Coral Reef Habitat – Necessities to Thrive

Temperature: Corals thrive in warm tropical waters, ideally between 23–29°C.

Salinity: They prefer salty conditions with salinity levels between 32–42 ppt.

Light: Sunlight is crucial for coral survival, as symbiotic algae within them need to photosynthesize to produce food.

Nutrients: Low nutrient levels are important to prevent smothering; calcium is essential for building coral skeletons.

Current Flow: Currents bring food, calcium, and disperse sediment, aiding in photosynthesis and coral spawn distribution.

Waves: Waves provide oxygen, food, and prevent sediment buildup on corals.

Turbidity: Low turbidity ensures sunlight penetration, crucial for coral survival.

Depth: Corals thrive in shallow waters, up to 70 meters, but prefer depths between the surface and 30 meters for optimal sunlight.

Human Impact

Coral Bleaching

Students will explore how human activities have altered the reef’s physical habitat and its effects on marine life. They will also discuss strategies to minimize negative impacts on the reef now and in the future.

Coral Bleaching

Climate change has raised water temperatures, especially in the northern Great Barrier Reef, surpassing 29°C and causing coral bleaching. Discussions will cover human actions like carbon pollution from cars and factories that accelerate climate change. Students will learn about coral bleaching, its causes, and potential prevention measures.

Land Clearing

The removal of trees and vegetation near coastal and river areas increases soil erosion, leading to sediment washing into oceans. This sediment smothers and kills coral. Students will investigate the effects of land clearing on marine environments.

Extension to Human Impact on the Ocean

Other human activities like plastic pollution and the use of shark nets and baited drum lines for shark control will be discussed. Students will learn about plastic’s harmful effects on marine life, particularly sea turtles.

The use of shark nets and drum lines since 1962, which results in unnecessary harm to marine animals, will be debated. The discussion will focus on modern, more effective technologies for protecting humans and marine life at beaches.

Ocean Life Education Habitats – 3 Minute Video

In this short film, Ocean Life Education’s Director of Education, Richard Coward, highlights key Habitats learning points using our marine animals as examples. It’s a great precursor to an incursion, which can be watched with students as a quick taster and talking point in advance of our visit.

A Note About Year 6 Curriculum Science

This incursion aligns with the Australian Curriculum content description ‘Science Understanding’ under the sub strand of ‘Biological Science’ for year 6’…

The growth and survival of living things are affected by physical conditions of their environment.

Creating Ocean Advocates

At Ocean Life Education, we believe people protect what they know and love. Our mission is to inspire a deep connection to the ocean in children through engaging science incursions. By creating hands-on, memorable experiences, we aim to spark a lifelong passion for marine conservation and the ocean’s wonders.

Useful links

Overview of Marine Habitats

Habitats Fact Sheets

Other Primary Resources

Our Primary Incursions

Recent Blogs

Year 7 – Habitats

Year 3 – Life Cycles

Year 1 – Habitats

Our Primary Incursions

Here’s a link to our other news

Year 7 Science Incursions in Brisbane

Ocean Life Education’s Classification Program

Ocean Life Education’s year 7 science incursions in Brisbane provide students with a solid foundation of a variety of ocean-focused themes in line with the Australian Curriculum. One of our most popular programs is Classification, which focuses on helping students organize their understanding of the world around them, enhancing critical thinking and observational skills.

During our Classification incursions, students will explore the grouping of living organisms based on their observed features, functions, and adaptations for survival. They will understand the reasons behind animal classification and discover both similarities and differences among various marine animals. Additionally, the importance of scientific communication will be emphasised, and students will engage in simple classification exercises of marine species using scientific conventions for naming species.

Simple Classification of our Marine Animals

We bring a fascinating and diverse range of live marine animals along to our science incursions, including a baby shark, a freshwater turtle, a variety of sea stars, sea cucumbers and sea urchins. This enables us to look at a range of classifications first hand. For example, our echinoderms…

Echinoderms

Sea stars, sea urchins, and sea cucumbers are all classified as echinoderms – named for the spines or bumps covering the outer surface of the bodies (Greek root word echino– meaning spiny; Latin root word –derm meaning skin).

Children learn that echinoderms, despite their diverse appearances, share two key features that distinguish them from other animals: a water vascular system and five-sided radial symmetry. These characteristics are fundamental to their movement and body structure, highlighting the unique adaptations of this fascinating group.

The water vascular system in echinoderms consists of canals filled with seawater that aid movement, feeding, nutrition, and respiration. Hydraulic pressure allows tube feet to extend and retract, enabling them to move around and interact with their environment.

The pentamerous radial symmetry structure of echinoderms makes the body strong as a five-segment skeleton is stronger than a four- or six-sided one (because the line of weakness cannot run directly across the body).

Our sea stars, urchins and cucumbers offer a fitting example of all these characteristics and the children have fun while learning to classify them themselves. We also discuss how our shark and turtle may be classified but in less detail.

Marine Classification – Table Activity

Here, students observe our live marine animals and then apply their learning to categorise animals themselves into a table. This is a great activity for year 7 science as students become scientists, drawing their own conclusions from the data and observations.

Marine Classification – 3 Minute Video

In this short film, Ocean Life Education’s Director of Education, Richard Coward, highlights key Classification learning points using our marine animals as examples and explains how animals are grouped according to the way their bodies look and function. It’s a great precursor to an incursion, which can be watched with students as a quick taster and talking point in advance of our visit.

Incursions in Brisbane & Excursions to the Coast!

While our science incursions in Brisbane are a fantastic way for us to bring the sea to students who might not get the opportunity to visit the coast, we also offer the option of experiencing Classification during an excursion to the coast. Our team meet the students at a designated spot, and we explore and research the environment together before returning to our live marine animals to put things into context.

Classification for Younger Students

If you are also teaching younger students, another great way to prepare for our Classification science incursion is with our Classification Card Activity in which student use classification cards to work out which headings different marine animals could be classified under.

A Note About Year 7 Curriculum Science

This incursion aligns with the Australian Curriculum content description ‘Science Understanding’ under the sub strand of ‘Biological Science’ for year 7’…

Investigate the role of classification in ordering and organising the diversity of life on Earth and use and develop classification tools.

Imprinting a Love of the Ocean: Cultivating Future Environmental Advocates

At Ocean Life Education, we believe that “you protect what you know and love.” Our mission is to instil a deep connection to the ocean in children, inspiring them to become passionate advocates for marine conservation.

Our dedicated team brings this vision to life through engaging science incursions that showcase the wonders of marine environments. We aim to create memorable experiences filled with hands-on learning and exploration. By sharing our enthusiasm and knowledge, we strive to spark a lifelong appreciation for the ocean in every child we reach.

Find out more about year 7 science incursions in Brisbane.

Year 3 – Life Cycles

Year 1 – Habitats

Our Primary Incursions

Here’s a link to our other news

Year 3 Science Incursions in Brisbane

Ocean Life Education’s Life Cycle Program

During Ocean Life Education’s exciting “Life Cycles – The Birth and Growth of Animals” incursion students will dive into the fascinating world of marine animals to uncover the unique life cycles of various sea creatures. By interacting with a diverse array of marine life, they gain insights into reproduction, birth, and growth stages across different species and experience first-hand differences that exist between living and non-living things. This incursion highlights examples from iconic local marine animals, focusing on sharks, whales and turtles to ensure it is relevant to local students. Keep reading to find out more about our Year 3 Science Incursions in Brisbane.

Link to Primary Programs

Exploring Marine Reproduction

During this engaging incursion, we highlight the different ways in which our ocean creatures come into the world.

Our sea stars, sea cucumbers and sea urchins offer wonderful examples of exterior fertilization…where adults release eggs and sperm into the water. And our sharks and freshwater turtles provide living proof of how interior fertilisation occurs in other species.

Incredible Ocean Births

Students find out that not all animals are born the same way and that our sharks and freshwater turtles hatch from eggs as perfect miniature versions of their parents. Whereas our sea stars and sea urchins start out their life as a plankton, later going through dramatic change (metamorphosis) to become like their parents.

We love seeing the surprise on children’s faces as they contemplate these mind-blowing wonders of nature!

The Fascinating World of Shark Reproduction

Focusing on our sharks, we then discuss the three different ways in which they may be born, according to the species. Some sharks are born from eggs (like our little ones), some are born alive (like us), e.g. Great Whites, Tiger Sharks and Whaler Sharks, and then there are some like the Grey Nurse Shark that are a combination of the two.

Students love exploring sharks and discussing how and why they have evolved in these ways.

Shark Life Cycle Resources

Examining Local Case Studies – Humpback Whales

Some animals travel long distances as part of their life cycle, such as Humpback Whales that travel from Antarctica up into the tropical waters off Queensland’s coast to give birth to their calves in warmer waters. Through suckling their young, the females provide calves with the energy and precious fat stores needed to survive the long migration back down to the icy southern waters where they feed on plankton during the Antarctic Summer, before commencing the incredible journey again.

The humpback whale migration begins in May/June heading north off the Australian coastline. We can observe the humpback whales travelling back down to the Antarctic during the months of September and October.

Humpback Resources

Additional Topics Covered in our Life Cycles Incursion

Our Year Three life cycles incursion also teaches students about fundamental biological processes such as the need for food, reproduction, shelter-seeking behaviours, classifying the difference between living and non-living things, adaptation to habitats, and mobility.

Imprinting a Love of the Ocean: Cultivating Future Environmental Advocates

At Ocean Life Education, we firmly believe that “you protect what you know and love.” That’s why we’re dedicated to teaching children about the wonders of the ocean. By fostering a deep connection with marine environments, we aim to inspire the next generation of environmental advocates.

Our passionate team brings this mission to life through engaging science incursions, where our enthusiasm for the ocean is evident. It’s this genuine love and commitment that make our educational experiences truly unique and impactful. We’re excited to share our passion and knowledge, hoping to spark a lifelong appreciation for the ocean in every child we reach.

Find out more about our Year 3 Science Incursions in Brisbane.

A Note About Year 3 Curriculum Science: Biological Science

This incursion aligns with the Australian Curriculum content description ‘Science Understanding’ and under the sub strand of ‘Biological Science’. AC9S3U01…

“Students classify and compare living and non-living things and different life cycles”.

Useful links

Life Cycle Activities & Resources

Blog: Life Cycles of Ocean Animals for Schools

Ocean Life Education’s Life Cycles Video