LAKERS* Observe Coastweeks (*Lake-Aware Kids Engaged in Relevant Science)

Developed with support of The Lake Erie Protection Fund and Ohio Environmental Education Fund.  Reprinted and distributed by Ohio Sea Grant, 1997.
Ohio Environmental Education Fund	Ohio Sea Grant College Program

1. Descriptions

• Total 21 activities included
• Intended for students in middle school
• Coastweeks is an international program sponsored by the Center of Marine Conservation (CMC) in Washington, D.C. It is celebrated during a three week time period, usually from mid-September through the first part of October. Volunteers participate in a variety of projects that might include environmental awareness, beach clean-up, water conservation, or surveying boaters or fishers.
• This set of material not only can be used to prepare students for a class excursion to the shore but also for in-class activities.

2. Topic Areas and Activities Included

• How big is a crowd?
• Who is visiting the shore?
• How does the estuary serve as a nursery?
• Where go the boats?
• What kinds of boats come to this area of the coast?
• What do scientists know about Great Lakes invader species?
• How did it get here?
• What is the impact of beach debris?
• Shore Processes
• What evidence of glaciation and geologic processes can be found on Great Lakes beaches?
• What causes the shoreline to erode?
• How does debris move in surface water?
• How do the levels of the Great Lakes change?
• How is today’s weather related to the “Big Picture” of weather?
• Shoreline Clean-Up
• Does trash come up for air? What will people see on a low-water beach?
• What can we find on a Lake Erie beach?
• How does Lake Erie beach debris compare to that found in other areas?
• How can beach finds be classified?
• How long does it take to disappear?
• How big is the solid waste problem?