Learning objectives

This live lesson focuses on the themes of:

• Explore how marine ecosystems store carbon
• Investigate how seagrass meadows can help tackle climate change
• Understand the role of eDNA in conservation science

Preparation

This is a standalone lesson for British Science Week 2025. No specific preparation is needed but teachers may wish to view some of the lower secondary (key stage 3) resources from the Convex Seascape Survey.

Supporting student sheets will be available to download from this page in the coming weeks.

If you have never joined a live lesson before, visit the support centre, where you can find a range of technical and educational information.

Questions generated by your class can be submitted via the interaction app that will appear on this lesson page once you have booked the lesson.

Lesson steps

1. Introduction (5 minutes)

We welcome students to the live lesson and introduce our speakers.

2. Ocean's Role in Climate Change (7 minutes)

We explore how the ocean helps tackle climate change through carbon storage. Students participate in a quiz ranking major carbon stores and learn about nature-based solutions to climate change.

3. Seagrass Investigation (7 minutes)

Students discover how seagrass meadows store carbon and compare different conservation strategies. Through an interactive poll, they compare carbon storage in UK trees versus seabed habitats.

4. Understanding eDNA (6 minutes)

We explore environmental DNA analysis, examining how scientists use this tool to study seabed habitats. Students learn about the process from collecting sediment cores to analysing data.

5. Data-Driven Conservation (5 minutes)

Students analyse real scientific data to evaluate different conservation approaches for seagrass meadows. We discuss how eDNA helps inform conservation decisions.

6. Q&A (15 minutes)

Students have the opportunity to ask questions about marine conservation, climate change, and scientific research techniques.