Caring for the ocean

Like many other parts of our planet, the ocean is undergoing rapid change because of human activity. This activity guides classes to take action to care for the ocean. Caring for the ocean is a job for all of us.

Ages 7+

(adult supervision)

20 minutes

How to do it How to do it
What you'll need What you'll need
Find out more Find out more

Introduction

This activity is all about caring for the ocean. There are three student sheets to support learning, which can be downloaded from the What you’ll need tab.

Activity steps

If you need to cover some background about the changes taking place in the ocean, use the Student Sheet A changing global ocean, available to download or in the Find out more tab.
Then, look at the Student Sheet Taking action for the ocean. This lists some of the broad areas of action that will help the ocean, and specific pledge ideas.
Working alone on in groups, students should choose one or more pledges that they would like to make to care for the ocean.
Students should then cut out one of the ocean animal pledge cards from the Student Sheet Ocean pledge cards and write their pledge on this. Some students might prefer to cut around the oval outline, while others may prefer to cut the exact shape of the ocean animal.
Pledges can be shared using a plenary discussion or using a class display.

Safety guidance

Cutting with scissors should be done using child-friendly scissors and under adult supervision.

Like many other parts of our planet, the ocean is undergoing rapid change because of human activity.

The impact of carbon emissions

Carbon emissions have caused more of the sun’s heat to be trapped in the atmosphere and 90% of this heat is absorbed by the ocean. This has raised average sea surface temperatures by 0.6ºC in the past four decades.

Increased ocean warming affects life in the ocean in many ways. Some animals, such as coral, can die when the ocean is two warm, and other animals, such as some fish species move to cooler placers.

30% to 50% of the carbon dioxide produced by burning fossil fuels is absorbed by the ocean. This affects the ocean’s chemistry making it more acidic, which can harm marine life.

Caring for the ocean bleaching — Coral bleaching caused by a warming ocean

The impact of plastic pollution

Pollution can take many forms, from chemicals to rubbish, like plastic. Plastic pollution has been found all through the ocean and can smother animals or be confused for food.

Between 4.8 and 12.7 million tonnes of plastic enter the ocean each year, and it is estimated that there is now 51 trillion items of plastic in the ocean, and 80% of this plastic waste comes from land.

Plastic pollution harms animals as small as plankton like copepods, all the way up to dolphins and whales. Every baby turtle surveyed has been found to have some plastic in their stomachs.

Find out more about marine plastic pollution

The impact of overfishing

Overfishing is when too many fish are caught, and the numbers cannot come back naturally. Overfishing is the greatest threat to the biodiversity of the world’s ocean, with many species becoming endangered.

Taking the example of sharks, it is estimated that 100 million sharks are caught and killed each year. This now means that over one third of shark species are threatened.

Removing fish from the ocean food web can affect the balance of entire ocean habitats, with some fishing techniques also damaging the marine environment. Establishing no-fish zones can help repair this damage.

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