Ocean In a Bottle
Empowerment Activity – Ocean In a Bottle
Topic/Theme: Oceanography Careers
Video: Oceanographer: What I Do – Laurita Brown
Supplies:
- Baby oil or cooking oil
- Empty clear bottle with lid
- Blue food dye
- Water
- Optional: small seashells
Video Discussion:
Invite students to share what they already know about our oceans. Share the fun facts below with the students, then let them know they will be watching a video of an Oceanographer.
Fun Facts About the Ocean:
- It makes up more than 70% of the planet’s surface.
- 80% remains unmapped, unobserved, and unexplored as of 2018.
- Marine species outnumber those on land.
- Over 70 percent of our planet’s oxygen is produced by the ocean.
- The Pacific Ocean is the world’s largest ocean and contains around 25,000 islands.
After watching the video Oceanographer: What I Do – Laurita Brown, ask your students the following questions:
- What is ocean exploration and why is it important?
- What mystery of the ocean are you most interested in and why?
Activity Instructions:
Each student will create their own ocean snow globe. The science behind this activity is that oil and water do not mix. The movement of the two separate liquids within the bottle gives the illusion of waves.
- Fill up the bottle ⅓ of the way with water.
- Add a few drops of blue food dye to the water until it is the shade of blue you want.
- Fill up the rest of the bottle with oil.
- Add in seashells or small items if you’d like.
- Glue on the lid for a waterproof seal.
- Turn it over to make some waves.
Optional Career Girls Website Activity:
Share information from the Oceanographer career page with your students. Point out role models on the page so they can see examples of different types of careers within or related to oceanography. If students have access to computers, encourage them to select one or more of the role models to learn more about each of their careers.
