Social Issue
Saving sea turtles is the focus for our service learning unit. (3rd grade)
Sea turtles play an important role in ocean ecosystems. They maintain healthy seagrass beds and coral reefs, providing key habitat for other marine life, helping to balance marine food webs and facilitating nutrient cycling from water to land. (Wilson, E.G., Miller, K.L., Allison, D. and Magliocca, M.). Sea turtles have a big effect on people and the environment. If the sea turtle population starts to decrease, this can create other sea animals populations to decrease or increase which can destroy the marine food web. This can then affect fisherman, if there is a decrease in a species. Which can result in a food supply decrease.
Video
This video describes exactly why sea turtles are so important to our ecosystem. Their extinction would have a significant impact on the beaches we know and love today.
Guest Speaker
Someone from the Sea Turtle Conservancy is going to come into school one day and we will hold an assembly for them to speak about what they do to try and save sea turtles and why it is important. The guest speaker will talk about how individuals can help prevent harming sea turtles. Students will have the opportunity to ask questions.
Analysis
Symtoms
Their impact on the ocean ecosystem
Supply of nutrients on the beach
Provision of food for fish
Reducing overpopulation of jellyfish
Providing key habitat for other marine life
Root Causes
Pollution
Fisherman
Humans on the Beach
Other wildlife
Debris on the Beach
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