LESSON 2:

EARTH’S WATER MOVES

INTRODUCTION

The ocean is one body of water that is 

interconnected across the world. Ocean 

currents serve as nurseries for some 

animals while others spend their whole 

lives in them. There are many kinds of 

plants and animals that live in and around 

ocean currents. This biodiversity shows 

how important the ocean and its currents 

are for so many different types of living 

things. 

LESSON SUMMARY

In this lesson, students have a chance 

to see how much of Earth is covered by 

water using a map and mathematics skills. 

They use an investigation to see one way 

that water moves around the world then 

consider why these currents are important 

for living things. 

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OBJECTIVES

• Students will be able to describe how 

much of the Earth is covered by water.

• Students will explore ocean currents 

and gyres.

• Students will learn the locations of the 

major ocean gyres across the world, and 

what moves with these currents.

ESTIMATED TIME

60 minutes. If you would like to complete 

this lesson over 2 days, consider pausing 

the lesson between steps 5 and 6. 

STANDARDS ADDRESSED

Science (NGSS): 2-ESS2-2. Develop a 

model to represent the shapes and kinds of 

land and bodies of water in an area.
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OCEAN LITERACY 

PRINCIPLES

1a The ocean as a defining physical feature 

of our planet

1c “Global ocean conveyor belt”

3a The interaction of oceanic and 

atmospheric processes controls weather 

and climate.

3c Heat exchange between the ocean and 

atmosphere can result in dramatic global 

and regional weather phenomena.

3f The ocean has had, and will continue 

to have, a significant influence on climate 

change.

3g Changes in the ocean-atmosphere 

system can result in changes to the climate 

that in turn, cause further changes to the 

ocean and atmosphere.

Mathematics (CCSS): 2.MD.D.10 Draw a 

picture graph and a bar graph (with singleunit scale) to represent a data set with up 

to 4 categories. Solve simple put-together, 

take-apart, and compare problems using 

information presented in a bar graph.

Geography: Standard 1.4 The 

interpretation of geographic 

representations.

Standard 3.2 The distribution of people, 

places, and environments form spatial 

patterns across Earth’s surface.

FOCUS QUESTION

• Print and cut apart the Ocean Dwellers 

card setside, as shown on the Ocean 

Depth Chart master. 

MATERIALS

• Map that includes the area where 

students live and the nearest ocean, 

to project or display. Students should 

be able to clearly see where they live 

and the nearest ocean basin on the 

map, so a map with colors and state/

country boundary lines may be helpful 

depending on your location. Maps on 

the Internet often allow for different 

views or layers, which will allow you to 

project a version that will support your 

students.

• World Map handout, one per student 

and one to project using a document 

camera or LCD projector
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• Markers, crayons, or colored pencils, 

in sets of one blue and one green or 

brown. One set per 1-2 students.

• Small paper straws, one per student. 

Please do not use plastic straws as 

they are a major source of litter, marine 

debris, and have a very detrimental 

impact on all types of animals living on 

land and in the ocean. Paper straws can 

be placed in paper recycling following 

use.

• Baking dish or pie pan, one per group of 

4 students

• Enough water to fill each baking dish or 

pie pan to a depth of approximately 1 

inch 

• Coarse ground pepper

• Gyres of the world handout, see 

“Preparation”

PREPARATION

• Make enough copies of the Gyres 

handout for each group of 2-3 students 

to have one description. There are 4 

descriptions per handout, so for a class 

of 30 (with 10 groups of 3 students) 

make 3 copies of the handout. Cut apart 

the descriptions. 

FACILITATION

Step 1. Project or display a map that 

includes where your students live in 

relation to the nearest ocean. Help 

students locate where they live and the 

nearest ocean on the map. For your own 

information, and to share with students 

as it comes up, the ocean is one body 

of water that is interconnected across 

the world. Ocean basins are bounded 

by the continents and have distinct 

characteristics. The ocean basins include 

the North and South Pacific, North and 

South Atlantic, Indian, and Arctic Ocean 

basins. Scientists also recognize the 

Southern Ocean, which circles Antarctica. 

Step 2. Help students understand that the 

ocean is a very large body of water that is 

all interconnected. You might have them 

compare the closest ocean basin to a pond, 

lake, or river that is close to where they live 

and is visible on the map. 

Step 3. Tell students that you can get an 

idea of how big the ocean is based on the 

map. Distribute the World Map handout. 

Ask students to color in squares that are all 

or mostly water with blue and squares that 

are all or mostly land with green or brown. 

You may wish to also display a world 

map that shows water in a different color 

from land so that students can use it as a 

reference. 
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Step 4. When students have colored in all 

the squares, ask them to count the number 

of blue squares and record that number 

in the appropriate place on the handout. 

Have them do the same for the number of 

brown squares. 

Step 5. Ask students to draw a bar graph to 

show the amount of land and the amount 

of water on Earth. To do this, they should 

graph the number of squares they counted 

for each surface. Then have students 

compare how much of the Earth is covered 

in water versus land. They should be able 

to say that there is more water than land 

on Earth. About 70 percent of the Earth’s 

surface is covered by water, so the bar for 

that surface should be more than twice as 

high as the bar for land.

Step 6. Share with students that there is 

more to the ocean than the map shows. 

The wind affects the way the water in the 

ocean moves. Have the students complete 

the activity in the NOAA resource, How It is 

Currently Done (https://www.noaa.gov/

ocean/ll-current). Ask them, what is 

happening when the “wind” is blowing the 

water? 

How it is done:

The constant pushing of air molecules 

into each other is the reason we feel wind. 

As one molecule bumps into another, it 

transfers energy into the next molecule. 

The wind constantly pushing on the 

ocean’s surface also transfers energy to 

the water. 

This energy transfer is responsible for 

the motion of the world’s ocean currents. 

Students will make their own ocean 

currents using straws and black pepper.

Total time: 10 minutes

Supplies: One small paper straw per

student, one baking pan (or pie pan) for 

each group of 4 students, coarse ground 

black pepper

Procedure:

1. Fill the baking pan with water to about

1 inch deep.

2. Position one student on each corner of

the pan.

3. Sprinkle some black pepper in one

corner of the baking pan.

4. At each corner position, have the

students aim their straw along the side

of the pan to their left.

5. Have each student gently blow through

the straw across the top of the water

and observe the motion of the pepper.
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Step 7. Tell students the following 

information. 

As you’ve seen, one of the ways that water 

moves is because wind blows it. In the 

oceans, there are five areas where winds 

and the rotation of Earth cause major, 

permanent currents. The water in these 

currents travel in a circular motion over 

thousands of miles. These currents are 

known as gyres. 

For additional discussion: The wind 

systems over the Atlantic and Pacific 

Oceans in the northern hemisphere move 

in a clockwise motion. The wind transfers 

some of its energy to the sea surface 

generating currents in the same clockwise 

direction. In the Southern Hemisphere, the 

wind moves in a counter-clockwise motion. 

As a result, the ocean’s currents also move 

in a counter-clockwise direction.

Step 8. Divide students into groups of 2-3 

and give each group a description from 

the Gyres handout. Have them read the 

information and determine how they 

would draw the gyre on the map. You will 

likely have multiple groups with the same 

information. When groups share, they can 

discuss if all groups agree on where to draw 

the gyre.

Step 9. Project the world map handout 

and hold a class discussion about the 

location of the gyres. Point out where 

North America is and ask if, in the previous 

step, any groups read about a gyre that was 

near that continent. Have one of the groups 

come forward to point out where their gyre 

should be. If you are projecting the map 

onto a board, have them draw the gyre 

where it belongs. If you are projecting on a 

screen or have a physical map, give them 

one of your prepared pictures of a gyre and 

have them tape it where it goes. If more 

than one group had the same description, 

allow one group to share where they think 

the gyre should go and allow the other 

group to agree or share their ideas. 

Step 10. Share with students that the 

currents in the ocean help to move heat 

and warm water, food, and salt around 

the world. These materials help plants and 

animals, including humans, live by bringing 

nutrients to different parts of the world and 

spreading heat out across the globe. 
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EXTENSION

If your students are interested in the gyres, a NOAA resource called JetStream Max: Major Ocean 

Currents (https://www.noaa.gov/jetstream/ocean/circulations/jetstream-max-major-oceancurrents) is an interactive map that can help students visualize the different currents. If you 

would like to have your students explore this, share the link with them, along with the 

information in the following table that includes the currents associated with each gyre, and in 

different parts of the ocean. Students can check the specific currents to see where the water in 

the gyre is warm and where it is cold, so they can look for patterns in both the temperature and 

direction of the water.
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GYRES (POTENTIAL EXTENSION)

Gyre North Atlantic South Atlantic

Currents • Gulf Stream

• North Atlantic

• Canary

• North 

Equatorial

• South 

Equatorial

• Brazil

• West Wind Drift

• Benguela

North Pacific South Pacific Indian

• North 

Equatorial

• Kuroshio 

• North Pacific

• California

• West Wind Drift

• Peru

• South 

Equatorial

• East Australia

• West Wind Drift

• West Australia

• South 

Equatorial

• Agulhas
WORLD MAP

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GYRES OF THE WORLD

North Atlantic Gyre

• This gyre makes a large 

circle.

• It is north of the equator.

• It is east of North America.

• It is west of Europe and 

Africa.

North Pacific Gyre

• This gyre makes a large 

circle.

• It is south of the equator.

• It is east of South America.

• It is west of Africa.

.

South Atlantic Gyre

• This gyre makes a large 

circle.

• It is north of the equator.

• It is east of Asia.

• It is west of North America.

South Pacific Gyre

• This gyre makes a large 

circle.

• It is south of the equator.

• It is east of Australia.

• It is west of South America.