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I. Then and Now

Activity Summary

This activity explores the historical changes in the ecological conditions and 

water quality of the Chesapeake Bay. Students will confirm or refute their 

predictions after reading excerpts from John Smith’s journal and viewing 

reports from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation or other sites. This activity will 

set the stage for students to investigate waterways near them and to look at 

the role of oysters in the Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. 

Learning Objectives: 

Students will be able to:

• Explain three differences in the physical conditions of the 

Chesapeake Bay from the 1600’s and today.

• Characterize relative abundance and diversity of living species 

near the Chesapeake Bay in 1600. 

• Identify 3 characteristics of a healthy Chesapeake Bay ecosystem. 

K-12 Oysters in the Chesapeake Bay

Module I

Grade Level: Middle School 

Teaching Time: 1-2 class 

periods

Materials:

• Access to websites or 

printed resources 

about John Smiths’ 

journeys. 

• Copies of Student Data 

Handouts 

Activity adapted from 
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Background Information

Captain John Smith was an English explorer who played a pivotal role in the European settlement of 

America. His contact with Native Americans and his Chesapeake voyages was documented in maps and 

journals helped early English colonists to learn about the region. Smith led two voyages on the Bay. His 

journal entries give us a clue about the ecological conditions of the Bay at the time. 

One of the most visible changes is the amount and diversity of animals that live in and around the Bay. In 

Smith’s days, oysters “lay as thick as stones,” and the Bay contained more sturgeon “than could be 

devoured by dog or man.” During Smith’s time, the land surrounding the Bay was home to bears, wolves, 

cougars, falcons, partridges, waterfowl, and had cypress trees that were 18 feet around the base and up 

to 80 feet tall. The water then was substantially clearer as well. 

Key Words

Barge - military term for a small, open boat

Forested Buffer - wooded areas help filter polluted runoff before it enters rivers or streams

Habitat - an area where a plant or animal lives that provides it with food, water, protection for 

survival and reproduction

Keel - the large timber at the bottom of a ship that serves as the vessel’s backbone

Primary Source - a source of information that comes from an eyewitness; these sources might 

include paintings, journal entries, letters of correspondence, etc.

Rudder - a large flat piece of wood attached to the tiller; as the rudder moves from side to side it 

causes the vessel to turn

SAV (Submerged Aquatic Vegetation) - rooted underwater plants that provide an important source 

of food and habitat for many Bay-dwelling animals

Secondary source - a source of information that comes from an individual who was not present at the 

time the event took place

Shallop - a small, stoutly built workboat powered by oars and sails

Shipwright - a person who is an expert at ship construction

Tiller - a long wooden handle in the stern used to steer a ship

Water Clarity - a measure of how clear the water measured by how far light penetrates into the 

water

Wetlands - areas such as marshes and swamps typically found along the Bay’s edges in shallow areas 

where the water meets the land. These areas are called “nurseries” because they provide food and 

shelter for small, juvenile animals.
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Activity Procedure

Engagement

Ask students to draw a favorite memory about living near the Chesapeake Bay on a small square of paper 

(6” x 6”). As each student shares their drawing, they place their signed image together to build a paper 

quilt on the wall. Alternatively, provide students with a diagram of a waterfront area or section of their 

local waterway and assign each a parcel of land. What would they do to improve their property? 

Exploration 

In small groups or individually, ask the students to make a prediction about the ecologic conditions of the 

Chesapeake comparing today with 1608 when John Smith first sailed the Bay. Students then examine 

resources that describe the animals and plants that John Smith and his crew encountered on the 

Chesapeake Bay in 1608. Students will record their findings on Students Data Sheet #1.

Resources:

• Captain John Smith’s Journal: http://www.johnsmith400.org/journal.htm

• Chesapeake Habitats, http://smithtrail.net/the-chesapeake/habitats/

• Life In and Around the Waters of the Chesapeake Bay – 1608: 

http://smithtrail.net/files/Bay_watershed_1608.pdf

• “Beyond Jamestown”, article from Smithsonian, May 2007. P. 49-60

http://www.smithsonianmag.com/travel/beyond-jamestown-152598412/?no-ist

Explanation 

Students will review the various Chesapeake Bay habitats from the Chesapeake Bay Foundation 

(http://www.cbf.org/about-the-bay/more-than-just-the-bay/habitats-of-the-chesapeake) and compare 

that with information taken from Captain John Smith’s description of the Chesapeake Bay in the early 

1600s. At the conclusion of this activity, students will issue a “report card” on the Bay’s health in 1608, 

using evidence from primary sources to support their assessment and compare it with today’s Bay 

health. 

Resources:

• Captain John Smith: http://www.chesapeakebay.net/discover/bayhistory/johnsmith

• Student Data Sheet #2 and #3 and Discussion Questions

• State of the Bay Report at http://www.cbf.org/

• How Healthy is your Chesapeake Bay? http://ecoreportcard.org/report-cards/chesapeakebay/health/

• The Chesapeake Bay in John Smith’s Time, https://www.nps.gov/teachers/classrooms/chesapeake-bay-in1608.htm

Procedure:

1. Ask students to review information about the state of the Chesapeake Bay habitats and species in 

1608 http://smithtrail.net/files/Bay_watershed_1608.pdf), and complete the table on Student Data 

Sheet #2. 
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2. Have them read make a conclusion with evidence about the health of the Bay’s fisheries and habitats 

in the 17th century on the bottom of Student Data Sheet #2. 

3. Using information about the Health of the Bay in 1600

(http://smithtrail.net/files/Bay_watershed_1608.pdf); students should compare those findings with

information about today’s Bay health at http://ecoreportcard.org/report-cards/chesapeakebay/health/to determine whether or not the Bay has changed since 1608. Have them look at the Overall 

Health Index on that site along with some of the other parameters from the data sheet. Alternatively, 

use the annual State of the Bay report at http://www.cbf.org/, issued by the Chesapeake Bay 

Foundation.

4. Students should consider what they learned about the Bay that Captain John Smith and other 

explorers knew and what they know about healthy habitats, and then complete the Student Discussion 

Questions at the end of Student Data Sheet #3.

Extension 

Depending on time, students can prepare a visual representation of the 1600 Bay conditions and habitats 

to use in future comparisons. These may take the form of graphs, diagrams, story/cartoon, painting, or 

other artwork. 

Evaluation 

Student Data Sheets 1-3 will provide evidence for student predictions, explanations, evidence for the 

Bay grades, and conclusions are evaluated for completeness of thought and explanation of their 

thinking. 

Three Dimensional Learning How the Dimensions are 

Addressed

Core Disciplinary 

Idea(s)

MS-LS2.A Interdependent

Relationships in Ecosystems

Analyze and interpret data to 

provide evidence for the effects 

of resource availability on 

organisms and populations of 

organisms in an ecosystem. 

Students compare the differences 

between environmental conditions 

and organisms in the Chesapeake Bay 

400 years apart. They use both 

historical and current reports related 

to the Bay‘s health to collect evidence 

about how water quality impacts the 

availability of biological components 

of an ecosystem. 

Science/Engineering 

Practice(s)

Obtaining, evaluating, and 

communicating information in 

6-8 builds on K–5 experiences 

and progresses to using 

appropriate and sufficient 

evidence and scientific 

reasoning to defend and 

critique claims and explanations 

Students gather evidence about the 

physical and biological components of 

the Chesapeake Bay over the past 400 

years through various readings, 

graphs, data, or internet resources. 

They integrate this information to 

form conclusions comparing two time 

periods. Students develop a report 
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about the natural and designed 

world. Gather, read, and 

evaluate scientific and/or 

technical information from 

multiple authoritative sources, 

assessing the evidence and 

usefulness of each source.

Construct an argument 

supported by empirical 

evidence that changes to 

physical or biological 

components of an ecosystem 

affect populations.

card that is backed by evidence from 

trusted resources to begin to consider 

how changes in physical or biological 

components can affect populations in 

an ecosystem. This sets up the next 

activity on water quality, and 

eventually to the connection between 

water quality and biological 

populations. 

Cross-cutting 

Concepts

Patterns identify cause and 

affect relationships. 

As students gather evidence about 

characteristics of the Bay between 

1600 and today, they may start to see 

a connection between water quality 

and the health of biological systems. 

This will investigated in the next 

activities. 

Ties to Common 

Core

WHST.6-8.9: Draw evidence 

from literary or informational 

texts to support analysis, 

reflection, and research. (MSLS2-2)

Students use a number of historical 

records to collect evidence about 

conditions in the Bay, and compare 

that to current conditions. 

Ties to MD

Environmental 

Literacy Standards

Standard 4. Populations, 

Communities, and Ecosystems

The student will use physical, 

chemical, biological, and 

ecological concepts to analyze 

and explain the 

interdependence of humans 

and organisms in populations, 

communities, and ecosystems.

The student uses historical and 

current information about 

populations and habitats of the 

Chesapeake Bay to provide evidence 

for the effects of conditions on 

ecosystem health and organism 

populations. 

Module References 

Chesapeake Bay Foundation. http://www.cbf.org/

Maryland Environmental Literacy Standards

http://marylandpublicschools.org/programs/Documents/Environmental/MDEnvironmentalLitStandar

ds.pdf

National Park Service, Captain John Smith, http://www.nps.gov/jame/learn/historyculture/life-ofjohn-smith.htm
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On the Trail of Captain John Smith, 

http://kids.nationalgeographic.com/kids/games/interactiveadventures/john-smith/

Oyster Company of Virginia, http://www.oysterva.com/oyster-history.html

The Voyages of Captain John Smith, http://smithtrail.net/captain-john-smith/

The Ward Museum, https://www.wardmuseum.org/

Additional Resources

Maryland Field Trip Suggestions: 

• Annapolis Maritime Museum, https://www.amaritime.org/

• Calvert Maritime Museum, http://www.calvertmarinemuseum.com/

• Chesapeake Bay Foundation, http://www.cbf.org/

• Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum, http://cbmm.org/

• Choptank River Heritage Center, http://choptankriverheritage.org/wp3/

• Havre de Grace Maritime Museum, http://www.hdgmaritimemuseum.org/

• Living Classrooms Foundation, https://www.livingclassrooms.org/

• Phillip’s Wharf Environmental Center, http://phillipswharf.org/

• Richardson Maritime Museum, http://www.richardsonmuseum.org/

• Sultana Education Foundation, http://sultanaeducation.org/

• Waterman’s Museum, http://www.rockhallmd.com/watermans-museum

• The Ward Museum, https://www.wardmuseum.org/

Virginia Field Trip Suggestions: 

• Living Classrooms Foundation, https://www.livingclassrooms.org/

• The Mariner’s Museum and Park, http://www.marinersmuseum.org/park-and-trail/

• Museum of Chincoteague Island, http://chincoteaguemuseum.com/

• Reedville Fishermen’s Museum, http://www.rfmuseum.org/

• Watermen’s Museum, https://watermens.org/