Educator Resources

Permission is hereby granted for the reproduction, without alteration, of the activities below on the condition that proper attribution is given to the North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve as the source.

Lesson Plans

Updated to reflect the 2023 standards. 

• A House for a Hermit Crab, Spanish Version (grades PreK-4)
• Life in a Fishbowl, Spanish Version (grades PreK-4)
• Ocean Movements, Spanish Version (grades K-3)
• Water Babies, Spanish Version (grades 1-4)
• Exploring the Estuary, Spanish Version (grades 1-5)
• Fish Forms, Spanish Version (grades 2-6)
• Growing Oysters, Spanish Version (grades 2-8)
• Salt Marsh Players, Spanish Version (grades 3-6)
• Water, Water Everywhere, Spanish Version (grades 3-5)
• The Albemarle-Pamlico Estuarine System: Birds & Habitats, Spanish Version (grades 3-5)
• Funky Food Chains, Spanish Version (grades 3-5)
• Cool Crabs, Spanish Version (grades 4-8)
• ECO-logical: A Coastal Logic Problem, Spanish Version (grades 4-8)
• Estuary Keeper, Spanish Version (grades 4-10)
• Marsh Mystery Water, Spanish Version (grades 4-12)
• Fishing for Red Drum, Spanish Version (grades 5-8)
• Fiddle Facts, Spanish Version (grades 5-12)
• Tides of Time, Spanish Version (grades 6-12)
• Shore Profiles, Spanish Version (grades 8-12)
• Examining a Fish Kill, Spanish Version (grades 4-8)

Word search activity 

• Lower elementary

Waters of Life Video

Aquakids TV episode: The Aquakids Visit the Rachel Carson Reserve

Estuary Activity Book

Estuaries: Where Rivers Meet the Sea Coloring Book

Field Guide

A field guide to the North Carolina National Estuarine Research Reserve and other sites of the North Carolina Coastal Reserve:

• Introduction
• Chapter 1: The North Carolina Coast
• Chapter 2: Sites of the Coastal Reserve
• Chapter 3: Habitats of the Estuarine Reserve
• Chapter 4: Flora and Fauna