Purpose
The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation (the Foundation) in collaboration with
NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries (ONMS), funded by National Geographic
Society, is recruiting for a curriculum developer to create seven educational lesson plans
that focus on the seven Ocean Literacy Principles using national marine sanctuaries as the
backdrop and incorporating Climate Literacy where appropriate.
National Geographic Society, ONMS and the Foundation all have similar commitments to
equity and diversity for all students. This joint commitment will be emphasized
throughout the entire process including during the creation of materials, the voices and
perspectives used in the materials and during distribution and training to ensure these
products meet the needs of a wide range of communities, especially those historically
underserved.
The materials will enable educators to easily use the lesson that meets their curriculum
requirements and inspires ocean and climate literacy. All parties will assess appropriate
distribution methods for the materials as they see fit such as through websites, social
media, web stories or including them in conference materials.
Overview
The Need
Products designed as part of this partnership will align with National Geographic strategic
priorities on ocean education, and National Marine Sanctuary Foundation and ONMS
ocean and climate literacy, and education strategies.
In detail, the seven lessons will:
1. Be created around the seven Ocean Literacy principles with one lesson (each
lesson should take 2-4 classroom sessions to complete) focusing on each principle
and incorporating Climate Literacy as appropriate.
2. Use national marine sanctuaries as the “location” of the lessons to showcase the
breadth of diversity, exploration, and cultural assets found within sanctuary
boundaries. When possible, the use of, or linking to, NGS resources, including
Explorers, courses, videos, and inquiry-based learning using the NGS Geo-Inquiry
process, if applicable will be included. ONMS or NOAA resources will also be
included as appropriate.
3. Contain info on marine protected areas (MPAs) including what they are, benefits,
examples of various ways they are managed including multi-use and occasionally
no-take areas. Community examples may feature NGS Explorer-led projects which
occur in national marine sanctuaries as identified by National Geographic staff.
4. Resources may include examples of all national marine sanctuaries, with a focus on
examples from California and Hawai’i when possible. Targeted dissemination will
occur throughout these states, in particular.
5. Use accepted best practices for science education, such as Next Generation
Science Standards, Common Core Standards, and other standards as appropriate.
6. Lessons and activities will use the ONMS lesson plan template and will indicate
“supported by National Geographic Society” and include Foundation branding
elements. Remain publicly accessible on ONMS websites at completion and have
the option to be located on the Foundation and National Geographic websites, if
they so choose.
7. Each of the seven lessons will contain enough instructional material that it will take
2-4 classroom sessions (approximately 45 minutes each) to complete the lesson.
These subparts should have clear expectations of what can be completed in each
45 minute segment.
8. Be available for free in the public domain.
9. Be Section 508 compliant by using best practices for accessibility, so the products
are widely available and able to be hosted on the ONMS website.
10. Be translated into Spanish.
11. Be reviewed for content, messaging, and educational practices if desired by all
parties before finalizing for publication.
Funding Availability and Matching
The funding available is up to $46,625 for the curriculum development and
workshops/webinar work.
However, an additional $6,375 is available if the curriculum designer can also
provide Spanish translations and copy-editing/formatting services. This would
entail providing copy editing services and format English and Spanish-language
lessons into standard format for lessons/activities.
Eligibility
Organizations and individuals are both eligible to apply. However, proposals should
demonstrate similar types of past curriculum development and outreach efforts.
Previous work that emphasizes ocean-related science and/or ocean literacy is
recommended.
How to Apply
Submit the full proposal package using the Foundation’s Proposal Template (Proposal
Template link) by November 2, 2022 to [email protected]. Please title
the subject line “Curriculum Developer”. Determinations will be made by
December 5, 2022 and applicants notified shortly thereafter.
Any questions should be submitted to rfp@marinesanctuary.org.
Period of Performance
This project is slated to start in early January 2023. Ideally, the curriculum
development phase (outlined in task one) will concur during the Spring 2023 school
semester. The educational materials distribution and promotion phase (outlined in
task two) will concur during the Fall 2023 semester.
Scope of Work
Desired Tasks
Task 1: Develop the education materials design
The curriculum developer in collaboration with National Marine Sanctuary Foundation
and ONMS will:
1. Create lessons/activities for middle school students that align with the Next
Generation Science Standards, Ocean Literacy Principles, Climate Literacy
Principles, and other standards mentioned in Section 2.b below. Lessons should
include information on conservation and stewardship of our ocean and Great
Lakes, and climate solutions and actions as appropriate.
2. The final lesson plan format will use the ONMS lesson plan template and make
reference to National Geographic contributions by including “Supported by
National Geographic Society.” The review process for the lessons will follow the
steps laid out below in the “Lesson Review Process” section.
3. All lessons should include messaging on the overall connectivity of the National
Marine Sanctuary System and priorities from National Geographic.
a. Lessons will align with National Geographic Priorities such as:
When possible the use of, or linking to, NGS resources, including
Explorers, courses, videos, and inquiry based learning using the NGS
Geo-Inquiry process, if applicable will be included. ONMS or NOAA
resources will also be included as appropriate.
i. Contain info on MPAs including what they are, benefits, examples of
various ways they are managed including multi-use and occasionally
no-take areas. Community examples may feature NGS Explorer-led
projects which occur in sanctuaries as identified by National
Geographic staff.
ii. Resources may include examples of all national marine sanctuaries,
with a focus on examples from California and Hawai’i when sites in
those states can serve as a case study example of the lesson. Targeted
dissemination will occur throughout these states, in particular.
b. Lessons will align with ONMS priorities such as:
i. Enhance public awareness and appreciation of national marine
sanctuaries.
ii. Discuss sanctuaries as a system of underwater parks that are
protected places.
iii. Teach that national marine sanctuaries help protect the ocean and
Great Lakes.
iv. Relay that national marine sanctuaries are designated for their
conservation, recreational, ecological, historical, scientific, cultural,
archaeological, educational, and aesthetic qualities.
v. Share that national marine sanctuaries protect a vast diversity of
ecosystems, habitats, wildlife, and cultural and historic resources.
vi. Make connections that sanctuaries are part of a larger global
network of marine protected areas.
c. Each of the seven lessons will focus on one of the following Ocean Literacy
Principles and Fundamental Concepts, as listed below :
1. Ocean Literacy Principle #1:The Earth has one big ocean with
many features.
2. Ocean Literacy Principle #2:The ocean and life in the ocean
shape the features of Earth.
3. Ocean Literacy Principle #3:The ocean is a major influence on
weather and climate.
4. Ocean Literacy Principle #4:The ocean made the Earth habitable.
5. Ocean Literacy Principle #5:The ocean supports a great diversity
of life and ecosystems.
6. Ocean Literacy Principle #6:The ocean and humans are
inextricably interconnected.
7. Ocean Literacy Principle #7:The ocean is largely unexplored.
All lessons need to refer back to the scope and sequence for Middle School
aged lessons found on the Ocean Literacy Principles webpage.
d. As appropriate the lessons will also consider the most connected climate
literacy principles including these concepts which can be found at
https://www.climate.gov/teaching/climate and sanctuary specific climate
talking points and case studies which will be provided by ONMS.
Climate principles that may be considered include:
1) Climate Literacy Principle #2: Climate is regulated by complex
interactions among components of the Earth system including
fundamental concept 2b.
2) Climate Literacy Principle #3: Life on Earth depends on, is shaped by,
and affects climate including fundamental concept 3a.
3) Climate Literacy Principle #6: Human activities are impacting the
climate system. including fundamental concept 6d.
4) Climate Literacy Principle #7: Climate change will have
consequences for the Earth system and human lives including
fundamental concepts 7a, and 7d.
e. Lessons should include best practices in lesson plan development, including
addressing different learning styles, meeting the needs of students of all
backgrounds, including assessment strategies, etc.
f. Once materials are finalized, all content will be copy-edited and formatted.
Use of a copy-editing service is permitted and will be managed by the
curriculum developer and can be a billable charge to the budget.
g. Once finalized, all lessons will be translated into Spanish. Use of a
translation service or company is allowed and will be managed by the
curriculum developer. The curriculum developer will be responsible for
formatting the Spanish version or using a copy-editing/formatting service.
The curriculum developer will create a plan to promote and distribute the seven lessons in
both English and Spanish. This plan should include:
1. Leading at least two virtual teacher trainings on the materials for at least one
hour each with an emphasis on California and Hawaii audiences, if possible. The
developer should plan to promote the training, especially to schools who serve
underserved communities, and the developer will oversee all aspects of
conducting the webinar including an evaluation of the training.
2. Additionally conduct an one hour webinar on the ONMS Distance Learning
Webinar Series.
3. Promotion of the materials through educational listservs, such as the National
Marine Educators Association listserv, Scuttlebutt, and other educational
channels.
4. The creation of media such as web articles and social media posts that could be
used by National Geographic, ONMS, and the Foundation to promote the
partnership and materials as identified as necessary by all three parties.
5. There will be a concerted effort for the curriculum developer to reach schools
who serve underserved communities in their distribution.
Lesson Review Process
To ensure all parties review the materials and the lessons meet the organizations’ criteria,
the following steps will be taken for review:
1. The curriculum developer will share the first draft of all materials in Microsoft
Word or Google Docs format with ONMS staff and National Geographic staff for
educational content review, if desired.
2. Once ONMS and National Geographic staff review and provide comments and
suggested edits, they will send the materials back to the curriculum developer to
incorporate educational content edits.
3. Once the educational content edits are incorporated, the curriculum developer will
oversee copy-edits and formatting of the documents through either (1) a copy
editing/formatting service or (2) internal Foundation staff. Note both method 1 and
2 of copy-editing and formatting is a billable charge against this budget.
4. When copy edits are complete, the lesson plan drafts will be shared with ONMS,
Foundation, and National Geographic staff for the option of a final review, with
mutually agreeable review times for all parties.
5. Once all parties sign off on the lesson plans, the curriculum developer will format
the final versions to ensure accessibility to be compliant with Section 508
standards and ONMS standards.
6. ONMS will review final accessible versions to ensure all the materials meet
accessibility standards and work with the curriculum developer to correct any
issues.
Project Deliverables
All parties will receive:
1. Section 508 compliant lessons in the ONMS Microsoft Word lesson plan template
of the seven education materials in English and Spanish, which focus on each of the
seven Ocean Literacy principles and Climate Literacy principles as appropriate, and
use national marine sanctuaries as the backdrop of the lessons to all parties.
2. 508 compliant PDF files of the seven education materials in English and Spanish.
3. 508 compliant design templates for any physical resources required in lesson
activities (i.e., activity cards, art materials, student worksheets) in English and
Spanish.
4. PowerPoint/Google slides to be used for teacher training in the future.
5. Write a web story in ONMS writing style.
All deliverables must be written in AP style and follow additional ONMS writing
guidelines. ONMS writing guidelines will be provided.
Adoption Plan
Both National Geographic, ONMS and the Foundation have the option to host the
education materials on their respective websites, although those sites may be launched on
varying schedules. All three partners have the ability to broadcast the resource to their
national network of educators and other partners; showcase the materials on the web,
social media, and through other educational outlets such as listservs or conferences,
providing reference to all parties involved in the creation of the materials.
All parties will do due diligence to keep the other parties updated on the reach of these
materials and any major use of them beyond their website and social media
distribution.
Review Process
Evaluation Criteria
All proposals will be graded against the following criteria:
● Demonstrating past experience in writing curriculum, especially curriculum
related to marine science, ocean literacy, and/or ocean connection
o Worth a maximum of 50 points out of 100 points.
● Having a realistic and competitive budget
o Worth a maximum of 20 points out of 100 points
● Demonstrating past experience in networking and leading teacher workshops
or Training of Trainer workshops
o Worth a maximum of 20 points out of 100 points
● The ability to conduct translation work for the curriculum (from English to
Spanish)
o Worth a maximum of 10 points out of 100 points.
Application Logistics
Useful Resources
● The link to the proposal template can be found here: Link to template
● NOAA’s Website on National Marine Sanctuaries: https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/
● NOAA’s Website on National Marine Sanctuaries education:
https://sanctuaries.noaa.gov/education/
● Ocean Literacy Principles: Ocean Literacy Principles and Fundamental Concepts
● Climate Literacy Principles: https://www.climate.gov/teaching/climate
● The National Marine Sanctuary Foundation website: https://marinesanctuary.org/
