Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds is a classroom and community activity guide for teachers published in 2007 that addresses issues such as endangered species, marine debris, coastal geology, water use, and much more. The guide is available to California educators for free from the California Coastal Commission, or it can be downloaded as a PDF.

 

DOWNLOAD WAVES, WETLANDS, AND WATERSHEDS:

Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds is available in a printable PDF format. You may download the entire document, or download it by chapter. Hard copies are no longer available. Download Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds as a PDF.

 

STANDARDS ALIGNMENT:

Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds was designed to align with California's previous State Content Standards in science for grades 3 through 8, which are noted within each activity. The activities can also support student aquisition of the Next Generation Science Standards.

• Download a matrix of Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds connections to Common Core Standards for all grades.
• Download a matrix of Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds connections to Next Generation Science Standards for all grades.

 

SPANISH SUPPLEMENT:

Printable Spanish translations of the student handouts in Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds:
•   Spanish Language Student Handouts (1.7MB)

 

EXTENSIONS AND RESOURCES:

• View magnified images of sands from beaches throughout California and beyond in our Gallery of Sand.
• Take part in Coastal Cleanup Day or Adopt-A-Beach.
• Find other curricula and stand-alone lessons on our Educator Resources webpage.
• Check out our "Just for Fun" page for web-based activities, including a beach treasure hunt and links to California coastal webcams.
• Download Winged Ambassadors, Ocean Literacy Through the Eyes of Albatross focusing on albatross life history, satellite tracking, and impacts of plastic pollution. Lessons are aligned to standards for grades 5 - 8 with extensions for grades 9 - 12. Created by Oikonos-Ecosystem Knowledge in collaboration with NOAA's Cordell Bank National Marine Sanctuary and Papahanaumokuakea Marine National Monument.
• Share your comments about Waves, Wetlands, and Watersheds.

 

UPDATES:

• Chapter 7 Update - October 2025 (PDF)