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Ocean Wave Classroom Activities

Ocean waves are the rising and falling movement, known as undulation, of the sea surface and can travel thousands of miles before making landfall. Waves on the ocean are usually caused by winds, and a general rule is that stronger winds result in bigger waves, but they can also be generated by activity above or below the surface of the sea. Your classroom can be an easy venue to better understand ocean waves and how they are made.

Wave Machine
- Making a wave machine in your classroom is the next best thing to studying the real thing, and you can control how big to build your wave machine and how your waves will break. To begin, your students will need a pan to make the tank and the longer the better, as you will be able to observe the formation and breaking of a wave longer in a bigger tank. Add about 2 inches of water to your tank, or more if you like, and sand that breaches the water line at one end of your tank. You can then begin by asking a student to generate waves by moving a piece of wood or plastic up and down in a tank; show her that she can cause variations in the wave size and shape by varying her speed and motions.
Identify Characteristics
- By conducting an in-depth study of the characteristics of ocean waves, which can vary greatly in terms of size and shape, you can master your students' understanding of them. All waves have a form, which can be described by height, length and frequency and are made by wind, gravitation and submarine activity. Waves are generated in the "fetch area," as friction causes the water's surface to ripple as wind passes over it, and the size of the ripples is affected by the wind's strength, the distance it blows and the length of each gust. Ocean waves can be identified by their separate parts: the crest, trough, wavelengths, wave heights and wave periods. The "crest" is the highest part of an ocean wave while the "trough" is the lowest point between two waves. "Wavelengths" are the horizontal distance between the crests or troughs of consecutive waves, "wave height" is the vertical distance between a wave's crest and the next wave's trough and the "wave period" is the measurement of a wave's size over time. The "collapse" of an ocean wave is considered its end, as its movement and energy is dispersed is it breaks onshore.
Beaufort Wind Force Scale
- Understanding the different classifications of the Beaufort Wind Force Scale is another activity that will help your class better understand oceanic waves and their characteristics. In 1805, Admiral Sir Francis Beaufort of Britain developed one of the first wind force scales to help estimate wind speeds using visual observations of the ocean's surface. Still employed to estimate wind strengths to this day, the scale ranges from 0 to 12 and describes seas with everything from a calm, glassy surface to hurricane conditions. Have your class match up the characteristics of ocean waves with the appropriate wind force level to master the Beaufort Wind Force Scale.

Nature