Abstract
This internship project, inspired by the marine debris that collects on the shore of Broad Key (the host site for the internship) and ten years as a public-school teacher and outdoor educator, is comprised of two learning resources. The two components are a lesson template and sample lesson plan that integrates interdisciplinary instruction, backward design, and citizen science. The target audience is middle school students focused on marine conservation education. The objective of the project is utilizing citizen science tools to incorporate backward lesson design that facilitates interdisciplinary instruction to maximize student understanding and application of real-world problem-solving and analysis. The project incorporates Debris Tracker, citizen science tool for documenting marine debris to marry multiple disciplines and facilitate a real-world centered application of learning objectives. The project resources were created to model practical yet comprehensive strategies that develop a conversation between lesson designer and educator in experimenting with teaching strategies, standards, and instructional tools---especially citizen science. The scope of the project did not include the effectiveness of these learning resources in terms of standardized learning gains on state tests. Future MPS projects could implement these teaching strategies and measure their efficacy