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Third Grade Manatee Curriculum—Lesson 1: Starting to Learn about Manatees

Heather Maness, Ruth Francis-Floyd, and Maia McGuire

For other lessons in the Third Grade Manatee Curriculum series, click https://edis.ifas.ufl.edu/topic_series_third_grade_manatee_workbook

Description

Students will raise questions about manatees and discuss what they already know. Students will start to learn about manatee biology.

Objective

By the end of the activity, students will be able to list at least three characteristics of manatees.

Standards Addressed

Florida – ELA.3.V.1.3

Common Core—CCSS.ELA-Literacy.RI.3.4

You Will Need

  • Posterboard or electronic way to prepare a KWL chart that can be referenced later in the school year. (KWL = know, want, learn [i.e., what I know, what I want to know, and what I learned])

  • Single copy or class set of Sam the Sea Cow (ISBN-10: 0802773737; ISBN-13: 978-0802773739)

  • A copy of Sam the Sea Cow worksheet for each student

Strategy

  1. Create a KWL chart. Have students suggest items to fill in under K and W (L will be completed in lesson 14). Post this chart in the classroom to refer to during future manatee lessons.

  2. Either have students read Sam the Sea Cow individually, or read it to the class as a group.

  3. Have students complete the Sam the Sea Cow worksheet.

Sam the Sea Cow

Worksheet

  1. Sam is a sea cow. Another word for sea cow is M__ __ __ __ __ __.

  2. Even though Sam lives in the water what does he need to breathe? ________________ (Hint: What do you need to breathe?)

  3. What do we call a baby manatee? ___________________

  4. When Sam was a tiny baby, what did his mother feed him? ______________________

  5. Sam's tail is called his P __ DD __ __.

  6. Sam's arms are called FL __ PP __ __ S.

  7. Sam lived at the Seaquarium for a year. He was then let go in a river. Many manatees go to this river in the winter. What is the name of the river? __________________________________________________

Answer Key

  1. Sam is a sea cow. Another word for sea cow is MANATEE.

  2. Even though Sam lives in the water what does he need to breathe? AIR (Hint: What do you need to breathe?)

  3. What do we call a baby manatee? CALF

  4. When Sam was a tiny baby, what did his mother feed him? MILK

  5. Sam's tail is called his PADDLE.

  6. Sam's arms are called FLIPPERS.

  7. Sam lived at the Seaquarium for a year. He was then let go in a river. Many manatees go to this river in the winter. What is the name of the river? CRYSTAL RIVER