Sea Life: In the Water and on the Beach

The National Aquarium in Baltimore
Pier 3, 501 E. Pratt Street
Baltimore, MD 21202-3194
(410) 576-3800
(410) 576-3833 (School Group Reservations)

Instructional Unit:
Sea Life: In the Water and on the Beach
What animals, plants, and other things do you find on the beach and in the water?

Curriculum Unit:
Grade 1
Science, General

Objectives:
1. Students will reflect on their experiences at the beach, bringing their own experiences to the unit of study.
2. Students will name, classify, and learn about fish, shells, and other things at the beach and in the water. (These activities will review the alphabet, letter sounds, colors, shapes, and numbers. They will also introduce classifying objects and beginning reading skills.)
3. Students will discover what makes up the underwater sea environment and create their own classroom aquarium with this information.
4. Students will compare sizes, colors, and shapes of fish. (These activities will review colors and shapes for first graders and introduce the math concept of greater than and less than measuring.)
5. Through writing, drama, and art, students will pretend they are fish and tell a story about their lives. (These activities will attempt to use Gardner's multiple intelligences to reach all students and involve them in reading readiness skills.)

Pre-Visit Activities:
1. Visit The National Aquarium in Baltimore and tour facility.
Note: the Aquarium has Teacher Orientation days where they give a 45-minute presentation to teachers and then allow you to tour the Aquarium at no charge. This is a good idea to familiarize yourself with the museum for your class visit and avoid paying admission out of pocket in doing so.
2. While at the Aquarium, stop by the Education Department and obtain a School Program Schedule and Teacher-Led Visit Pack or call 410-576-3859 and ask for one to be mailed. Obtain enough maps of aquarium for chaperones.
3. Prepare students for their visit to the Aquarium by reviewing what they know about fish and sea life, gathering materials on the subject and immersing them in the world of the sea and beach.
4. Gather books from your local and school libraries on fish, underwater worlds, coral reefs, shells, the beach, etc... You may want to give your students a homework assignment of finding some information with their parents to add to the class collection. Ranger Rick and National Geographic magazines are good sources for photos of sea life. You may also consider ordering books for class use from the Aquarium.
5. Specific class activities:

a. Brainstorm to learn what children know.
b. Create color and shape cards with children.
c. Read book, Swimmy by Leo Lionni.
d. Read The Twelve Days of Summer by Elizabeth O'Donnell.
e. Create alphabet cards after reading Under the Sea From A to Z by Anne Doubilet.
f. Play alphabet, shape and number "Go Fish" games.
g. Create a discovery table of beach and sea things
h. Learning center activities for the classroom: musical intelligence, bodily-kinesthetic intelligence , spatial intelligence, linguistic intelligence, logical/mathematical intelligence, intra and inter personal intelligence.

6. Prepare students for Aquarium trip: Discuss with the students what they have learned thus far about sea life. Ask what they expect to see at the Aquarium and discuss what they will see and what you want them to do while there.

On-Site Activities:
1. Students should be divided into groups of 4-5 with an assigned chaperone prior to arrival. Give chaperones a map of the aquarium and discuss activities with them. They will lead students through and help them with activities. Be sure they know the bus number and time to meet back at the buses. You should take photos of all tanks for classroom use.
2. Give each child activity sheets and pencil. You may want to give each group one set of activity sheets to be done together. Remind them they are to do activities as they go through aquarium. They can ask chaperone or an Aquarium worker for help.
3. Activities in the Museum:

a. Aquarium Bingo: Children mark off each animal on sheet when they see them.
b. Color and Shape Search: Children draw things they find with colors and shapes on the paper.
c. Alphabet Fish: Children find as many fish or creatures as they can with each letter.

6. Be sure all groups have a chance to visit gift shop. There are many inexpensive small animals and books at the shop.
7. When students return to school, as time permits, you may want them to write about their favorite tank and draw a picture of it.

Follow-Up Activities:
1. Discuss worksheets done at Aquarium together.
2. Discuss children's favorite tanks and what was in them.
3. Discuss with the class why whales were not in any of the tanks.
4. Have children choose their favorite fish from the aquarium, describe why they want to be that fish and what they think that fish's life is like.
5. Use photographs of the tanks to have children pretend they are the fish in the tank. Allow students to dramatize the conversation between two fish. Some students may want to write or draw the conversation.
6. Use one of the photos to discuss with students the different parts of a fish.
7. Write the word "fish" on the board. Discuss the sound the "i" makes in the word and have the children write other words with that same sounding "i".
8. Have children color in pictures of their favorite fish.
9. Tell children to pretend they were a mermaid and describe their life.
10. Ask children to imagine they are underwater explorers who have just discovered a new type of fish or sea creature. Have them draw a picture of their creature.
11. Play aquarium flash cards with the children.
12. Have a fish or beach day where children come dressed as their favorite sea creature or dressed for the beach.
13. Make edible jello-fish or do math exercises with goldfish crackers.

Appendices:
None

Bibliography:
See previously mentioned references.

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