Elephant seals on the beach
http://www.nationalgeographic.com/xpeditions/lessons/09/gk2/migrationseals.html
A lesson plan for grades K–2 Science
In this Xpeditions lesson, students will consider the fact that northern elephant seals, like many animals, select very different locations for different activities. Adult seals spend most of their time swimming around the northeastern Pacific and feeding in deep waters, but they come to shore twice a year to breed, give birth, and molt. Since it’s much easier to observe and record elephant seals on the beach than in the ocean, students will concentrate on some of these beach activities by viewing photographs and videos of elephant seals. They will draw pictures pretending they have visited one of the rookery beaches.
North Carolina Curriculum Alignment
Science (2005)
Grade 1
- Goal 1: The learner will conduct investigations and make observations to build an understanding of the needs of living organisms.
- Objective 1.02: Investigate the needs of a variety of different animals:
- Air.
- Water.
- Food.
- Shelter.
- Space.
- Objective 1.02: Investigate the needs of a variety of different animals:
Grade 2
- Goal 1: The learner will conduct investigations and build an understanding of animal life cycles.
- Objective 1.01: Describe the life cycle of animals including:
- Birth.
- Developing into an adult.
- Reproducing.
- Aging and death.
- Objective 1.01: Describe the life cycle of animals including:
Kindergarten
- Goal 1: The learner will make observations and build an understanding of similarities and differences in animals.
- Objective 1.02: Observe how animals interact with their surroundings.
- Objective 1.03: Observe the behaviors of several common animals.
