Florida Sea Grant Extension--Manatee Program
Grades 2-3
Objective:
Students will learn about manatees and their biology.
Projected outcomes:
Students will:
 be able to describe the components and conditions needed for a manatee's survival in its
natural habitat.
 be able to describe threats to manatees.
 know that manatees are mammals, and be able to explain what makes mammals different
from other animals
Pre-visit activities:
Have the class create a KWL chart (3 columns: what we know, what we want to know, what we
have learned) about manatees.
Review vocabulary (below).
adaptation
behavioral or physical feature that makes an animal suited for its environment
camouflage
coloration that blends in with the surrounding environment
endangered
in danger of becoming extinct
environment
the air, food, water, and surroundings used by an animal
extinct
no longer living anywhere in the world
habitat
the place where an animal lives
herbivore
a plant-eating animal
mammal
a warm-blooded animal with a backbone; its young drink milk
manatee
a large mammal that lives in warm waters and has flippers and a wide tail
marine animal an animal that lives in the sea
migrate
to move from one region to another
pollution
harmful things that change an environment
warm-blooded an animal whose body temperature stays about the same all the time
For online games using these vocabulary terms, see
http://www.quia.com/custom/18651main.html
Classroom visit (approx 45 minutes):
1. Read story-“The Great Manatee Rescue.”
a. Ask students to write down one word or phrase for each of the following:
i. A manatee’s habitat
ii. Something dangerous to manatees
iii. Something that manatees need to be healthy
b. Collect students’ responses on the board or on a flip chart. Discuss the meaning
of difficult words; explain if any of the answers are incorrect. Provide other
responses if necessary.
i. Water, ocean, river, canal, Florida (if this answer is given, try and get a
more specific answer—i.e. they don’t live on land), fresh water, salt water
ii. Humans, boats, trash, crab traps, fishing line, canal locks, floodgates
(possibly also large sharks, large alligators—these are unlikely predators
on manatees although alligators might attack an orphaned calf. Manatees
generally swim too close to shore to be bothered by large sharks)
iii. Clean water (habitat), air, plants (food & water), safe places to swim (no
wake zones), warm water
c. Explain that manatees need warm water—if the water temperature gets too cold
(below about 68 °F), manatees can go into cold shock and can die if they are not
rescued. This is why manatees go to the springs in the winter months.
2. Ask students if they know how tall they are. (If nobody knows their height, either use
one of the adults’ heights, or measure a student). Given the height of someone in the
room, ask students to estimate the length of the adult manatee cutout. Record guesses on
the board or on a flip chart. Have students help measure the length of the adult and calf
cutouts. Measure each more than once. How close were the estimates to the actual
lengths?
3. Ask students what type of animals manatees are (mammals). What are characteristics of
mammals? (breathe air, give birth to live young who drink milk produced by the mother,
have hair, warm-blooded). Do all of these characteristics fit manatees? Explain that
manatees don’t actually have furry coats, but that they do have sparse hairs all over their
bodies. Manatees are most closely related to elephants. Show picture of elephant—ask
students to find similarities and differences between manatees and elephants.
4. Take students’ questions for remaining time.
Maia McGuire
Florida Sea Grant Extension Agent
150 Sawgrass Road, Bunnell, FL 32110
386-437-7464
[email protected]
Florida Sea Grant Extension--Manatee Program
Grades 2-3
Objective:
Students will learn about manatees and their biology.
Projected outcomes:
Students will:
 be able to describe the components and conditions needed for a manatee's survival in its
natural habitat.
 be able to describe threats to manatees.
 know that manatees are mammals, and be able to explain what makes mammals different
from other animals
Post-visit activities:
1. Manatee coloring and activity book (FWC/Save the Manatee Club).
2. Sirenian Speech (Sea World-vocabulary)
3. Splash of Math activity (Sea World-math)
4. Aiming for Action (Sea World-game teaching how people can help endangered wildlife and
habitats)
5. Manatee Spring Diorama (Volusia Co-art activity)
Standards addressed:
SC.2.L.17.1
Compare and contrast the basic needs that all living things, including humans,
have for survival.
SC.2.L.17.2
Recognize and explain that living things are found all over Earth, but each is
only able to live in habitats that meet its basic needs.
MA.2.G.3.1
Estimate and use standard units, including inches and centimeters, to partition
and measure lengths of objects.
SC.3.L.15.1
Classify animals into major groups (mammals, birds, reptiles, amphibians, fish,
arthropods, vertebrates and invertebrates, those having live births and those
which lay eggs) according to their physical characteristics and behaviors.
SC.3.L.17.1
Describe how animals and plants respond to changing seasons.
LA.2.2.2.2
The student will use explicitly stated information to answer a question;
LA.2.4.2.2
The student will record information (e.g., observations, notes, lists, charts, map
LA.3.4.2.2
labels, legends) related to a topic
MA.3.A.1.2
Solve multiplication and division fact problems by using strategies that result
from applying number properties.
Manatee Program—Student worksheet
1. Write down one word or phrase for each of the following:
a. A manatee’s HABITAT: _____________________________________________
b. Something dangerous to manatees: _____________________________________
c. Something manatees need to be healthy: _________________________________
2. What is something important that people should remember about manatees? (You can
work in groups to come up with ideas)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Manatee Program—Student worksheet
1. Write down one word or phrase for each of the following:
a. A manatee’s HABITAT: _____________________________________________
b. Something dangerous to manatees: _____________________________________
c. Something manatees need to be healthy: _________________________________
2. What is something important that people should remember about manatees? (You can
work in groups to come up with ideas)
______________________________________________________________________________
______________________________________________________________________________
Manatee/Florida Spring Diorama
Grade Level: 2-3
Subject Area: Science, Art
Duration: Teach: 15 minutes, Research: 2 hours, Activity: take home project,
Presentation: 5 minutes, Classroom Wrap-up Discussion: 10 minutes
Setting: Classroom or Home
Sunshine State Standards: see Appendix A
FCAT Prompt: What needs to be in a habitat for a manatee to live there?
Objectives: To showcase knowledge on manatees and Florida spring environments.
Students will demonstrate an understanding of what a manatee needs in a spring habitat,
including proper food, shelter, space, and water temperature. Students will also learn that
a diorama is a 3D recreation of organisms in their habitat.
Materials: Construction paper, glue, shoeboxes, scissors, old magazines, markers, old
wrapping paper, moss, string, blue cellophane, sand, green yarn or string, other craft
materials useful in recreating a spring habitat.
Vocabulary: adaptation, carnivore, community, conservation, consumer, decomposer,
density, ecosystem, endangered species, energy, energy pyramid, environment, food
chain, habitat, heat, herbivore, life cycle, light, liquid, organism, photosynthesis,
pollution, population, predator, prey, producer, water cycle
Background/Preparation: See Volusia County’s manatee website
(http://www.volusiamanatees.org) and
http://www.floridagovernorsmansion.com/lesson/manatee_teaching_plan.pdf for basic
background information and resource lists.
These will help you to be sure your students understand the needs of all animals to
survive in their respective invironments.
Suggestions on Ocean/ Sea Life Diorama Construction:
http://www.mckinneyisd.net/campuses/school_websites/walker/Library/Project_ideas.ht
m
http://www.enchantedlearning.com/crafts/Oceandiorama.shtml
http://www.wasd.k12.pa.us/schools/hooverville/WebSites/Grade%201/Ocean%20Webqu
est/Deb_Stine_Ocean_WQ/student/student_page.htm
http://www.scholastic.com/schoolage/activities/k_2/deepsea.htm
Teach/Activities: Students can work in pairs to construct a diorama in a shoebox, or
construct the diorama as a take home project. Students should highlight plant and animal
species present in a spring environment, and examples of factors that effect survival in the
environment (energy source, food source, pollution, human interaction). Students will then
give a 5-minute oral presentation explaining their diorama.
Assess: - Use a rubric to evaluate the diorama presentation. Students must include at least
one of each:
Food supply –a native plant (such as water lettuce or alligator weed) and a non-native
plant (such as hydrilla or water hyacinth)
Animals sharing the environment with the manatee –a native animal (such as an otter or
an alligator), and a non-native animal (such as tilapia or armored catfish).
Extension: Show a video on manatees in their habitats:
FWC-“The State of Manatees”
http://www.savethemanatee.org/video.htm
http://www.crystalriverflorida.com/downloads/manatee/
http://www3.nationalgeographic.com/animals/video/manatee_detection.html
Visit www.volusia.org/environmental for more information.
Example Pictures (to use as cut-outs)
Examples of Native Plants
Water lettuce
Alligator weed
Examples of Non- Native Plants
Hydrilla
Water hyacinth
Examples of Native Animals
American Alligator
Florida manatee
Examples of Non-native Animals
Armored catfish
Walking catfish
Spotted tilapia
Created by Alexa Bracht, and Kathy Wood. Adapted by Georgia Zern.
Vocabulary
adaptation: A characteristic of an organism that increases its chance of survival in its
environment
carnivore: An animal or plant that consumes or obtains nutrients from animals
community: All the populations of organisms belonging to different species and sharing the
same geographical area
conservation: Controlled use and/or maintenance of natural resources; various efforts to preserve
or protect natural resources
consumer: An organism that feeds on other organisms for food
decomposer: Any organism that feeds or obtains nutrients by breaking down organic matter from
dead organisms
density: Concentration of matter of an object; number of individuals in the same species that live
in a given area; the mass per unit volume of a substance in a given area
ecosystem: An integrated unit of a biological community, its physical environment, and
interactions
endangered species: A species of plant or animal of which numbers are decreasing at an
alarming rate and is threatened with extinction by human-made or natural changes in the
environment.
energy: A quantity that describes the capacity to do work; a source of usable power
energy pyramid: A pyramidal diagram that compares the amount of energy available at each
position, or level, in the feeding order
environment: The sum of conditions affecting an organism, including all living and nonliving
things in an area, such as plants, animals, water, soil, weather, landforms, and air
food chain: Transfer of energy through various stages as a result of feeding patterns of a series of
organisms
habitat: A place in an ecosystem where an organism normally lives
heat: A form of energy resulting from the temperature difference between a system and its
surroundings
herbivore: An animal that feeds on plants
life cycle: The entire sequence of events in an organism’s growth and development
light: Electromagnetic radiation that lies within the visible range
liquid: One of the fundamental states of matter with a definite volume but no definite shape
organism: Any living plant, animal, or fungus that maintains various vital processes necessary
for life
photosynthesis: A chemical process by which plants trap light energy to convert carbon dioxide
and water into carbohydrates (sugars)
pollution: Any alteration of the natural environment producing a condition harmful to living
organisms; may occur naturally or as a result of human activities
population: A group of organisms of the same species living in a specific geographical area
predator: An organism that preys on and consumes animals; usually an animal
prey: An organism caught or hunted for food by another organism
producer: An organism that makes its own food from the environment; usually a green plant
water cycle: The path water takes as it is being cycled through the environment, including
condensation, evaporation, and precipitation
Appendix A
SC.A.1.1.1 - Know that objects can be described, classified, and compared by their
composition (e.g., wood or metal) and their physical properties (e.g., color, size, and
shape).
SC.B.1.1.1 - Know that the Sun supplies heat and light energy to Earth.
SC.B.1.1.2 - Know that light can pass through some objects and not others.
SC.B.1.1.3 - Describe a model energy system (e.g., an aquarium or terrarium).
SC.B.1.2.1 - Know how to trace the flow of energy in a system (e.g., as in an ecosystem).
SC.B.2.1.1 - Recognize systems of matter and energy.
SC.B.2.2.1 - Know that some source of energy is needed for organisms to stay alive and
grow
SC.B.2.2.2 - Recognize the costs and risks to society and the environment posed by the
use of nonrenewable energy.
SC.D.1.2.3 - Know that the water cycle is influenced by temperature, pressure, and the
topography of the land.
SC.D.1.3.3 - Know how conditions that exist in one system influence the conditions that
exist in other systems
SC.D.1.3.4 - Know the ways in which plants and animals reshape the landscape (e.g.,
bacteria, fungi, worms, rodents, and other organisms add organic matter to the soil,
increasing soil fertility, encouraging plant growth, and strengthening resistance to
erosion).
SC.D.1.4.4 - Know that Earth's systems and organisms are the result of a long,
continuous change over time.
SC.D.2.2.1 - Know that reusing, recycling, and reducing the use of natural resources
improve and protect the quality of life.
VA.A.1.1.1 - Use two-dimensional and three-dimensional media, techniques, tools, and
processes to depict works of art from personal experiences, observation, or imagination.
VA.A.1.1.2 - Use art materials and tools to develop basic processes and motor skills, in a
safe and responsible manner.
VA.A.1.1.3 - Distinguish the differences within and among art materials, techniques,
processes, and organizational structures, such as elements and principles of design.
VA.A.1.1.4 - Use good craftsmanship when producing works of art.
VA.A.1.2.1 - Use and organize two-dimensional and three-dimensional media,
techniques, tools, and processes to produce works of art that are derived from personal
experience, observation, or imagination.
VA.A.1.2.3 - Know the effects and functions of using various organizational elements
and principles of design when creating works of art.
VA.A.1.2.4 - Use good craftsmanship in a variety of two-dimensional and threedimensional media.
VA.B.1.1.3 - Know a variety of purposes for creating works of art.
VA.B.1.2.1 - Understand that subject matter used to create unique works of art can come
from personal experience, observation, imagination, and themes.
VA.B.1.1.4 - Know how the elements of art and the principles of design can be used and
solve specific visual-art problems at a proficient level.