Wells second graders
have a "whale of a time"
studying whales
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Ask any second grader at Wells Elementary and they can tell you
the length of a mature blue whale (they stepped it off on the sidewalk
out front), the killer whale's favorite snack food, and why whales
need their blubber to survive. They learned all this and more from
their studies, from library books and from hands on experience.
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Students gather in the reading center to read about whales and
ocean life.
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The general concensus: whales are really, really big!
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Meanwhile, in the art center, students get creative with their
illustrations.
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| Mrs. Fuller explains the "blubber" experiment to her students.
They're going to find out firsthand how a whale's layer of blubber protects
it from the cold water. |
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First, students put their hands in ziploc bags and then immerse
them in ice water.
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They discover quickly their hands couldn't stay in the cold water
very long.
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After this chilling experience, they record their observations
and move on to Ms. Musgrave's table, when they will continue the experiment.
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| There they put their hands in a bag filled with "blubber", made from
a mixture of ? and ?. After immersing their blubber-coated hands
in the icy water, they record their observations once again. |
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| Finally, they compare the two experiences to reach a conclusion.
In this lesson, students were able to use observation, analysis and synthesis
to determine how blubber protects whales and other mammals from the icy
waters in which they live. |
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Here's some fun websites about whales to visit:
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Hear a beluga whale
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Hear a killer whale
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K-3
Teachers Guide on Whales
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All
About Whales (info, printouts, fun activities)
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Gander Academy's
Whales Theme Page
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Whale
Pages to Color Online
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photos by
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