Marine Mammal Meals Lesson Plan

Grade Level

6th-8th Grade

Objectives

Students will be able to use various mathematical operations to calculate the amounts and costs of food necessary to sustain a marine mammal colony in human care. Students will also be able to graph fluctuations in food requirements throughout the year.

Florida Sunshine State Standards:

Science SC.F.1.3.7 The student knows that behavior is a response to the environment and influences growth, development, maintenance, and reproduction.
Placing a Fish Order Handout
Mathematics MA.A.3.3.1 The student understands and explains the effects of addition, subtraction, multiplication, and division on whole numbers, fractions, including mixed numbers, and decimals, including the inverse relationships of positive and negative numbers.
Determining Dolphin Diets Handout
Mathematics MA.D.2.3.1 The student represents and solves real-world problems graphically, with algebraic expressions, equations, and inequalities.
Graphing Sea Lion Diets Handout
Mathematics MA.E.1.3.1 The student collects, organizes, and displays data in a variety of forms, including tables, line graphs, charts, bar graphs, to determine how different ways of presenting data can lead to different interpretations.

National Standards:

Content Standard A (5-8) – Abilities Necessary to do Scientific Inquiry: Use
mathematics in all aspects of scientific inquiry.
Content Standard C (5-8) – Regulation and Behavior: All organisms must be able to obtain and use resources, grow, reproduce, and maintain stable internal conditions while living in a constantly changing external environment.