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Overview:
In this lesson, students will learn some interesting facts about different kinds of sharks and discuss the reasons why people are both afraid of and interested in sharks. They will consider sharks' importance in nature and create brochures to educate beach visitors about sharks.
Connections to the Curriculum:
Geography, life sciences
Connections to the National Geography Standards:
Standard 14: "How human actions modify the physical environment"
Standard 15: "How physical systems affect human systems"
Standard 18: "How to apply geography to interpret the present and plan for the future"
Time:
Two to three hours
Materials Required:
- Computer with Internet access
- Construction paper
- Drawing materials
Objectives:
Students will
- view and discuss pictures of different kinds of sharks and how they interact with humans;
- read and discuss facts and myths about sharks;
- take a quiz and discuss what they have learned; and
- create brochures to educate beach tourists about sharks.
Geographic Skills:
Acquiring Geographic Information
Organizing Geographic Information
Answering Geographic Questions
Analyzing Geographic Information
S u g g e s t e d P r o c e d u r e
Opening:
Ask students to draw a picture of a shark. Then have them look at these pictures of different kinds of sharks:
Did their pictures look like any of these photographs? Did they know sharks could look so different from each other? Ask students what they already know about sharks. Where do sharks live? What types of things do they eat? Explain that some of the scariest looking sharks, like the basking shark above, are mainly plant eaters. Why do students think so many people are afraid of sharks?
Development:
Have students look at this picture of marine biologist Eugenie Clark swimming with a bull shark, one of the shark species that poses the biggest risk for swimmers and surfers. How can she swim alongside an animal that has the potential to attack humans? Why do people sometimes view sharks as fearsome people-eaters and other times as peaceful fish suitable for beautiful photographs? Discuss students' ideas about these questions.
Explain that, rather than fearing sharks, many people find them very interesting. Scientists are studying them to learn more about their eating habits, behavior, and interactions with other marine animals. To conduct their research, these scientists will often swim right alongside the sharks or place cameras onto the sharks' bodies. (Students can see a picture of scientists placing a camera onto a shark's body at the Crittercam Chronicles.)
Read to the class (or have them read) some or all of the shark myths. How many of these facts surprised students? Does this change their impression of sharks?
Have students take the Shark Surfari Quiz. Ideally, do this as a class, projecting the quiz onto a screen that everyone can see. Explain that this quiz will introduce them to some of the things scientists have learned about sharks.
Ask students to list the things they learned from the quiz. What facts most surprised them?
Closing:
Discuss what students have learned about sharks from these activities. In particular, have them answer these questions:
- Are all sharks the same? [Students should know that there are many species of sharks, of many different sizes; most are not dangerous to people.]
- Do sharks like to eat people? [Students should understand that most sharks prefer to eat fish; some prefer marine mammals such as seals, but sometimes mistake people for seals.]
- Why are sharks important? [Students should realize that sharks live with many other types of marine animals, all of which depend on each other in various ways; even predators are important. Scientists can also use sharks to study and learn how to fight disease.]
Suggested Student Assessment:
Inform the class that there are several extremely popular swimming beaches in Florida and California. Perhaps they have visited one of these places (e.g., Daytona Beach in Florida or Santa Monica Beach in California).
Have students create brochures for people who are planning to visit one of these beaches but are afraid of sharks.
Their brochures should contain drawings and text to provide:
- interesting and surprising facts about sharks;
- reasons why sharks are not usually dangerous to people; and
- reasons why sharks have more reason to be afraid of us than we have to be afraid of them.
Have students create their brochures on construction paper, either in groups or individually.
Extending the Lesson:
Help the class create surveys to find out what their parents and siblings think about sharks. They should include approximately five questions to find out people's attitudes toward sharks and what they know about shark behaviors and habitats.
Have students conduct their interviews and share their findings with the class. Do most people seem to dislike sharks, or are sharks considered interesting?
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