Pinnipeds: Seals, Sea Lions, and Walruses

Objectives:

• Students will be able to name the three types of pinnipeds.

• Students will be able to identify the physical and behavioral characteristics of pinnipeds.

• Students will be able to state how each type of pinniped is unique as well as what all three have in common.

Suggested Grades:

3rd Grade - 4th Grade - 5th Grade

Lesson Procedure:

Print the reading comprehension worksheet passage and questions (see below).

Students should read the passage silently, then answer the questions. Teachers may also use the text as part of a classroom lesson plan.

Lesson Excerpt:

Seals, sea lions and walruses are all members of the group of marine animals called pinnipeds. The word pinniped means fin-footed. All pinnipeds have fins at the ends of their front and hind legs. Pinnipeds live in the ocean, but they spend a good amount of time on land as well. Each type of pinniped is a little different from the others, though they have some things in common. They all have flippers for swimming and blubber to help them stay warm in the cold waters where they live. They also have waterproof hair on their skin to protect them from the water as well as from rocks and sand when they are on the shore. Seals, sea lions and walruses eat a diet that is mostly fish and squid. Because they live in very cold waters that are often covered with ice at the surface, seals have claws on the ends of their front flippers so they can make holes in the ice. The holes are known as breathing holes.

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