Salish Sea Activity Book

Objective

Students will learn about the Salish Sea, an inland waterway habitat shared by the U.S. and Canada, and will identify several animals that live there (such as the geoduck, sea star, sea anemone, harbor seal, orca, sea urchin, giant Pacific octopus, spiny dogfish, hermit crab, halibut, sea otter, and tufted puffin), along with a fact about how each survives in its habitat.

Materials

• "Salish Sea Activity Book" (one copy per student, or shared copies)
• Pencils
• Crayons or colored pencils (for the coloring pages in the book)

Warm-up (~5 min)

1. Ask students: "Has anyone heard of the Salish Sea?" Allow a few responses.
2. Read aloud the opening description from the book: the Salish Sea is the traditional name for the inland waters of Canada and Washington State, stretching from Puget Sound to Johnstone Strait, used by the First Nations peoples who have historically and presently lived in the area.
3. Explain briefly (from the book) that about ten thousand years ago, massive rivers of ice carved the area, and when the glaciers retreated they left behind gravel, sand, clay, and till — creating the many islands, sandy beaches, and eelgrass meadows found there today.
4. Tell students they will be exploring the plants and animals of this special habitat using their activity book.

Main Activity (~25 min)

Have students work through the animal fact pages of the book, reading each short description (either aloud as a class, taking turns, or independently) and coloring the matching picture. Cover the following animals in order, pausing after each to ask a simple recall question:

1. Geoduck – Read the fact that it is the largest clam, buried three feet deep in sand, and eats using two tubes in its siphon. Ask: "Why does the geoduck bury itself?" (protection)
2. Sea Stars – Read that most have 5 arms, but the Sunflower Sea Star can have twenty or more, and a lost arm can regrow.
3. Sea Anemones – Read that they cling to rocks with a suction disk, move very slowly, and use stinging cells (nematocysts) to catch food.
4. Pacific Harbor Seals – Read that they are "true seals," lack external ear flaps, can't walk on hind flippers, and can dive up to 1,380 feet for 28 minutes.
5. Orcas – Read that there are resident, transient, and offshore orcas, and that male dorsal fins are tall and straight while female dorsal fins are smaller and triangular.
6. Sea Urchins – Read that they use spines to "walk," and purple urchins live on wave-swept rocks while green urchins live in quieter tidepools.
7. Giant Pacific Octopus – Read that it is the largest octopus in the world, can weigh up to 600 pounds, with an arm-spread over 31 feet.
8. Spiny Dogfish – Read that they are the most common shark in the Salish Sea, grow up to 5 feet, and have a spine on their back.
9. Hermit Crabs – Read that they use empty shells from other animals as homes and must move to bigger shells as they grow.
10. Halibut – Read that females can grow to nearly 500 pounds while males are about half that size.
11. Sea Otters – Read that they live in kelp forests, wrap themselves in kelp to avoid drifting while sleeping, and help keep kelp forests healthy by eating sea urchins.
12. Tufted Puffins – Read that they eat fish 6–8 inches long and can carry up to 6 fish in their bill at once by securing the first fish with their rough tongue.

As students finish reading about each animal, have them color its corresponding picture in the book.

Wrap-up / Exit Ticket (~10 min)

On a blank sheet of paper, have each student answer:

1. Name one animal from the Salish Sea and one fact you learned about it.
2. Why is it important to be polite to the plants and animals living in the Salish Sea? (Refer to the book's reminder: "Be polite and do not mess up their homes. Take your trash back to your home, just leave footprints in theirs.")

Collect the papers as the exit ticket.

If Time Remains

Have students find the word search puzzle in the book and search for Salish Sea words such as Orca, Loon, Sea Star, Murre, Crabs, Sea Otter, and Octopus, circling as many as they can find.