Becoming Marine Biologists

Morah Katie: What do oceanographers study?

Augie: The Ocean.

Morah Katie: Scientists who study and learn about the life living in the ocean are called

Judah: Marine biologists.

Vertebrate vs. Invertebrate

We put our hands on our backs to feel our backbones. Animals with backbones are called vertebrates.

We colored the backbones of animal skeletons red.
Judah: I sorted them by ocean vertebrates or land vertebrates. The birds are ocean and land because some birds fish in the ocean. The fish are ocean animals of course.

We played a sorting game to help us distinguish between marine vertebrates from marine invertebrates.

Ari: My crab does not have a backbone.

Matan: Does my polar bear have a backbone?

Kids: Yes, It's a vertebrate!

Sadie's sea star is an invertebrate.

Judah: My seahorse is a fish, so it is a vertebrate.

Evelyn: Well my penguin is a bird but it swims to catch fish.

Morah Katie: Would you like to look at our vertebrate chart? 

Evelyn: Yes.

Morah Katie: What do you see?

Evelyn: Birds DO have backbones! It is a vertebrate.

Matan: I have a tiger shark, it has a backbone.

My octopus doesn't have a backbone.

Nora: The whale has a backbone. I  do too, only it's hiding behind my belly.

Angler fish are particularly exciting fish. They live in the abyss.

Augie: The angler fish has a backbone.

Nora: It has sharp teeth.

Ari: The bulb lights up.

Evan: It is hard to see in the dark so it makes light to catch food.

Morah Katie: Can you tell me about an invertebrate?

Judah: Mollusks are invertebrates. 

Morah Katie: Can you name a mollusk for me?

Judah: A squid.

Ari: Octopuses don't have backbones, neither do jellyfish.

Judah and Ari wrote a short story about their favorite invertebrates.
Judah: A mollusk is an animal. A squid is a mollusk.
Ari: A jellyfish is an invertebrate. It does not have a backbone.

We rearranged our ocean mural to better depict our understanding of squid and octopuses.

Morah Katie: Why did we have to move our ocean around?

Judah: Because octopus hide because they are soft and don't want to get eaten by tigers, tiger sharks I mean.

Evan: They live in dens.

Morah Katie: Octopus and Squid are similar. Can you tell me how?

Augie: They both have tentacles.

Evan: They are both invertebrates.

Abe: They squirt ink.

Morah Katie: How are squid different from octopuses?

Abe: They swim out in the open ocean.

Augie: They have  10 tentacles. Two of the tentacles they use to catch food.

Morah Katie: Can you tell me about other marine invertebrates?

Judah: Sea stars are invertebrates. Their mouth is underneath them and they spit their stomachs out on their food and then pull the whole thing inside again.

Olivia S.:They move really really slowly.

Matan: (with a slight cry) My star fish lost it's leg!

Ari: That's ok Matan because it can just grow it back. 

Augie: Sea anemones are invertebrates. 

Abe: They are like jellyfish because their tentacles zap their food.

Augie: But not the nemo fish

Morah Katie: Clown fish.

Judah: Why?

Morah Katie: Clown fish and sea anemones work together, the clown fish brings back food and the anemones keeps it safe from bigger fish.

 Augie: I know that the ocean has different zones.
Judah: I know that there are thousands of animals in the ocean.
Olivia S.: I know that dolphins have backbones.
Evelyn: I know that whales spout water out.
Abe: I know that squid live in the deep dark water and squirt ink and are similar to octopuses.
Maya: I know that sea turtles have backbones.
Asher knows that jellyfish don't have backbones.
Evan: I know that squid don't have a backbone, they are invertebrates. Their heads look oval.