Protecting Sea Turtles

Lesson Plan - Get It!

Audio:

• When you watched the baby sea turtles walk to the ocean, did you wonder how they can make it so far with their little bodies?
• Have you ever seen a picture of a sea turtle or observed one in real life?

Take a look at the picture below to see what a fully-grown sea turtle looks like up close.

It is amazing to see an adult sea turtle's size compared to a baby sea turtle.

It can be a struggle for a baby sea turtle to survive. This is where human beings can make a difference and help protect sea turtles, so they have the opportunity to hatch and make it to the sea!

• Have you ever wondered why there are signs at the beach telling you to not disturb sea turtles or to turn off your lights and keep the beach clean during sea turtle nesting season?

Take a few minutes to read about the Green Sea Turtle and explore some of the fun facts. Pay close attention to the threats faced by adult and baby sea turtles!

After you read the article, print out Think About Sea Turtles, found in the right-hand sidebar under Downloadable Resources. List a few of the threats facing adult sea turtles and newly-hatched sea turtles.

Now that you have spotted the threats faced by adult and baby sea turtles, watch this video to see how the nesting process flows from beginning to end. The nesting process is an amazing thing to watch.

• After watching the video, why do you think sea turtle nesting signs are so important?

Write your ideas on your Think About Sea Turtles sheet.

Now, take a few minutes to think about the actions you can take to help protect sea turtles. Review your Think About Sea Turtles notes on the threats sea turtles face and the hard work required, from nesting to hatching and making the tough trek to sea. Then, write down how you can help.

Think about what you could do to play a part in protecting these creatures.

• Do you ever visit a beach?
• Are there things that you could do to help protect sea turtles?
• Have you identified the threats to sea turtles?
• Do you have some ideas on ways to protect sea turtles?

Then you are ready to move on to the Got It? section!