Sea Turtles and Jellyfish: An Ocean Adventure

science

Sea Turtles and Jellyfish: An Ocean Adventure

An A2 English reading lesson about how sea turtles safely eat jellyfish in the ocean.

Title

Sea Turtles and Jellyfish: An Ocean Adventure

Seo_intro

An A2 English reading lesson about how sea turtles safely eat jellyfish in the ocean.

Reading Text

Sea turtles are fascinating marine animals that swim gracefully through the ocean. Many sea turtles love to eat jellyfish. Jellyfish have long tentacles that can sting other ocean creatures with neurotoxins. However, sea turtles are safe because they have thick skin inside their mouths and necks. When a turtle approaches a jellyfish, it closes its eyes to protect them from the tentacles. Then, the sea turtle uses its strong flippers to hold or push away the stinging tentacles while taking big bites of the jellyfish. Even though some jellyfish are dangerous to small fish, they are a delicious snack for sea turtles. Unfortunately, sea turtles face many dangers today, such as plastic pollution in the ocean.

Activities

Vocabulary

Items:

Label: marine
Answer: 1
Label: tentacles
Answer: 2
Label: neurotoxins
Answer: 3
Label: protect
Answer: 4
Label: flippers
Answer: 5
Label: pollution
Answer: 6

Definitions:

Text: relating to or found in the sea
Text: long, flexible arm-like parts of certain sea animals
Text: poisonous substances that affect the nervous system
Text: to keep someone or something safe from harm
Text: flat body parts used by sea animals for swimming
Text: harmful materials or trash present in the environment

Fill In The Blanks:

Before: Dolphins and whales are famous examples of
After: creatures.
Answer: marine
Before: The jellyfish reaches out with its long
After: in the water.
Answer: tentacles
Before: Sea turtles use their strong
After: to push through ocean currents.
Answer: flippers
Before: Turtles close their eyes to
After: them from painful stings.
Answer: protect
Before: Cleaning up trash on beaches helps reduce plastic
After: in the sea.
Answer: pollution

Comprehension

Questions:

Text: Many sea turtles like to eat jellyfish.
Answer: true
Text: Jellyfish tentacles are harmless to all sea creatures.
Answer: false
Text: Sea turtles close their eyes to protect them when eating jellyfish.
Answer: true
Text: Sea turtles have thin skin inside their mouths.
Answer: false
Text: Plastic pollution poses a threat to sea turtles today.
Answer: true

Scrambled:

Answer: Sea turtles swim gracefully in the ocean.
Answer: Jellyfish have long stinging tentacles.
Answer: Turtles close their eyes to stay safe.
Answer: A sea turtle uses flippers to push tentacles away.
Answer: Plastic in the sea is dangerous for ocean life.

Written Expression

Questions:

Text: Why are sea turtles able to eat jellyfish without getting hurt?
Text: What can people do to help protect sea turtles from ocean pollution?

Examples:

Example Answer: Sea turtles can eat jellyfish because they have thick skin in their mouths and use their flippers to shield their eyes from stings.

Critical Thinking

Title: Critical Thinking & Discussion

Instructions:

Why might a sea turtle confuse a floating plastic bag with a jellyfish in the ocean?
How does the sea turtle's diet of jellyfish help maintain balance in the ocean environment?