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Coral Reef Teacher’s Guide Life on the Coral Reef

Coral Reef Color Page or markers)
• paint brushes
and Mural • The Coral Forest: Diversity of Life on the Coral
Reef poster as a reference and color guide. (To or-
der, refer to Merchandise information in the back.)
Objective: Students will study the abundant life of PRESENTATION:
the coral reef by completing the color page and/or For the Coral Reef Color Page:
creating a mural.
1. Pass out a color page to each student.
Interdisciplinary Index: Art, Performing Arts, Lan-
guage Arts 2. Use the key on the back of the color page to
iden- tify the various coral reef plants and animals.
Vocabulary: coral reef, coral reef ecosystem, coral reef
plants and animals 3. Remind students that all life in the coral reef
is interrelated, and that the plants, animals, sand
Materials: and rocks together make up the coral reef eco-
system. Discuss the role of various coral reef crea-
For the Color Page:
tures pictured on the color page.
• copies of Coral Reef Color Page handout (both 4. Have students color in the coral reef plants
sides) for each student and animals. You can do this one at a time
• crayons, color pencils, or markers as you discuss them, or you can have some stu-
dents color independently while others work on
• construction paper the mural. You can also enlarge different sections
• glue of the color page, have the students color them,
then place them all together on the wall.
For the Mural:
For the Coral Reef Mural:
• transparency of Coral Reef Color Page
This activity works best as a small group activity (6-
• overhead projector
8 children per mural). Use this as a learning center
• white butcher paper, approximately 3 feet by 6 feet ac- tivity, or set up four separate murals that
• watercolors and tempera paint (option: crayons students can work on in small groups.
and/

Coral Reef Mural, by
students from Sea View
Elementary School,
Salton City, CA. (Photo:
Joanne Hardesty)

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