Fish Behavior Bingo

Objective:

Students will be able to become familiar with a variety of common fish behaviors.

Materials Needed:

• Aquademics™ Science Worksheet #3
• Pencil and paper for each student

Activity:

Engage students in a discussion of how different human and animal behaviors enable people to come to certain conclusions.  Ask students the following questions:

1. If two boys are laughing and joking as they walk together, what might someone conclude about the boys?
2. If a cat is crouching on the limb of a tree and a dog is barking on the ground, what might someone conclude?
3. If it is 12:00 noon and a group of children are walking toward the cafeteria, what might someone conclude?
4. When you start to yawn in the evening, what might someone conclude?

Tell the students that aquarium fish also exhibit certain behaviors that will enable the students to come to various conclusions.

Distribute Aquademics™ Science Worksheet #3.  Divide the class into several small groups.  Each group will observe the fish in the aquarium for several minutes (the teacher will specify the time, probably about 3-5 minutes per group).  Each group is to look for all of the behaviors in the pictures on the Fish Behavior Bingo sheet.   The behaviors are described at the bottom of the sheet.  When students observe a pictured behavior, they are to circle the picture.

Groups that are not observing fish are to make up some human or animal behavior situations with conclusions, similar to the questions asked above.  Groups can share some of their favorite situations with the class.

Result:

Ask groups to write down at least three fish behaviors that they observed during the specified time period.

Portions of this page reprinted courtesy of the National Aquarium in Baltimore