Coral Reefs

A WebQuest for 5th-8th Grade Science

Introduction:

Coral Reefs are beautiful! Anyone who has ever had the opportunity to see them would agree. But are they necessary? Do they have a purpose other than to "look pretty" for scuba divers, snorkelers and folks in glass bottom boats? What would happen if coral were to go the way of the dinosaurs and dodos? Is this likely to happen in the near future? What can and should be done about it? You are an ambassador from the Island Nation of Palau in Micronesia where are located some of the most beautiful coral reefs in the world. You will be attending a meeting of several countries that have coral reefs - Australia, the Hawaiian Islands of the United States, to name a few.. All of these have representatives who are also concerned about the destruction of the coral in their area, but you will need to work together to convince the non-coral countries of the world that the coral reefs are worth saving.

The Tasks:

By the end of this webquest you will be able to:

Explain what coral is and what it is made of.

Name and describe the three types of coral reefs.

Identify several types of fish that live in coral reefs.

Explain what happens when a coral reef is "over-fished.".

Find out how coral and coral reef algae could benefit humans through medicinal research.

Make "coral" (really calcium carbonate, but it's about the same stuff!).

The Process:

To complete your tasks and get ready for your visit with these important world leaders, you must read each set of directions and do what it says. You should be able to find the information you need by clicking on the indicated website.

1. First, let's learn some words associated with coral reefs. To do this we'll do a "just for fun" word search at CORAL REEFS. You may need to use something like this when you talk to those "landlubbers" who have never seen coral "up close and personal"! Please print the puzzle and work in out on paper.

2. Your country of Palau boasts one of the largest coral atolls in the world. But some of these folks don't know what an atoll is - and they don't know what the two other kinds of reefs are either! Click on SEAWORLD and look for a description and drawing of each kind of reef. Take some notes and make sure you understand how to tell the three apart so you can explain this to the non-coral folks you will be meeting with.

3. Coral fish are unique diverse and beautiful. You will need to describe them to the non-coral folks. Choose five favorites from INDEX OF REEF FISH and describe what is special about each one physically and how it has a special place in the coral ecosystem.

4. Fishermen in your country of Palau have been catching coral reef fish using spears and small nets for thousands of years. In recent years they have noticed that their catches of fish are smaller and some varieties of fish cannot be found at all. Leaders from other countries with coral have reported similar problems. Visit THE REPORT FROM THE LOCAL FISHERMAN to see what has happened to fishing on the island of Finith. Perhaps some laws need to made as to the kind of fishing that should be allowed on and near coral reefs? What do you think?

5. Since some people are not impressed with the beauty of coral reefs, the science that explains why they are important, or the plight of people who depend on them, you may need to convince them that the coral reefs are worth saving because of what they can do for folks who don't have coral "right in their own backyard." Go to THAT'S WEIRD to find out some diseases that coral and coral dependent algae may be used to cure.
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6. A meeting of world leaders doesn't have to be "all work and no fun!" Help them learn some important facts about coral by playing a matching game at QUIA.com. You will have a choice of Matching coral reef words with their definitions, doing a word search of playing Concentration. (Hint: You might let the landlubbers win once in awhile!)

7. If you really want to convince these people that coral is worth saving, they need to see the coral. You can't break off a piece to bring to the conference - you want to make removal of coral illegal. But maybe if you show them some stuff that's like coral they will be impressed. Go back to SEAWORLD and do the experiment explained there. It will take three days, but hey! In the meantime you can be writing your report. You will be assigned one or two partners for this experiment.

8. Write a persuasive speech or report stating why you feel that the reefs should be saved for your grandchildren to enjoy. You may write it as a Word document, but should also make a Powerpoint presentation of at least eight slides and several images.

The Evaluation:

You will be keeping a notebook during this webquest. Please follow the directions for each task - writing and taking notes as specified. You will be graded on how well you complete the tasks, how well you express your opinions in your report or Powerpoint presentation, and how well you do on a coral reef test (over the information you have learned from doing the webquest). You and your partners will be graded on how well you followed the instructions for the "Growing Coral" exercise.

	Beginning 1	Developing 2	Accomplished 3	Exemplary 4
Description of Coral	Coral is stuff in the ocean	Coral grows in reefs	Small animals live in reefs and build on each other	Coral polyps are an important part of the ocean ecosystem.
Three Types of Coral Reefs	Recognize names as part of a matching exercise.	Name three types of reefs from memory.	Name and describe three types of reefs.	Name, describe and draw a simple picture of three types of reefs.
Coral Reef Fish	Fish live near coral reefs.	Coral Reef fish are colorful and can be big or small.	Some coral reef fish are beneficial to coral and some are harmful.	Name and describe five or more coral reef fish.
Coral Reef Fishing	Some fish are good to eat.	Sometimes there are not enough fish on a reef.	People need to limit how many fish they catch.	Describe the difference between traditional fishing and unsustainable fishing practices.
Coral Medical Research	Medicine can help sick people	Medicine can be made out of coral and reef plants.	Chemicals in coral and algae are used to make drugs that may cure diseases.	Drugs made from coral and algae and algae are being tested for cancer, AIDS and osteoporosis.
Presentation	Presentation contains no reasons why coral reefs are important nor why they should be saved for the future. Word document is poorly written.	Presentation contains few reasons why coral reefs are important and why they should be saved for the future. Word document contains many errors and PPT Slideshow is missing.	Presentation contains some reasons why coral reefs are important and why they should be saved for the future. Word document contains some errors and PPT Slideshow is accomplished.	Presentation contains many reasons why coral reefs are important and why they should be saved for the future. Word document contains no errors and PPT Slideshow shows imagination and creativity.

Conclusion:

After completing this webquest you should be able to explain what coral is, why it is important, and name and describe the three types of coral reefs. You should have an understanding of why coral is an important part of the ocean ecosystem upon which all life on our planet depends. You should be able to write an persuasive article and/or Powerpoint slideshow explaining why the coral reefs should be saved for future generations.

Credits & References:

Thanks to Clipart for the fish bullets. And thanks to Geocities for their photographs of coral reef fish, one of which is used at the top of this webquest.

Teacher Advice:

    This webquest is designed for fifth through eighth grades, but could possibly be used in a freshman biology class. It could be used as part of a larger unit on OCEANS or ENDANGERED ANIMALS or used by itself. Younger students who are poor readers might be paired with better readers since a few of the links involve reading with some scientific terms.
    The game at QUIA.com has some coral reef terms with which the students may not be familiar. They will have a choice of doing a wordsearch (with the words printed at the bottom of the page), a matching game (where they can see the words and their definitions), or playing concentration (the most difficult). It may be helpful to have the students do the word search and do the matching exercise before they attempt to play Concentration. The latter can be played with a partner.
     The last task (growing coral) will take three days. The rest of the lesson could be done in one day, except for perhaps writing the persuasive speech and/or putting together a Powerpoint presentation.
     One teacher should be able to implement this lesson if he or she has worked through the webquest ahead of time and tried the "experiment" (making coral) described in #7 under PROCESS. It would be helpful to have lab access (or at least extra tables) on which to do the coral making activity. If this is not available, the teacher could make one with the class observing or participating.

Created for EDU 506 @ FHU School of Education by Sharon D. Irwin and was last updated on July 2, 2001.