All whales belong to the order Cetacea, which comes from the Greek word Cetus, meaning whales. They are also classified as mammals, which means they nurse their young, have a four-chambered heart, seven cervical vertebrae, and they have hair, which constitutes only a few whiskers on whales. Because whales lack hair, which is used to help to keep mammals warm, they have evolved blubber. Blubber is just a thick layer of fat which helps to keep them insulated in the often cold ocean water. In the bowhead whale this blubber layer can be up to 20 inches thick because it lives in near freezing water. A dolphin of the other hand may only have a quarter inch of blubber because it lives in warmer water.

Like other mammals whales also give birth to live young and once they are born nursing begins. These babies, or calves, are not born with very much blubber so the milk that mothers feed their young is high in fat, about 40 percent. Whales also have lungs like other mammals and humans so they must come up to the surface to breathe. To help them inhale and exhale while at the surface they have a blowhole on top of their head, which acts like our nostrils. Whales look more like fish than other land mammals because they live in the water so they have adapted to live in that environment. Whales have a streamlined body like a torpedo or a submarine to help it swim faster. They have almost all the same bones that other mammals do, but the bones have been modified for other purposes. The front legs or arm bones have been modified into flippers for example. Most whales have lost all but small hind legs bone which are similar to bones found in terrestrial mammals.

The cetaceans can be further broken down into three suborders: archaeoceti, or ancient whales or extinct whales; odontoceti, or toothed whales; and mysticeti, or mustached or baleen whales. In odontocetes all species have teeth, which is why they are called toothed whales. They feed primarily on schooling fish and squid. They also have a single blowhole, asymmetrical skulls, and they all echolocate.

Echolocating is when they send out high frequency sounds, and then use the sound waves that bounce back from an object to distinguish what the object is. Odontocetes include dolphins, porpoises, narwhals, orcas, beluga, and sperm whales, among others. Mysticetes, or as they are commonly called, baleen whales, use baleen to filter tiny animals, such as krill, out of the water. Baleen whales have a two-hole blowhole, and a symmetrical skull. Baleen whales are assumed not to use echolocation because they lack the melon. The baleen that they use to feed is made of keratin, like in human hair and nails. The Whales filter out thousands of tiny animals (plankton) at once using their baleen. They open their mouths and take in a mouth full of water. Then they partially close their mouth, push the water out over the baleen plates, and licking off the prey from the baleen with their tongues.

There are three type of baleen whales, and they are defined by their feeding techniques. Skimmers, like right whales and bowhead whales, swim along with their mouths open and their baleen plates exposed to capture prey. They catch mostly small, surface-dwelling plankton, that cannot escape the slow-moving whales. Gulpers, or rorqual whales, like humpback and blue whales, have throat grooves that allow them to take big gulps of water, which they force back through the baleen trapping their prey inside. The gray whale is a gunker, the only one of its kind. It swims along the bottom on its side and vacuums up mud and water. It then filters the sediment through its baleen, to strain out the crustaceans from the mud. These whales leave huge craters behind where they have been feeding.

Fish vs. Whale

• Large sheet of paper or cardboard
• Markers

Echolocation I

• Red construction paper Sheet of cardboard plastic bags colored markers
• Clackers or noise makers

Echolocation II

• 2 Glass tubing approx. 2 to 3 ft long tuning fork

Baleen Activity:

• Broom (straw or plastic)
• Bucket large enough to broom set on
• Small containers krill and/or small plastic fish
• Sand

Make a Whale:

• 2-10' x 25' rolls of black plastic sheeting, at least or thicker 3 mil. (from hardware store in the paint dept.)
• 1 roll of duct tape
• scissors
• Marker that will write on the plastic sheeting box fan or a leaf blower also works well paper large enough to make small posters
• masking tape
• butcher paper

Blubber Activity:

• Two 7oz (210ml) paper cups
• Cotton balls
• 2 bulb-type thermometers
• 3/4 cup (188ml) cooking oil
• timer

Blubber Mitt Activity:

• 1 cup solid shortening
• 2 zip-top sandwich bags
• Duct tape

Engage: Students should work in groups of 3 to 4 for this exercise. Students should have available to them: markers, poster board, ruler. They should make two circles approximately 18 to 24 inches in diameter. Each circle should be labeled as follows: Whales, Fish. The overlapping section will demonstrate what the two have in common. They should work together and write down each idea or fact they know about each animal. They will be able to compare and contrast important characteristics of the whale and other marine life. By writing down their intuitive ideas, they will prepare themselves for upcoming lessons and can use their chart as a reference for other activities. They should be allowed to continue to write down any new found ideas or concepts. Here are some Questions to help them if they get stuck; How do whales breathe? How do whales swim? How are whales born? What and how do whales eat? Where do whales live? How big do different whales grow? How do whales stay warm? What is blubber? How is a whale a mammal? Is a dolphin a whale? Why? Why do whales move where they live? How big are different calves at birth? How does the mother care for her calf? How do whales communicate? What are the names of different parts of a whale? What are the different parts used for? Why is a whale's temperature always the same? Why is a whale not a fish? What is whaling? What are the different sounds whales make? Which whales have teeth? What do calves eat? What is the biggest animal that has ever lived on earth? How long can a whale stay underwater? What are groups of whales called?

Preparation: The instructor should prepare the class a few days before the class activities. Discussion of mammals and ocean life are highly recommended to begin though processes on how these animals live their everyday lives. Discussion incorporating students' prior knowledge should incorporate prior knowledge and scientific principles. One of the main discussion on how whales communicate in water and their sound travels, is highly recommended.

Fish vs. Whale 1.
A large sheet of paper for each group with two over lapping circles already draw for the students 2. On top of one of the circles label it "Fish" 3. On top of the other circle label it "Whales" 4. If you want label the over lap part "What Fish & Whales Have In Common" 5. Have the students write their ideas on the paper in the appropriate circle Echolocation 1 6. Cut out two circle one larger than the other with the red construction paper 7. On the sheet of cardboard glue two circles next to each other but not touching 8. Put the sheet of cardboard on one side of the room and the students on the other side of the room 9. Have students try to figure out which circles is largest

Echolocation 2
1. Set up tube with water about three inches from the top 2. Hit a tuning fork and have children each listen closely near the fork as it enters the water.

Make a Whale:
1. Unfold 1 roll of sheeting and fold it in half lengthwise to measure 5' x 25'. 2. Do the same with the second roll and place it on top of the first sheeting. Make sure the folded sides are on the same side and all the ends and corners are even. 3. Tape the ends, corners, and sides (every 6') of both layers to the floor to hold them in place while you cut out the whale shape. 4. Cut out a side view of the whale freehand. Sketch it with chalk before you cut it. 5. Remove the scrap pieces from the whale after cutting. Unfold the whale and lay one layer on top of the other matching the ends very carefully. Tape the edges down to the floor and smooth out the whale as much as possible. 6. Have the students sit around the perimeter of the whale and help tape the edges together with the duct tape. Have them place about a 12" strip of tape, sticky side up, under the bottom layer, covering just half of the tape. Fold the other half of the tape up and over the top edge of the top layer. Press the tape down and smooth itout. BE SURE TO HAVE THE STUDENTS OVERLAP EACH PIECE OF TAPE ABOUT1" OVER THE PREVIOUS TAPE TO MAKE SURE THERE ARE NO GAPS OR HOLES AROUND THE EDGES. 7. Continue taping all around the edges, LEAVING A 2 FOOT OPENING AT THE FLUKE OR TAIL END OF THE WHALE FOR THE FAN. 8. Tape the whale opening to the fan. Turn the fan on high and inflate the whale. After the whale is inflated, check for leaks around the taped area. Place a 5' piece of tape, in the vertical position, halfway along the side of the whale. This tape will provide the reinforcement for the opening, or door, in the side of the whale. Cut a slit down the middle of the tape about 4*'. Reinforce both ends with the duct tape so as to prevent further tearing. 9. You may place a large trash bag over the opening to prevent some of the air from escaping. 10. You can make flippers and a dorsal fin out of the scraps or extra large trash bags. Tape them to the side of the whale at the appropriate location. 11. Have students enter the whale slowly and carefully and be seated inside. As a precaution, supervise the whale when the students are inside. If the fan accidentally turns off, they still have plenty of time to exit. Show them how to hold the door for easy exiting.

Blubber Activity:
1. Cover the inside bottom of one of the cups with a layer of cotton balls 2. Stand one of the thermometers on the layer of cotton balls 3. Fill the cup with cotton balls 4. Slowly pour the oil into the cotton-filled cup"NOTE: Lay the cup on its side of the weight of the thermometer tends to topple the cup over." 5. Read and record the temp shown on each thermometer. Then place the cups with their thermometers into the freezer and shut the door. 6. Read and record the temp at the end of 30 min.

Blubber Mitt Activity:
1. Put 1 cup of shortening into a zip-top bag. 2. Put your hand into the empty zip-top bag. 3. Put your hand with the bag on it into the bag containing the shortening. 4. Keeping your hand in the first bag, squeeze and spread the shortening until it surrounds your hand like an oven mitt. (Take care to keep your hands "dry.") 5. To make sure the shortening doesn't "escape," seal the tops of the bags together with duct tape.