Ocean Pals · Rays in Their World · Grades 3–5 · Page 1 of 2
How do we know?
Name:
Source cards
A. Giant manta ray. It filters tiny drifting animals from water while swimming. Two flexible parts near its mouth help guide water and food toward the opening.
B. Southern stingray. It often lives near sandy or silty bottoms in shallow coastal water. Its broad fins can stir sand and uncover prey such as small fish, crabs or shrimp.
Filter means separate food from water. The seabed is the bottom of the sea. These cards describe the named species, not every ray.
Sources: A — NOAA Fisheries: Giant Manta Ray; B — Florida Museum: Southern Stingray.
1. Picture, reading or both?
Look at the labeled reference pictures your teacher shows. For each statement, say whether the picture, the reading or both support it. Point to the evidence. If you use spoken descriptions instead of pictures, write “description,” not “picture.”
| Statement | Where did I learn it? |
|---|---|
| The southern stingray has broad fins. | |
| The manta filters tiny drifting animals from water. | |
| The southern stingray can uncover food in sand. |
2. Disagrees, or does not tell us?
“All rays feed alike.” Do the cards agree? Name a difference from the reading.
Do these cards tell us how many rays exist? Explain why an unanswered question is different from a claim the reading disagrees with.
Grades 3–5 · Page 2 of 2
Two ways to find food
Show each animal in its feeding setting. Add a label or arrow explaining one fact from its source card.
Giant manta ray · Source A: NOAA
Southern stingray · Source B: Florida Museum
Check and revise
Ask your partner which feeding difference the pictures show. After their question, what did you change, and why?