Activity Sheet Lesson 1: Compare and Contrast This activity will help you to understand how whales and fish are different.

Although both whales and fish live in the sea, there are many differences between them. Whales are

different than fish, but they do have some similar characteristics. Complete the chart below, known as a

Venn Diagram, to compare how whales are similar to fish and how they are different (you can either write

in the diagram below or carefully cut the words out and stick them into the diagram). An example is

written in to start you off.

A fish Warm blooded Lives in the sea

Tail moves up and down Can swim A mammal

Lays eggs Tail moves side-to-side Has to come to the water’s

surface to breathe air Gives birth to live young Cold blooded Has lungs

Has hair Has gills and breathes

underwater Has backbone

Has scales Can be found alone Can be found in groups

Fish Whale

Both fish

and

whales

Lesson 1: Whale Words

Carefully cut out the green words and blue sentences. Then, match the green words below with the

descriptions (the blue sentences). Ensure you have an adult to help you cut these out.

Students will learn a wide range of whale-themed words. Students can do this alone or in small groups.

Baleen Pectoral fin Blubber Dorsal fin Lunge feeding Tail fluke Rorqual pleats

Blowhole Logging

Breaching Rostrum Calf Carnivore Spyhopping Pod

The fins on the animal’s side,

which it uses to steer

The whale’s nostrils, which are on top of its

head

A thick layer of fat all around the

body which helps to keep the

whale warm

The whale moves this up and down to help it move

quickly through the water

This hangs from the whale’s top jaw, and uses it

to filter feed small animals from the water

The name for a baby whale

A group of whales is called

a…

The fin on a whale’s back

Whales only eat other animals.

What is the name for this?

A behaviour where the whale

rests on the surface of the

water

When a whale is feeding on the water surface and it takes a huge gulp of

food filled water

Baleen whales have these

groves that run from the chin to the bellybutton. They allow the

whale’s throat to expand during filter feeding

When the whale jumps out of the

water and creates a huge

splash!

A behaviour where the whale sticks its head out of the water and has a look

around

The upper jaw of a whale

Bull Shark

Bottlenose Dolphin

Spot The Difference

orcaweb.org.uk

Blowhole & GillsLive Young & Eggs

Tail DifferenceWarm & Cold Blooded

Sharks are able to filter oxygen straight out of the water using gills, whilst dolphins must return to the surface to breathe using the blow hole to breathe in & out. The blow hole acts in the

same way as our nostrils.

Sharks usually give birth to eggs which the embryo hatches out of, whilst dolphins always give

birth to live young. Dolphin babies are born tail first!

Sharks have a tail that moves from side to side after having evolved from animals with the

same movement, whilst dolphins evolved from land

mammals which relied on up & down movement of the spine

to help when running.

Sharks are cold blooded and so rely on their environment

to regulate their body temperature, whilst dolphins

are warm blooded & are able to maintain their own

body temperatures.

Spot The Difference - Answers

orcaweb.org.uk

Common Dolphin

Bottlenose Dolphin

orcaweb.org.uk

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Connect The Dots

Can you find all of the whales, dolphins, and porpoises in the Word Search below? BOTTLENOSE

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Whale Word Search

orcaweb.org.uk

1

Lesson 1: Whale Words: Answers Carefully cut out the green words and blue sentences. Then, match the green words below with the

descriptions (the blue sentences).

Students will learn a wide range of whale-themed words. Students can do this alone or in small groups.

Baleen

This hangs from the whale’s top jaw, and uses it to filter feed

small animals from the water

Pectoral fin The fins on the animal’s

side, which it uses to steer

Blubber A thick layer of fat all

around the body which helps to keep the whale

warm

Dorsal fin

The fin on a whale’s back

Lunge feeding

When a whale is feeding on the water surface

and it takes a huge gulp of food filled water

Tail fluke

The whale moves this up and down to help it move quickly through

the water Rorqual pleats

Baleen whales have these groves that run from the chin to the

bellybutton. They allow the whale’s throat to expand during filter

feeding

Blowhole The whale’s nostrils,

which are on top of its head

Logging

A behaviour where the whale rests on the

surface of the water

Breaching

When the whale jumps out of the water and

creates a huge splash!

Rostrum

The upper jaw of a whale

Calf

The name for a baby whale

Carnivore

Whales only eat other animals. What is the

name for this?

Spyhopping

A behaviour where the whale sticks its head

out of the water and has a look around

Pod

A group of whales is called a…

1

Lesson 1: Compare and Contrast - Answers This activity will help you to understand how whales and fish are different.

Although both whales and fish live in the sea, there are many differences between them. Whales are

different than fish, but they do have some similar characteristics. Complete the chart below, known as a

Venn Diagram, to compare how whales are similar to fish and how they are different (you can either write

in the diagram below or carefully cut the words out and stick them into the diagram). An example is

written in to start you off. All of the answers are filled in below.

A fish Warm blooded Lives in the sea

Tail moves up and down Can swim A mammal

Lays eggs Tail moves side-to-side Has to come to the water’s

surface to breathe air

Gives birth to live young Cold blooded Has lungs

Has hair Has gills and breathes

underwater Has backbone

Has scales Can be found alone Can be found in groups

Fish Whale

Both fish

and

whales

Lives in the sea

Has gills and breathes

underwater

Can be found alone

Can be found in groups