Why would a sea turtle eat a plastic bag?

Why would a sea turtle eat a plastic bag?
Lesson narration:
English Spanish
Scroll for prep
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DISCUSS:
Why do you think a sea turtle might eat a plastic bag?
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DISCUSS:

Think of your favorite sweet food.

What does it smell like, feel like, sound like, look like, taste like?

What memories do you have of that food?

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DISCUSS:

What kinds of animals do you have near where you live? What do you know about their SENSES, INSTINCTS, and MEMORIES?

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Step
01/20
You’ll work with a partner.
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Step
02/20
Get your supplies.
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Step
03/20
Fold your Raccoon Senses and Raccoon Behavior sheets on the thin
black line. Put the “Mystery Item 1” side face up.
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Step
04/20
Cut out all of the Memory Cards along the dotted lines. Stack them
into 3 piles: Touch Memories, Smell Memories, & Sight Memories.
Put the piles off to the side.
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Step
05/20
Get your supply. Then, feel the item inside the bag without looking at
what it is.
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Step
06/20
After using your sense of touch to gather information about the
Mystery Item, write what you notice in the “touch” box on your
Raccoon Senses sheet.
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Step
07/20
Place your Brain Model in between you and your partner. Tape the
two sheets together with your label stickers. Stack each pile of cards
on the matching memory box.
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Step
08/20
Spread out Touch Memory cards on your Raccoon Brain Model. Keep
cards that seem helpful for figuring out what the Mystery Item is.
Move others back to the Touch Memory card box.
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Step
09/20
Watch the video. Use your sense of sight to gather clues about the
Mystery Item. Write down all of the information you gather in the
“sight” box on your Senses sheet.
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Step
10/20
Spread out the Sight Memory cards on your Raccoon Brain Model.
Keep the cards that will help you figure out what the Mystery Item is.
Move others back to the Sight Memory card box.
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Step
11/20
Watch the video. Use your sense of smell to gather clues about the
Mystery Item. Draw the shape of the smell lines and write where
they’re coming from in the “smell” box on your worksheet.
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Step
12/20
Spread out the Smell Memory cards on your Raccoon Brain Model.
Keep the cards that will help you figure out what the Mystery Item is.
Move others back to the Smell Memory card box.
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Step
13/20
Discuss with your partner. Then, answer questions 1 & 2 on your
Racoon Behavior sheet.
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Step
14/20
Sort Memory Cards into their original 3 piles. Put the piles back in
their matching boxes on your Brain Model. Flip your Racoon Senses
& Raccoon Behavior sheets to the “Mystery Item 2” side.
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Step
15/20
Get your final supply. Feel the item inside the bag WITHOUT looking
at it. Write down what you notice in the “touch” box on the Mystery
Item 2 side of your Raccoon Senses sheet.
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Step
16/20
Spread out the Touch Memory cards on your Raccoon Brain Model.
Keep cards that will help you figure out what the Mystery Item is.
Move others back to the Touch Memory card box.
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Step
17/20
Watch the video. Use your senses of sight & smell to gather clues
about the Mystery Item. Write down all of the information you
gather in the “sight” & “smell” boxes on your Raccoon Senses sheet.
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Step
18/20
Spread out Sight & Smell Memory cards on your Raccoon Brain
Model. Keep cards that will help you figure out what the Mystery
Item is. Move others back to the Memory card boxes.
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Step
19/20
Discuss with your partner. Then, answer questions 3 & 4 on your
Racoon Behavior sheet.
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Step
20/20
Discuss.
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Slide Image
DISCUSS: Here are some memories a sea turtle might have.
Do you have any new ideas about why a sea turtle might eat a plastic bag?
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brain


1 of 7

a part of the body that receives and responds to signals from the senses and also stores memories
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senses


2 of 7

a part of the body (eyes, ears, nose, mouth, hands) that gathers information about the environment
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memory


3 of 7

information that is stored in the brain and can be remembered

behavior


4 of 7

the actions and reactions of living things
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learned behavior


5 of 7

a behavior that is learned based on past experiences

instinct


6 of 7

a behavior that a living thing does without being taught
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model


7 of 7

a pretend version of something that scientists use when the real thing is too big, small, or complicated to work with

Featured Reviews

“The tie-in between the mystery items/sensory input and memories for the raccoon tied in nicely to the larger concept questions for the turtle, and had the children thinking a little deeper on the larger question of survival.”
· Janna · Teacher
“The students really enjoyed this lesson. It does take a minute to organize but it's worth it. You also really have to remind them that the mystery bag item isn't what the raccoon is really trying identify. My class loved it after and then could easily give a valid reason why the turtles would try to eat the bags!”
· Jessica · Teacher
“GREAT activity. It was a lot of fun for the students and gave them a chance to think and experience the world the way an animal would. (Raccoons were an excellent choice also)”
· Nick · Teacher
“The videos! Pretending to be a racoon and using our racoon senses and memories was SO much fun!”
· Meghan · Teacher
“this lesson went so well! A lot of pieces to print, but the directions were clear and the kids had a blast!”
· Brianna · Teacher
“My students loved the Raccoon Brain activity. They were very engaged the entire time and had a thoughtful discussion. They were able to connect the activity back to the sea turtle and plastic bag even before we saw the part of the video about sea turtles eating jellyfish. Excellent lesson!”
· Janell · Teacher
Lesson narration:
English Spanish

Activity Prep

Print Prep
This is a NEW lesson we are BETA testing! If you prepped before 6/1/24 or if you have a Mystery Pack, you'll need to gather the supplies listed below.
In this lesson, students explore how animals receive information through their senses and process that information in their brain, using instincts and memories to guide their behaviors. In the activity, Raccoon Reactions, students use models to understand how an animal’s senses, brain, and memories all work together as a system to influence their behavior and support their survival.
Preview activity

I have a Mystery Pack

Please note: This is a NEW lesson we are BETA testing! If you have a Mystery Pack, you’ll need to gather most of the supplies listed below.
Raccoon Behavior worksheet 1 per student
Raccoon Brain Model printout 1 per pair
Raccoon Memory Cards printout 1 per pair
Raccoon Senses worksheet 1 per student
Raccoon Senses & Behavior Answer Key teacher-only resource 1 per class
Scissors
1 pair per student
Aluminum Foil
Each pair of students needs a 3" x 3" piece, which will be Mystery Item 2 (see prep below).
Details
1 small piece per pair
Cotton Balls
1 ball per pair
Paper Lunch Bags
2 bags per pair
Sticker Labels (1" x 3")
Tape also works. We prefer stickers because they are easier to distribute in a classroom.
Details
2 stickers per pair
Prep Instructions

We suggest students work in pairs. Homeschool students can work on their own.

Prepare Bags

Divide the paper bags into two equal piles. We suggest labeling each bag in the first pile “1” and each bag in the second pile “2." These will correspond to “Mystery Item 1” and “Mystery Item 2” in the activity.

Place one cotton ball into each bag in the first pile. You’ll distribute one of these bags to each pair of students in Step 5 of the activity.

Place one small square of aluminum foil into each of the other bags. Try to avoid squeezing the foil into a ball because that will make it difficult for students to feel the texture. You’ll distribute one of these bags to each pair of students in Step 15 of the activity.

Make Sure You Have Space

Ensure that each pair of students has enough space to lay out their Raccoon Brain models and the Memory Cards. Two student desks side-by-side should be sufficient.

Exploration

15 mins

Hands-On Activity

40 mins

Wrap-Up

10 mins

Extend this lesson

Vocabulary

Vocabulary

Student slideshow: English | Spanish

Teacher printout: English & Spanish

Unit Reading

Unit Reading

Surfing Sea Otter

In this reading, students learn how scientists figured out why a sea otter in California was stealing people's surfboards by considering the sea otters senses, memories, and instincts.

Mini-lessons

Mini-lessons

You can elaborate student learning and engagement with Mystery Science mini-lessons.

If you are in an NGSS state, these mini-lessons support the DCI LS1.D: Information Processing

Transcripts

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Structures Tx Lesson 2: Why would a sea turtle eat a plastic bag?

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