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This Free Manatee Unit Study has all you need to learn about Manatees with your students in a fun way with videos, crafts, printables and even an interactive quiz!
The most enjoyable way to learn about something is to explore it from every angle and in every way possible. With this Free Manatee Unit Study, your children AND you will enjoy learning about Manatees as you watch videos, read books and do crafts and printables. Have fun!
In the printables section there is no end to keep everyone busy; find word scrambles, word searches, I spy, how many words can you find, coloring pages and a crossword puzzle!
There are also educational videos to watch, new books to check out, jokes to enjoy together and songs to learn.
Maybe you want to learn about Manatees for a school project, for Manatee Appreciation Day or just because you enjoy the neat sea creatures. For whatever reason, this post will make it easy!
Follow my Manatee Pinterest Board for dozens of ideas from all around the web! I am constantly finding new things to add so there will be new things all the time!
When is National Manatee Day?
There is a Manatee Appreciation Day the last Wednesday in March and also November is Manatee Awareness Month.
This Unit Study is the perfect thing to do leading up to that day. Of course, any time is a great time to learn about manatees.
Other Unit Studies
Seasons and Holidays
Animals
Facts about Manatees
There are 3 different species of manatees that are found in different parts of the world; the West Indian Manatee, the Amazonian Manatee and the West African Manatee.
The West Indian manatee lives from the southern United States throughout the Caribbean Islands, Central America and to northern South America.
The Florida manatee lives in coastal waters, rivers and springs. They can sometimes be found up the coastline into the Carolinas or west as far as Texas.
A group of manatees is called an aggregation. It isn’t an official scientific term because they aren’t usually in structured or large groups.
Manatees are mammals that live in the water.
They are warm blooded so they can’t be in water that is too cold.
They are about 9-10 feet long from their nose to their tail but some can be up to 13 feet long.
Most weigh around 1,000 pounds but some can weigh up to 3,500 pounds.
They are very big but are slow moving, peaceful and tranquil creatures.
Manatees have 2 “hand” flippers that they use to steer and to hold food while they eat.
They have a flat, rounded tail that moves up and down to push them forward while they swim.
The area where their tail meets their body is called the peduncle.
They have wrinkled, leathery looking skin that flakes off all the time.
Barnacles and algae grow on their backs and tail and their flakey skin helps keep the algae and barnacles from staying on too long or getting too thick.
A manatee usually swims very slow, only about 5 mph. Most of the time, they are leisurely swimming along, nibbling on plants, playing with family and napping.
They are able to reach speeds up to 15 mph in short bursts.
Manatees are nimble in the water. They can swim upright, upside down, roll, move straight up and down and even do somersaults!
They can also dive to depths of up to 25 feet if they need to look for food or explore.
Manatees are mammals so they breathe air and usually need to come to the surface every 3-5 minutes for a breath.
When they are diving or sleeping though, they can often hold their breath for up to 20 minutes.
Manatees rest between 2 and 12 hours a day, either near the water’s surface or lying on the bottom.
Most of the time, manatees will sleep on the bottom of the water. They stay down for 15-20 minutes, then come up to the surface for a breath without really waking up. They grab a breath and go right back down to where they were to continue their sleep.
Manatees are herbivores so they are plant eaters.
They are called “sea cows” because they graze on the seagrasses and other plants in the sea.
They spend up to 8 hours a day grazing.
Manatees eat seagrass, algae and mangrove leaves. Seagrass is just grass that grows in the sea.
Manatees eat a lot! They eat about 10% of their body weight in plants every day. So, if a manatee weighs 1,000 pounds, it will need to eat 100 pounds of food! Wow!
Male manatees are called bulls.
Female manatees are called cows.
Baby manatees are called calves.
Females can breed at 3-5 years old.
Males can breed at 5-7 years old
A manatee can have a lifespan of 50 years in their natural habitat.
Manatees can live over 65 years in captivity.
They have no natural predators.
Things that contribute to premature manatee deaths are pollution, boat collisions, entanglement in fishing gear and habitat destruction.
Gestation is about 13 months.
Cows almost always have only one calf and can have a calf every 2-5 years.
A calf is about 4 feet long and weighs about 60-80 pounds when it is born.
Manatees are mammals so calves drink milk from their mothers.
A calf will stay with its mother for up to 2 years.
The ear openings are just behind the eyes and are just small holes. They can hear very well though.
They do not have eyelids or eyelashes.
A manatee has a prehensile upper lip so it can grab plants and pull them into its mouth.
Manatees have only molars; no incisors. These molars are constantly being replaced because they eat sand with their plants and that wears down their teeth.
Manatees have whiskers around their mouths and fine hairs over most of their body.
A manatee’s heart beats 50-60 beats a minute and slows down to 30 beats a minute during a long dive.
They have only 6 cervical vertebrae (neck bones) like most other mammals so can’t turn their head sideways. They must turn their whole body around to look behind them.
A manatee has similar bones in their front flipper to our hand. They also have 3-4 nails at the end of each flipper.
A manatee’s lungs are along its backbone, so along the top of its body. This helps them with buoyancy control.
Manatees can communicate with each other by clicking, squealing, chirping and whistling. They may be telling each other of danger, food, play or a mother may be talking to her baby to keep it safe and close.
Here is a quick video from adoptamanatee so you can hear some of their sounds!
**When you think you know the facts, take the interactive quiz at the bottom of the post! 😊
Manatees are in trouble!
The manatee’s population is decreasing.
Manatees need food and a home and more and more of them are being destroyed.
Boats are also a big danger to manatees. Boats harm their seagrasses and they can injure or kill manatees.
Things we can do to help the Manatees.
The Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission tells how we can help manatees by buying a special license plate (if you live in Florida), buying manatee decals, keeping manatee habitats clean so they don’t get tangled or swallow trash, educate others, and be aware and prepared when out on the waterways.
Here is their full How to Help page.
Videos about Manatees
Manatees Are the “Sea Cows” of the Coasts | Nat Geo Wild 3:06
All About Manatees for Children: Manatee Video for Kids – FreeSchool 5:23
Songs
“The Manatee Song” Hand Motions | The Great Jungle Journey VBS 2:13 “God made the manatee” He made several other animals in the song but it always comes back to the manatee; a very fun song!
Manatees Are Lovable Huge Things A Twin Sisters® Song With Lyrics! 3:33 A nice song with fact lyrics to sing along with as cartoon pictures move.
I’m a Manatee – John Lithgow 2:51 A fun song like reading a book
The Manatee Song for Kids | Fun Animal Song | Learn About Manatees! 2:29 A song with lyrics while watching a manatee swim leisurely
Discovering Manatees | New Ocean Explorers | Baby Einstein | Toddler Song | Kids Cartoons 2:30
Books
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Manatees (National Geographic Kids Readers, Level 2)
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Buy Now → Some Jokes
Kids love jokes so I had to include some good ones here for them!
Printables
Manatee I Spy Printables (2 levels plus 1 I Spy and Color)
2 Manatee Word Scramble Printables (2 levels)
2 Manatee Word Search Printables (2 levels)
2 Manatee How Many Words Printables
Crafts
Manatee Craft for Kids; download and print the template and you will have an easy to make manatee!
Paper Bag Manatee Puppet from floridaocean.org
How to Draw Manatees
Here is some instruction on how to draw manatees. They are all a little bit different and the outcome of what the manatee looks like is a bit different so you can choose which you like.
How To Draw A Cartoon Manatee by Art for Kids Hub 8:42 on YouTube
How to Draw a Manatee by Easy Drawing Guides; step by step
How to Draw a Manatee Easy by Draw So Cute 7:48 (This is the most realistic looking one.)
I found the facts for this post from the following sources
It is always good to cite your sources and if you would like to read more details, there is much more information at the links.
Manatee facts and information from myfwc
Manatee FAQ from savethemanatee
Now test what you learned with our Manatee Quiz!
Manatee Interactive Quiz
An interactive quiz to test your knowledge about manatees in a fun way! Multiple choice answers makes it a little easier.
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Manatee 21 Inch Stuffed Animal
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Manatee Coffee Mug, Custom Name
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Just A Girl Who Loves Manatees Custom Name Tumbler
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Boys Girls Manatee Lover T-Shirt
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Cindy
Welcome! I am a wife, mother, mother-in-law, Grammy, daughter, sister and retired homeschooler. I enjoy writing about things I have learned over the years, sharing recipes and tips with others and making free printables for parents and teachers.
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