Teaching Tools about freshwater dolphins and conserving freshwater resources

Use this toolkit to explore, analyze, and discuss the importance of protecting freshwater dolphins and conserving freshwater resources around the world. These resources are geared towards students in grades 3-5 and can be used in any learning environment.

Background Resources for Educators

This resource guide and interactive classroom presentation are designed to give you all the information you need to teach your students about dolphins and freshwater habitats. These resources provide fun freshwater dolphin facts, and information around why they matter, what threats they face, what WWF is doing to help dolphins and freshwater resources, and what kids can do to help.

  • Educator's Resource Guide

    Educator's Resource Guide

  • Freshwater Dolphin Classroom Presentation

    Freshwater Dolphin Classroom Presentation

Learning Activities

  • STEM

    Nature's Sponges

    Students build models of wetland ecosystems that represent the necessity and importance of these habitats.

  • Math

    A Drop in the Bucket

    Students will evaluate their current daily water use and be tasked with designing a new daily routine, imagining they were limited in the amount of water available, as many areas of the world are.

  • Language Arts

    Like the River Flows

    After explaining how rivers are like the arteries and veins of the Earth, students will develop their own metaphors and similes in a poem that reflects the importance of free-flowing rivers.

  • Dolphin Geography Flipbooks

    Students will create flipbooks containing information on the threats and habitats of the existing seven species of freshwater dolphins and their neighboring communities who share their water resources.

  • Arts Education

    The Umbrella Effect

    To represent the important role that Amazon river dolphins have in their ecosystem, students will create hanging mobiles with dolphins as the centerpiece.

  • Physical Education

    Food or Foe?

    A dolphin-twist on the game Marco Polo, students will understand how dolphins have adapted to find food without the use of their sight.

Printables

  • Amazon River Dolphin Species Card

    Amazon River Dolphin Species Card

  • Freshwater Dolphin Posters (8.5x11)

    Freshwater Dolphin Posters (8.5x11)

  • Freshwater Dolphin Posters (11x17)

    Freshwater Dolphin Posters (11x17)

  • River Dolphin Word Puzzle

    River Dolphin Word Puzzle

  • Certificate of Achievement

    Certificate of Achievement

River Dolphin and Freshwater Video Playlist

We've compiled the following playlist of freshwater dolphin and river-related videos to compliment the activities within the Freshwater Dolphin Toolkit. For more educational videos and Q&A sessions with our experts, subscribe to WWF's Wild Classroom YouTube channel.