What is the goal of text-based discussions?

1. What is the goal of text-based discussions? • How do we facilitate this goal? • What might hinder this goal?

2. How craft questions that foster inferring, elaboration, interpretation?

3. How craft questions that foster inferring, elaboration, interpretation? • The manta ray was once known to sailors as the “devil fish” because of the “horns” on its head. The horns are actually fins that guide plankton and shrimp into its mouth. • Q: Why was the manta ray referred to as the “devil fish”? • (OK but…why not that high level?] • Harder, more inferring? • Q: Do you think the sailors thought the devil fish was dangerous? Why? • Q: Now that we’ve read what their horns are used for, do you think the sailors were correct? Why or why not?

4. Q: If polyps are actually living, what might they need to survive? • A: They would need food. • F: What can we learn from the diagram about how polyps eat? • A: They use their tentacles mouth, and stomach. • F: Good. What parts of the polyp are similar and different compared to you? • A: They have a stomach and a mouth, and so do we. • A: But we don’t have tentacles!! • Q: Hmmm….how are the tentacles useful for a polyp? Let’s look back in the text. • A: They use them to stick their food and then push it into their mouth. • F: Do we have anything like tentacles that serve a similar purpose? • A: Yes, our hands. But we don’t sting things like a polyp does. • F: You are right. Why do you think polyps have to sting their food before they eat it? • A: ??? • Living Polyps: (heading) • Polyps eat plankton… • [diagram of a polyp with labeled parts for tentacles, mouth, and stomach]

5. How craft questions that foster inferring, elaboration, interpretation? • Sharks, barracudas, manta rays, and moray eels are among the larges predators of the coral reefs. Each has a different way of hunting prey. • This section is all about how predators catch their food. From these first two sentences,why do you think different predators would have different ways of hunting prey? • Because each predator has different features like sharp teeth or camouflage and they might need different ways to catch different kinds of animals.

6. How craft questions that foster inferring, elaboration, interpretation? • Moray eels hide in caves and then rush out to snatch up lobsters, crabs, and fish. • A sea horse can’t swim away quickly from predators. Instead, it protects itself from camouflage. • Q: Based on what we just read, what can we assume the floor of the reef looks like? And what creatures can be found there? • A: [If eels there, must have lots of caves for them to hide in, and lot of lobsters and crabs nearby] • Q: Yes, reefs have lots of caves for eels to hide in, but why do you think eels would hide before catching their prey? • A: Eels hide so their prey won’t see them coming. • Let’s look back at p. 15 about the sea horse – how is their hiding different? • A sea horse uses camouflage to change color ond hide from its prey.