Shark Week Lesson Plans

When G was younger, we always used Shark Week in July to kick off our new school year. Because what better way to ease back into the school routine than with some FUN science lessons?

Shark Week 2025 starts July 20th.

While we didn’t use much of the actual Discovery Channel’s Shark Week programming, it’s still well-known yearly occurrence with enough promotion and advertising to spark interest in a little kid. So I always curated our own Shark Week activities.

So here are three different lesson groupings so you can have your own Shark Week! These lessons will span multiple elementary grades so you can engage all your students.

Shark Week Lesson 1 – Introduction to the Oceans

Watch this video to learn the Five Oceans. (backup/alternative video here)

Ocean Facts – this is available in my Teacher’s Pay Teachers store, HOWEVER, for the month of July only, you can get it for FREE: – Click here to download the Ocean Facts reading passage with True/False activity – Click here to download the Ocean Facts fill in the blank (you may need the reading passage in the previous download)

Optional Older Child/Middle School Activity: Watch this video on the importance of oceans and write a paragraph on why oceans are important.

Watch this video on sharks.

Parts of the Shark – Identify the Parts of the Shark. Worksheet available in my Shark Week Pack. Then draw your own shark! Make sure to include all it’s parts!

Shark Week Lesson 2 – Types of Sharks

Read Sharks: Fascinating Creatures of the Deep (available in my Shark Week Pack. ) If you have some available or have a change to get some, have a sheet of sandpaper so the students can feel it when you read about what a shark’s skin feels like.) Bonus activity: Take your shark drawings from day one (or draw new ones!), place the paper on top of the sandpaper and color your shark with a crayon.

Check out Discovery Channel’s Shark Week Gallery for photos and facts on a variety of species of sharks. Flip through the photos and read the facts.

Pre-writers can use the Shark Facts tracer sheet to write Shark Facts. More established writers can used the lined shark paper to write their own Shark Facts. (Sheets available in my Shark Week Pack. ) Optional Older Child/Middle School Activity: Write a paragraph on general shark facts OR one species of shark you find interesting.

Learn about the largest fish in the sea, the Whale Shark. Is it a whale or a shark? Watch the video!

Shark Week Lesson 3: Fascinating Shark Features

Check out BlueWorldTV’s Shark Academy to learn more fascinating things about Sharks! Shark coloration, How do Sharks breathe, and Shark Teeth.

It’s time to put your knowledge to the test! Sharks: Fact or Opinion and Sharks can/have/are (both available in my Shark Week Pack.)

Learn how to separate fact from opinion with the Fact or Opinion activity sheet. Help them discern more facts from opinions by asking them if these are facts or opinions: – Sharks breath through gills. – The tiger shark is the best shark. – The whale shark is the biggest shark. – Shark skin is rough like sandpaper. – The hammerhead is the weirdest shark.

Use one of the Sharks Can/Have/Are sheets to recall more knowledge about sharks.

Need more printables?

Get these free printable Ultimate Shark-athon Facts puzzles from Dover. There are five puzzles you can print plus the answers, just click on the numbers at the top right to scroll through them. Shark-themed puzzles include: Hammerhead shark word scramble, Saw Sharks word find, Bull Shark crossword, shark attack prevention crossword and shark survival crossword.

And don’t forget to top it all off with SNACKS!

Check out this post to find out how to make your own SHARK-uterie board to snack on during Shark Week. Includes the printable cutout decorations!