Sixth Grade
Worksheets
Preserving the Shining Sea from Ocean Pollution
"From sea to shining sea" is a phrase from America the Beautiful, but what happens if the sea isn't shiny and clean anymore? Ocean pollution is a serious problem. It affects many kinds of marine life. Ocean pollution affects people, too.
Oceans cover about 70 percent of Earth's surface. If you could slice through a cross-section of the water, the ocean looks like a blue layer cake. The top layer is called the sunlight zone. This clear, blue zone is only about 600 feet deep. Plants grow well in the sunlight zone because there is enough light for photosynthesis.
Many fish and animals thrive in the sunlight zone. Jellyfish jiggle and bob in this sparkling layer as stingrays glide gracefully by. Tuna, turtles, and seals play and frolic there, too. The sunlight layer is a fun place to be! If you decided to go scuba diving, you would play in the sunlight layer, too.
