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Shallows, Open Sea, Deep Dark is a free printable Grade 3 science worksheet on arguing which ocean habitats suit a sea organism and which do not, aligned to NGSS performance expectation 3-LS4-3. It prints 3 questions with an answer key on its own sheet of paper, in 25 versions that each ask different questions, so no two students in the class work from the same page. Print it from the browser or download it as a PDF — no account, no email.

Set 9 of 25 · the same problems every time you open this link.

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Set 1 has all 25 in a single PDF. All 25 sets ask different questions.

Shallows, Open Sea, Deep Dark

3-LS4-3

NameDate

Sort each one into how well it would survive there.

1.Sort each one: Survives well here or Survives less well here or Cannot survive here?

Sort: Coral on a warm, clear, shallow reef, Kelp in cloudy water where little light reaches, A goldfish in salty sea water

Survives well hereSurvives less well hereCannot survive here
2.Sort each one: Survives well here or Survives less well here or Cannot survive here?

Sort: A cod in sea water warmer than it likes, Kelp on the floor of the deep dark sea, An anglerfish in the deep dark sea

Survives well hereSurvives less well hereCannot survive here
3.Sort each one: Survives well here or Survives less well here or Cannot survive here?

Sort: Kelp on rocks in shallow sunlit water, A starfish left on a hot dry beach, Coral in cloudy water near a muddy river mouth

Survives well hereSurvives less well hereCannot survive here

LessonPrint · 3-LS4-3 · Set 9 · free to copy for classroom use

Answer key — Shallows, Open Sea, Deep Dark

Set 9. Prints on its own sheet.

  1. 1.1. A goldfish in salty sea water — Cannot survive here 2. Coral on a warm, clear, shallow reef — Survives well here 3. Kelp in cloudy water where little light reaches — Survives less well here
  2. 2.1. A cod in sea water warmer than it likes — Survives less well here 2. An anglerfish in the deep dark sea — Survives well here 3. Kelp on the floor of the deep dark sea — Cannot survive here
  3. 3.1. A starfish left on a hot dry beach — Cannot survive here 2. Coral in cloudy water near a muddy river mouth — Survives less well here 3. Kelp on rocks in shallow sunlit water — Survives well here

Last reviewed 2026-09-05. Aligned to 3-LS4-3 of the Next Generation Science Standards.