Watson and the Shark A mini inquiry project

Watson and the Shark A mini inquiry project by room 123 September 2013

How Our Research Began Weeks ago, our class saw a painting called Watson and the Shark by John Singleton Copley. At first, we focused on the naked person flouting in the water. We had lots of questions: Why was the person naked? What happened? What kind of shark is it? Where are they? Who are they? We began our first inquiry project and divided into research teams. Click here to learn what we discovered.

Questions we asked: • • • What is the story behind the painting? Who is Watson? Who painted the painting? What kind of shark is in the painting? Can sharks live in fresh water? How can we protect ourselves from sharks?

About the artist Are you wondering about the artist of Watson and the Shark? Well if you are, read on! His name was John Singleton Copley. He was born on July 3, in Boston, Massachusetts. He painted Watson and the Shark in 1778, when he was 40 years old. You would think he painted most of his paintings in America, where he was born, actually he painted most in the United Kingdom. Sadly, he died there on September 9, 1815. You might be wondering if he had a family, well he did. He had a mother and father, Richard and Mary Singleton Copley. John also had a brother, Henry Pelham. He had a wife, Susanna Farnham Clarke, and a son, John Copley Jr. That’s it, but thanks for reading about John Singleton Copley! Go back

Brook Watson Do you see the boy in the water this close to becoming shark food? That person is Brook Watson. This painting is based on the shark attack in Havana Cuba. He survived, but however he lost the lower part of his right leg. Brook was born on February 7 th 1735. He was orphaned at age 6 and started living with his uncle. Then his uncle tragically went bankrupt. Witch caused him to start working in the military in the revolutionary war. Later , he married Hellen Campbell. They had no children. In his later years he became the mayor of London England. He became friends with John Singleton Copley when he asked him to paint the scene. He died October 2 1807 Watson. at age 72. We hope you enjoyed learning Go back

The Story Behind it All Have you ever seen the painting Watson and the shark? If you have did you wonder about the story behind it or did you think it was just some painting a guy created about a horrible event? Imagine being a 14 year old boy about to be eaten by a shark in Havana, Cuba. Well, that’s how Brook Watson felt on the day of the attack. He survived the shark attack. Isn’t that surprising , because it happened in the 1700’s! But I guess he’s not playing soccer ever again because, he lost the lower part of his right leg! Now I know your probably thinking what! That’s weird! Or he lost some of his leg! We thought that too. If you never want to read this again that’s fine, because some of this is really weird. But It’s a true story Go back

We wondered what type of shark was in the painting, Watson and the Shark. We got a total of 9 different types of sharks in Havana Cuban waters. We got the great white, gray nurse shark, bull shark, Hammer head, whale shark, Caribbean reef shark, Oceanic white tip shark, basking shark, And the tiger shark. The whale shark, and the tiger shark eat shrimp and plankton. The bull shark, Hammer head, great white shark are endangered, that means there are not a lot of their species. Thanks for reading our project. Go back

Can sharks live in freshwater Do you think that sharks can live in freshwater? Well they can, there also other dangerous sharks that live an freshwater like the pig eye and the Ganges shark. And the most aggressive that can live in freshwater the bull shark! I know what your thinking a bull! Well the bull shark is even more aggressive! People have found bull sharks in freshwater and salt water. Now do you change your mind about if they can live in freshwater? Go back

Protect Yourself from Sharks! You’re probably wondering how to protect yourself from sharks. Our first advice is, don’t act like a fish. If you wear shiny jewelry, a shark may think you’re a fish and bite you. Don’t splash! A shark will come see what’s doing the splashing. If a shark is curious, it will bite. If you see a shark, leave the water slowly. Another piece of advice is don’t swim in murky water. Sharks are more likely to attack in water where it is difficult to see. Also, if it’s murky because of garbage or animal waste, it might be there looking for food. There are inventions to help protect us from sharks. One is a shark cage, which is made of steel and protects you. Another invention is the Shark shield Freedom 7. It is something you wear that puts electric signals in the water. Because sharks sense the current, they go away.