Once upon a time, a shark was swimming in the ocean when he stumbled upon a skeleton. The skeleton was that of a dinosaur who had lived long ago. The shark was amazed to see how the bones held together without any muscles or flesh. He asked the skeleton, "How come you're still standing?" The skeleton replied, "It's all about the cartilage, my friend. It keeps me in balance." The shark was fascinated and asked if he could try out the skeleton's trick. The skeleton agreed, and the shark carefully placed his fins on the surface trying to balance like the skeleton. To his surprise, he couldn't balance at all and kept falling over! The shark laughed and said, "I guess I'll stick to swimming!" And so, the shark and the skeleton became good friends and swam around the ocean together, always having a great time.

Reflections

1. What did the shark learn from the skeleton dinosaur?
2. Why was the skeleton still standing?
3. How did the shark feel about his attempts to balance?
4. How did the shark and skeleton become friends?
5. Can you think of other creatures that have bones and cartilage?