Take this test and find out.

1. The ocean covers what percentage of the earth’s surface?
   20%? 50%? 70%?
   
   
2. The ocean supplies what percentage of the world’s supply of oxygen?
   10-20%? 30-50%? 60-80%?
   
   
3. What is the largest ocean in the world?
   Indian Ocean? Pacific Ocean? Atlantic Ocean?
   
   
4. What is the name of the deepest part of the ocean?
   Philippine Deep? Marianas Trench? Peru-Chile Trench?
   
   
5. What organization declared 1998 as the International Year of the Ocean?
   United States Congress? Greenpeace? United Nations?
   
   
6. What is the largest source of pollution to the sea?
   Runoff and discharges from land? Air-borne pollution? Oil spills from tankers
   
   
7. When did the ancestors of modern reef-building corals first appear in the fossil record?
   1 million years ago? 10 million years ago? 225 million years ago?
   
   
8. What is the greatest depth of the ocean?
   5,000 meters? 11,000 meters? 21,000 meters?
   
   
9. Is a whale shark a mammal or a fish?
   
   
10. Why should we protect our seas? (multiple answers acceptable)

CLICK HERE FOR ANSWERS.     

What is a Sea Squirt?

Sea squirts are marine organisms belonging to the family Ascidiaceae. Though seldom noticed or distinguished by casual divers and snorkelers, they are highly interesting and important. They are diverse and colorful, and inhabit all types of marine habitats. They filter bacteria from seawater and can store heavy metals in their tunic (a flexible external covering or 'exoskeleton'). A number of important products have been identified in sea squirts, making these organisms a good candidate for discovery of potential medicinal compounds from the sea.

Children Speak!

This page is for you. If you have any poetry, artwork, photos, comments, experiences about the sea, news, suggestions, questions -- anything at all that you would like to say about our ocean -- send it to

and we'll post them on this page. Don't forget to tell us a bit about yourself (your name, age, the name of your town or city and the name of your country).

Adults who write for children are most welcome too!