Children love learning about whales and dolphins. WDC is involved in educational projects across the world and outreach activities from our Scottish Dolphin Centre.
WDC offers a variety of Primary School learning resources which can be downloaded below.
Three engaging, interactive sessions are available, linked to key topics in Science:
- Food chains
- Habitats
- Litter and pollution
Each of these topic sessions can be covered in a single lesson and are free to download.
Our presentations and activities are curriculum-linked, and use children’s natural wonder about whales and dolphins to inspire them to explore these topics.
Litter and pollution

Age groups: Years KS1/KS2 and Scottish Primary 3 – 7
Information about plastic pollution for students. Discover the threat that litter and pollution can cause to whales and dolphins, and how long different materials take to break down in the sea. Explore how we can help by looking at what can be recycled, the choices we can make when shopping, and how we might change fishing nets to make them safer.
Resources available:
Class activities
Habitats

Age groups: Years KS1/KS2 and Scottish Primary 3 – 7
Discover how whales and dolphins are adapted to live in their habitats. Explore what they need to be healthy and happy, and how human activity can threaten their habitats.
Resources available:
Class activities
Food Chains

Age group: Years KS2 and Scottish Primary 4 – 7
Discover how whales and dolphins find and catch their food. Explore an ocean food web and find out why whales are so important to the other animals in the web. Think about how humans are part of this food web, and how we can make things safer for whales and dolphins.
Resources available:
Class activities
Dolphin Defenders
Join Dolphin Defenders, our new challenge award especially for children aged 8 and over who love whales and dolphins. It’s fun and easy to do.

Porpoise Protectors
Become a Porpoise Protectors, our award especially for children aged 7 and under. Contains activities, information and colouring sheets.

The Snail and the Whale activity pack
We are delighted to announce that Whale and Dolphin Conservation and Macmillan Children’s Books are partnering together to mark the 20th anniversary of the award-winning children’s book The Snail and the Whale, written by Julia Donaldson and illustrated by Axel Scheffler.
Family Activity Pack:
Download our FREE celebratory Family Activity Pack.
This Family Activity Pack contains:
- ‘Make a Whale’ activity sheet.
- Colouring activity of a scene from The Snail and the Whale.
- Axel Scheffler’s step-by-step ‘draw a whale’ exercise.
- Ocean wordsearch.
- Humpback whale factsheet.
We would love to see our Activity Pack pages come to life with your marvellous creations! Send in your drawings to [email protected]
Make you own origami dolphin
Watch the video below and follow our easy step-by-step instructions.
Scottish Dolphin Centre
Bring your class for a day visit to WDC’s Scottish Dolphin Centre at Spey Bay in the Moray Firth. Our enthusiastic education team provides fun hands-on and outdoor activities exploring various topics including whales and dolphins, local wildlife, history of Spey Bay and much more. Our education team also offers in-school workshops for schools in the local area.
Amazing facts about whales and dolphins
Dive deeper into the world of whales and dolphins and learn more about their lives.




Facts about whales
Amazing facts about whales, the largest mammals to live on Earth.
Facts about dolphins
From the orca to the tiny vaquita, learn more about these creatures.
Record breakers
Whales and dolphins hold some incredible records.
Brain power
Just how intelligent are whales and dolphins?