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    Home » Under the Sea themed activities – Early Years

    Under the Sea themed activities – Early Years

    May 25, 2022 By Emma Vanstone 1 Comment

    One of the things I love the most about Science Sparks is theming our activities, so today I’ve got some great Under the Sea themed learning ideas to share. These are mostly suitable for Early Years/Kindergarten age, but all could be extended for older children too.

    If you like these activity ideas don’t forget to check out my complete collection of Early Years Science ideas.

    Under the Sea Themed Activity Ideas for Early Years

    Under the Sea Sensory Jar

    Make an Under the Sea themed sensory jar. This is quite a large example, but you could use small water bottles and make lots of mini sensory bottles.

    Ocean themed density bottle or sensory jar. A great sensory activity for Early Years

    What can you do with a sensory jar?

    • What happens if the jar is put on one side? Try simulating the motion of waves.
    • How many shells can be counted on the bottom?
    • Ask children to find an object which will float on the top of the oil?
    • Try hiding some plastic letters to spell out a word.
    • Think about why the oil floats on top of the water. This is because oil is less dense than water.

    More under the sea themed activity ideas

    Try to clean up a mini oil spill. This is a great activity for starting to think about the effect of human activities on marine life.

    oil spill activity. Image shows a glass tray filled with blue water and a layer of vegetable oil floating on the top.

    We love this small world ocean theme from Rainy Day Mum.

    ocean themed, small world set up

    Red Ted Art has a super cute octopus made from tights.

    How gorgeous is this  under the sea playdough from The Imagination Tree?

    ocean themed play dough from The Imagination Tree

    Paint an under the sea themed picture on ice ( fun for summer or winter )

    an under the sea picture painted on a sheet of ice

    Try some ice fishing. This is a brilliant activity for learning about freezing and melting!

    a container of water and two children doing an science experiment where they drop ice cubes into the water like a fishing rod to investigate how fast the ice melts

    Learn about pollution with our ocean themed jar, again you could do this on a much smaller scale than our large container.

    Jar of water with sand at the bottom and toy fish. The jar has litter and black food colouring in to demonstrate the effect of pollution of marine animals.

    Crack the code in the shells to find a hidden message. This is a great first coding activity for young children.

    pirate code activity for early years

    Make a shoe box ocean scene. This is a great prop for talking about what you’d expect to see in the ocean ( I can’t take credit for this as my daughter made it in school ), but we did add a moving fish to the side and have been making up stories using little extras for inspiration.

    box-aquarium

    More ocean themed activities for kids

    Ask some questions. Why is the ocean blue? is a good place to start!

    Find out what would happen if the ice caps melted with this very visual demonstration.

    Find out about the effect of single use plastics on the ocean.

    Turtle with a plastic bag in its mouth

    Learn about an ancient fish called a Coelacanth.

    Make a Rainbow Fish with lots of silver foil scales. Children can then practice sharing the scales evenly between the fish.

    Visit an aquarium if you are lucky enough to live near one!

    Jelly fish from Monterey Bay Aquarium
    Jelly fish in Monterey Bay Aquarium

    Ocean Themed Book Suggestions

    Our current favourite book for an ocean topic is What a Shell Can Tell. This is a fascinating book about the wonders of shells. The question and answer format makes the book easy to dip in and out of and really showcases the huge diversity of shells around the world! Did you know that there is a type of shell shaped like a little elephant’s tusk?

    Boy holding a large book about shells What a Shell Can Tell
    Page of book, What a Shell Can Tell

    We also love Tiddler and Rainbow Fish!

    collage of pollution activities for kids, a blue water density jar and  a sea turtle for an under the sea module of learning

    Can you think of any more under the sea themed activities for us?

    Contains affiliate links

    Last Updated on May 25, 2022 by Emma Vanstone

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    Safety Notice

    Science Sparks ( Wild Sparks Enterprises Ltd ) are not liable for the actions of activity of any person who uses the information in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources. Science Sparks assume no liability with regard to injuries or damage to property that may occur as a result of using the information and carrying out the practical activities contained in this resource or in any of the suggested further resources.

    These activities are designed to be carried out by children working with a parent, guardian or other appropriate adult. The adult involved is fully responsible for ensuring that the activities are carried out safely.

    Reader Interactions

    Comments

    1. maggy, red ted art

      February 09, 2015 at 12:13 pm

      Such wonderful ideas!

      Reply

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