Exciting Ocean Animal Crafts to Kick Off Summer

The summer months always remind me of the beach and all the fun animals there are to see at the coast. To kick off summer or to welcome another great year, I like to have my kids do a few ocean animal crafts from this bundle. I have done a variety of things each year to utilize these little animals, I’ll show you some of my favorites.

Bulletin Board Ideas

Whether it’s to welcome summer or a new school year, ocean animals are a great addition to any bulletin board. To kick off a great year, I love making a bulletin board that says, “Diving into a Great Year”. This can easily be customized to any grade level or it can be used as a school wide bulletin board. I have the kids create a scuba diver craft to add to the board. The kids love when we attach their actual faces to the scuba divers for everyone to see!

The fish craft is great if you want to make a bulletin board that says, “We are O-FISH-ALLY first graders”. Of course, you can add any grade level into the title, but you get the point. The fish is super simple to cut out and if you print him on white paper, the kids can decorate it with their own patterns, too.

I also like to “Whale-come” the kids to another year with a cute whale craft. The whale also goes well with a writing about ocean animals piece. You can have it say, “Something to Spout About!”. Can you tell I like punny bulletin boards?

Ocean Animal Studies

The ocean is FULL of amazing creatures we can learn about. My kiddos love researching different animals each year, writing reports on their findings and completing a craft to finish up the unit. One of their favorites is always the dolphin. I like telling the kids that I swam with dolphins on a cruise and they love seeing the fun pictures. There are always a few that have experienced the same thing, too.

We also love learning about all types of crabs. We watch videos of the little crabs scuttling around on the ocean floor and learn what they eat. This cute crab is a great craft to use to decorate your classroom. We love reading the story, Clumsy Crab by Ruth Galloway, because it is extremely silly.

The jellyfish is an intriguing sea creature to study because of the way their bodies work. Their tops don’t sting, but their tentacles are dangerous. If the kids have watched Finding Nemo, they’ll make sure to tell you this fun fact.

Another sea creature with squiggly tentacles is the octopus. We watch videos of how octopuses move and change. We really enjoy watching videos of them camouflaging their bodies and fitting into teeny tiny spaces in their coral reefs. They truly are fascinating.

Every time I see a pufferfish, I think of the one in Finding Nemo and I get a good laugh. These creatures are exciting to research. The kids like finding out fun facts about them and comparing them to land animals that work in similar ways. We compare and contrast them to porcupines or hedgehogs if we get the chance.

More Ocean Animals

You can’t forget the shark! We always do a shark craft during Shark Week. We check out all the different types of sharks, write a short piece about them and complete this friendly shark craft to display.

Then, there’s the seahorse! An incredible sea creature that is raised by the male parent. Kids really enjoy learning about them, the way they move and how they grow up. Their colorful bodies make great classroom displays too. Sometimes, we read Mister Seahorse by Eric Carle. His books are some of my favorites!

You can’t go wrong with a starfish craft! The cute little starfish are easy to cut out and color if you choose. I like to make multiple animals and add some starfish to the bottom of our display. They really make our ocean themed bulletin boards pop!

If you’ve ever been to the aquarium or zoo, you may have been able to touch a stingray or manta ray. Their cool, slippery skin is so fun to touch. When we make it out to the aquarium, we always complete this craft to go with our trip.

Finally, we have the sea turtle! There are so many fun facts students can learn about sea turtles. Just like all the other wonderful creatures of the sea, they are fascinating animals. I always use sea turtles to encourage kids not to litter and to take care of our environment.

This ocean animal crafts bundle, complete with 16 crafts, will keep you and your littles entertained all summer long. I hope they make your bulletin boards a little brighter and inviting as we end one school year and begin another!