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Preschool Ocean Theme Activities

June 29, 2018 by Sheryl Cooper

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Inside: Put together preschool ocean theme activities that are full of exploration and fun! This collection includes science, art, sensory, and fine motor ideas for the classroom.

Our last theme of the school year is the ocean. Of course, the best way to teach this would be to actually take them TO the beach, but it’s not close enough for us. Plus, our families are fortunate to visit the coast, making our preschool ocean theme that much more meaningful. This collection of preschool ocean theme activities are fun and engaging!

What I love about this theme is that there are so many fun ways to study shells and ocean animals! From the science table, to the art center, inside the sensory bin, on top of the light table, and in the books we read.

Here’s some of our favorites!

Preschool Ocean Theme Ideas - Teaching 2 and 3 Year Olds

Preschool Ocean Theme Activities

During our morning meeting I like to introduce what we will be doing that day.

preschool ocean theme

I read an ocean book and then brought out my basket of assorted shells. We noticed how they had different textures.

 

preschool ocean theme

Group meetings are perfect for passing objects around, so we carefully passed the shells from one friend to the other, running our fingers across them.

preschool ocean theme

Shells at the Playdough Table

My co-teacher made this playdough that same morning, so it was still warm. You can just feel it now, right? It was quite relaxing, and I’m sure that’s a big reason why all 6 chairs at the table were occupied much of centers time.

preschool ocean theme

We provided rolling pins to roll the dough flat, and small shells to poke into the dough.

preschool ocean theme

Shells at the Light Table

preschool ocean theme

Oh, how we love our light table! While it’s fun as a surface for small world play and construction, it’s also perfect for exploring. The light highlighted the details of the shells, making them so inviting to touch.

preschool ocean theme

Shells at the Science Table

Long ago, as a new teacher, I had made these colored paper starfish and had them laminated. It was for some circle time activity, I am quite sure (oh, my poor memory), but I thought they’d be fun at the science table. I also included a photograph of shells, a display of shells, and a couple of ocean discovery bottles.

preschool ocean theme

Our toddlers and preschoolers love to explore at this small round table. It’s a perfect size for 1, 2, or maybe even 3 children. There is a shelf under the table to store books. I have no idea where this table was originally purchased. My co-teacher’s mom found it at a local Goodwill, along with 2 chairs. Score!

preschool ocean theme

Of course, a shell must be put against the ear to “hear the ocean”!

preschool ocean theme

Jellyfish at the Art Table

watercolor jellyfish craft

You can read all about this art activity here. Not only were they fun to make, but they also looked lovely hanging from our classroom ceiling.

watercolor jellyfish craft

Toddler Fish Art

Toddler Ocean Art

Our toddlers loved stamping curved paper tube rolls onto fish-shaped paper! You can read more about that here.

Toddler Ocean Art

Ocean Sensory Bin

Ocean Theme Sensory Bin

I found these small fish aquarium nets and added aquarium gravel and sea animals. You can read all about it here.

Ocean Theme Sensory Bin

Beach Day

The grand finale of our ocean theme was beach day with our preschoolers. They wore beach attire to school and brought their towels. We played beach music, made ice cream, and were so happy the sun was actually shining that day. Because, where we live, that’s not often the case in May.

preschool ocean theme

 


More beach and ocean activities:

Easy Ocean Discovery Bottles

Toddler Ocean Sensory Bin

Toddler Fish Art with Lots of Stamping

Fun Color Sorting Fish Sensory Bin

Ocean Theme Activities

 

 

Planning your ocean theme? We’ve done the work for you!

I am so excited to be a co-author of these ocean theme lesson plans!

24 preschool learning activities for your ocean theme, including literacy, math, science, art, fine motor, and more! A great resource for teachers and homeschoolers.

24 preschool learning activities that cover:

Literacy
Math
Science
Fine Motor
Sensory
Gross Motor
Art
Social Studies
Music
Circle Time
Social/Emotional

 

Preschool Ocean Theme Lesson Plans

 

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Filed Under: preschool, summer activities, Themes, Toddlers Tagged With: ocean, preschool, summer, themes, toddlers

About Sheryl Cooper

Sheryl Cooper is the founder of Teaching 2 and 3 Year Olds, a website full of activities for toddlers and preschoolers. She has been teaching this age group for over 20 years and loves to share her passion with teachers, parents, grandparents, and anyone with young children in their lives.

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Welcome! I'm Sheryl Cooper, teacher of 2 and 3 year olds for over 19 years. Read more about me here!

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