Materials
12 index cards, 8" by 10"
4 boxes
magazines
scissors (adult use only)
glue
Instructions
1. Display a globe or world map. Draw the children's attention to the large
bodies of water. Ask the children if they know what they are called. Explain
that they are oceans.
2. Set out a sand bucket filled with beanbag ocean animals and land animals,
and show each animal to the children, asking the children to clap if the animal
belongs in the ocean, and to sit quietly if the animal lives on the land.
3. After going through the animals, place a blue blanket in the center of the
circle. Put an animal behind each child's back as they sit in a circle. Ask the
children not to look at their animals until you call their names.
4. Teach the children the following ocean chant, inviting them to bring their
animals, one by one, and say the animals' names in the appropriate places:
Big Blue Ocean by Mary J. Murray
Big blue ocean, filled with life,
There's so much to learn.
Show us what you have, ____ (child's name)
Now it's your turn.
I have a _____. (children take turns saying the names of their animals)
Assessment
Consider the following:
* Can the children differentiate between objects that do and do not belong in
the ocean?
* Display an assortment of objects that do and do not belong in the ocean. Ask
a child to pick up the objects that "don't belong" and put them in a sand pail.
