Ocean Theme Fun Preschool Unit
Explore the ocean with this study unit prepared for you and your preschoolers. The thematic unit is filled with hands-on activities to support math, literacy, music, and more.
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What do you love most about the seaside? Splashing in the water? Collecting shells? Feeling the sand between your toes?
There's so much to explore in and around the ocean: sea creatures, sea moss, rocks and sand, ocean waves. And there are so many ways to build interest and engagement with your preschoolers.
This ocean themed unit has crafts, games, stories and sensory play to fill up your weekly planner.
Activities are hands-on, using everyday materials, and no printables are required.
Ocean Themed Unit for Preschool
The unit is created with the help of our A.B.C Model for preschool program planning.
Included are Activities, Books and Crafts for a week or more of under-the-sea exploration.
You'll also find creative ideas for circle time with preschoolers.
A) - Activities for an Ocean Study Unit
Science
1. Examine 'sediment' by mixing earth elements in a jar.
2. Place a variety of items in a water bin to explore 'sink and float'.
Math
1. Play a memory game with a homemade set of penguin cards.
2. Go on a scavenger hunt. Hide toy sea animals or sea shells around the room for kids to find. When you find all the hidden items, sort into categories: sort the animals by land or sea habitats; sort the shells by size or shape.
Fine motor
1. Small World Play: Make homemade playdough, or homemade magic sand, blue for the sea, and brown for the sand. Set up small world play on a tray or box lid, with the ocean, the sand, and sea animal figures.
2. Art: Apply self-adhesive contact paper, or masking tape, sticky side up, to a wooden board or plastic tray. Kids place blue pompoms, or torn paper pieces, on the tape to create an ocean design. Place brown or green pompoms, or torn paper pieces, for sand and sea grass.
Sensory
1. Create a sensory bin with artificial sea moss, plastic sea creatures, and artificial plants.
2. Fill a bin with water. Add funnels, spoons, cups and bowls, for splashing, pouring and filling.
3. Provide sandbox play with sea shells, polished stones, and scoops.
Related: Fun Ways to Play with Sand in Crafts and Activities
Pretend Play
1. Spread out a blue blanket for the ocean. Pretend to be a whale diving in and out of the water.
2. Make fish puppets and a puppet theater to create and perform sea stories.
3. Spread a blue blanket on the floor. Place cardboard fish cutouts on your blue blanket ocean. Attach a paper clip to each fish. Make a fishing rod with a dowel and string. Attach a small magnet to the end of the string. Try to catch a fish on the magnet!
Music
Five Green and Speckled Frogs
B) - Books for an Ocean Study Unit
(affiliate links)
Mrs. Peanuckle's Ocean Alphabet by Mrs. Peanuckle
The Snail and the Whale by Julia Donaldson
National Geographic Little Kids First Big Glimpse of the Ocean
Under the Sea Touch and Feel Book
What Lives in a Shell? by Kathleen Weidner Zoehfeld
Ocean Animals for Kids by Bethanie Hestermann
C) - Crafts for an Ocean Study Unit
Circle Time
1. Display pictures of the ocean and sea animals. Talk about the creatures and the properties of their habitat.
2. Create a wall chart outlining the sea and land and sky. Sort pictures of birds and animals to place in their appropriate habitats.
3. Play a takeaway game with sea shells or sea animals.
4. Pack a tote bag for the beach. Provide a variety of items to choose from that would be needed for a beach day. Include items that don't belong.
5. Shake sand and water in a small jar. Observe motion, color, and sound.
6. Create a sticky chart using contact paper with sticky side out. Add blue wavy pieces of paper to make an ocean.
7. Make some jelly fish felt cutouts for the felt board. Add craft eyes or felt eyes and a numeral to each jelly fish. Kids can count out and add felt tentacles to each jelly fish to correspond with the number on the jelly fish.
8. Role play a day at the beach: row a boat; dig in the sand; move up and down like waves; fly like a sea gull.
Printable PDF
Bring your love of the seaside to your early learners with this educational unit. Your excitement and energy will make this a fun learning experience for everyone.
