JELLY FISH FINGERPLAY- Cut out a jelly fish shape in each of the following colors: orange, pink, blue and clear(use clear contact paper). Attach a popsicle sitck to each of them to make a puppet. Then hold up one of the puppets and sing the song below, letting the children name the color of the jelly fish.

(Sung To: My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean)
This jelly fish lives in the ocean,
This jelly fish lives in the sea
This jelly fish lives in the ocean
Oh, (name of color) jelly fish swim by me.

DRAMATIC AREA- Provide a few beach bags packed with towels, sunglasses, hats, visors, pails, shovels, empty suntan lotion bottles, and a pretend snack. If you have a Little Tykes boat put it in there also.

SINK AND FLOAT- Fill sand and water table with water. Lay out an assortment of things that will sink and float. Items like, sponge, cork, wooden block, toy car, crayon, scissors, large paper clip, and a plastic straw. Have the children guess what will sink or float before putting in the water.

SAND AND SEA JAR- Fill a clear plastic bottle or jar with layers of rocks, shells, sand, and water. Encourage the children to shake the jar as you discuss how sand is formed over a long period of time from the grinding of rocks against other rocks and shells.

WAVE BOTTLE- Fill a small plastic jar with a little more that half full of water. Add two or three drops pf blue food coloring to the water and mix well. Fill the rest of the jar with mineral oil. (fill to the top or air bubbles can form). Put the lid on tightly hot gluing it to stay in place. Hold the bottle sideways and gently tip it to create "waves". Before adding the oil and water you can drop some sand and shells into the bottle, and some sequins for the sparkling effect.

LIFE IN THE SEA BULLETIN BOARD- Create the background of the sea life mural by spreading out two large sheets of butcher paper on the floor. Let the children finger paint one of the strips blue and the other brown. Add sand to the brown strip for a realistic sandy floor. When the paint is dry, make the water and sea floor background. During classtime, let the children join you in applying seaweed to the scene, by taking long strips of tissue paper or crepe paper. As the children create pictures and examples of the sea life add a few of these creations to the bulletin board scene..and watch the sea come alive.

RAISE SEA MONKEYS- You will need a 2 liter pop bottle, ruler, marker, scissors, spoon, measuring spoons, 2 Tbsp. rock salt or kosher salt, brine shrimp (get at any pet store), magnifying lenses, and a package of dry yeast. Cut off the top of the bottle about 2 inches from the neck. Fill the bottle full of water and let it sit for a day. Add the salt and stir until it is completely dissolved. Sprinkle 1/4 tsp. of brine shrimp eggs on the surface of the water. Place the bottle in a warm spot but not directly in the sun. Over the next few days you should see signs of movement. Feed the shrimp by sprinkling a few grains of yeast on the water every third day.

STARFISH- Draw a star fish on blue paper. Apply glue to the inside of the star fish shape and then sprinkle on dry oatmeal. Let dry and remove the excess.

Five little fish went swimming one day
Over the sea and far away
When the mommy fish called
"Come back, come back"
Only four little fish came swimming back
Continue the song until zero fish come back...and then sing,
Then a great big whale came swimming past
And five little fish swam back so fast!

SEA STAR COOKIES- The children take a star shaped cookie cutter and make sea stars out of bread slices. Spread butter on the sea stars anf sprinkle with grated cheese. Then toast in the oven, cool and eat.

CINNAMON SEA SNAILS- You will need cresent roll dough, soft butter, cinnamon, and sugar. Seperate the dough into triangles. Have the children spread the butter on one side, sprinkle the cinnamon and the sugar over the butter. Start with one end of the triangle and roll into a spiral. Bake as directed, let cool and enjoy!

Make light brown playdough and add sand to it for texture

I SPY JAR-Fill a large polastic bottle with sand. Drop familiar objects into the bottle. Tighten the lid. As the children turn the bottle, different objects will surface. Name the objects, give clues for the children to find a certain item. Attach a card with pictures of the items.

SENSORY WALK- Set out dish pans or tubs of water, sand, and canned spinach(pretend seaweed). Have the children step into the tubs one at a time with their bare feet. At the end of the walk have a beach towel for them to step on. Add marbles to the sand and let them dig for the pearls with their toes.

SINK AND FLOAT SALAD- Take a baggie that ziplocks. Put crushed pineapple on the bottom, then jello, then grated coconut and last mini marshmallows.

OCTOPUS BUBBLES- Pour half a glass of pineapple juice. Add club soda to fill the glass. Stir and enjoy.

EDIBLE AQUARIUM- Softened cream cheese with a few drops of blue food coloring added, melba toast, goldfish crackers. Spread the blue cream cheese on to the melba toast, put a few goldfish on top.