A day at the beach is a wonderful way to spend time with your family, enjoying the bounties of nature whether you’re splashing in the lake or combing the beach for interesting shells and rocks. If you have a little beachcomber in your life who just absolutely cannot part with the 13 shells and 27 rocks they found at the beach, here are a couple of ideas of what you can do with those beach treasures at home.
Homemade I Spy
Take a page out of Walter Wick’s library and make up a real-life I Spy activity! Place the shells, rocks, and any other objects you come across into an artful arrangement and make up a few challenges for your child to do, such as “I spy three blue rocks.” Encourage them to make some, too!
Beach-themed Terrarium
Any clear glass jar will do for this mini-art project. Ask your child to choose some shells and rocks that look pretty next to each other, and place them in the jar carefully. If you’re still at the beach, you can start with a layer of sand and then add your shells and rocks. And of course, you can add other things to this terrarium. Lego Pirate minifigure, anyone?
Textured Crayon Rubbings
This is a classic fall activity to do with leaves, but why not try it with seashells as well? Some shells have such beautiful ridges that will leave some very cool patterns on a paper. For older children, challenge them to draw a shell and focus on any interesting details, like the pearly rainbow some shells have on their insides!
Billie’s Book Picks
I Spy Treasure Hunt by Walter Wick & Jean Marzollo
The I Spy collection stands out as the best of the seek-and-find genre of picture books, and my personal favourite is I Spy Treasure Hunt because believe it or not, this one actually has a bit of a story to tell! For inspiration for your own seashell I Spy layout, check out page pg 27-28.
Duck & Goose Go To The Beach by Tad Hills
Duck wants to go to the beach, but Goose is a little bit hesitant. This charming tale of the two best friends’ first trip to the beach is a fun way to relive your own beach experiences, and is a great read-aloud for your little ones.
Good Vibrations by Mike Love & Brian Wilson, illustrated by Paul Hoppe
What’s a day at the beach without the groovy sounds of the Beach Boys? This picture book adaptation of the classic Beach Boys hit is sure to set the mood for your future beach outings, and is a great way to introduce a favourite band to your little ones.
We hope you enjoyed these beachy-keen ideas! If you’d like to share your own ideas, feel free to leave a comment down below, or send an email to childkpl@kpl.org.
POST WRITTEN BY HANNAH V., CHILDREN’S PROGRAMMER