There are so many fascinating creatures that make the intertidal their home – it’s one of our favorite ecosystems to study and explore (and we don’t live anywhere near the ocean)!
Dive into learning about the seashore with these fun activities and resources! (plus FREE printables)
Go on a Tide Pool Scavenger Hunt
If you’re lucky enough to live near the seashore, take some time this summer to go tide pooling. Visit a rocky shoreline during low tide and see how many intertidal creatures you can spot. (Make sure not to remove these animals from their homes!).
Feel free to print out this FREE Tide Pool Scavenger Hunt and bring it with you.
Make Your Own Tide Pool
Don’t live near the ocean? Make your own tide pool!
On a warm sunny day, set out a large, shallow container to act as your tide pool. Put a few scoops of sand on the bottom and add some seashells or small rocks. (Check your local dollar store or craft store for shells, sand dollars and starfish.) Add some mini sea creatures – but try to use only ones that live in the intertidal zone, like sea stars, crabs, fish, etc.
Now take turns making high tide and low tide. Cover the container with several inches of water. This is high tide. Make note of the water temperature and note how some of your items may be floating, or “swimming. “ You can make waves by rocking the container back and forth.
Now make it low tide. Scoop out the water until only a little bit remains. Or, try tilting your container by propping it up on one side, partially exposed to air and partially underwater. After a little while, observe the water temperature. Do you notice a change? Explore how your tide pool creatures might adapt to the changes.
Sort Seashells
Most spiral-shaped shells are home to snails and nautiluses. They grow the shell that surrounds their soft bodies. Shells with two parts are from bivalves, a group of marine mollusks (like clams, mussels, oysters and scallops).
Conchology is the scientific study or collection of mollusk shells. Become a conchologist and sort the shells you have in your collection. We love using this shell sorting activity from The Seashore Journal, but you can just sort them into groups and use the internet to look up what species you have!
Make Salt Dough Shell Mosaics
Make this simple keepsake with your seashells and beach treasures. All you need are some basic pantry
supplies and an assortment of shells. (You can also use Crayola air-dry clay if you’d like to skip steps 1-2
below.)
You will need:
- 2 cups flour
- 1 cup salt
- 1 cup water
- Parchment paper
- Bowl or cup
- Straw (optional)
- Seashells, sand dollars, beach glass or other treasures
- Varnish spray (optional)
In a large bowl, thoroughly mix the flour and salt together. Gradually stir in the water bit by bit, until you get a dough-like consistency. Form it into a ball and knead on a floured surface for 5 minutes. (If the dough gets too sticky, add more flour.) You can use air-dry clay instead if you’d like to skip this process.
Roll the dough out to about ¼-inch thickness. You can lay down parchment paper to protect your table and keep it from sticking to the surface as it dries. Press an upside-down bowl or cup into the dough to cut out a circle shape. If you’d like to hang your creation, use a straw to poke a hole near the top of the circle.
Press your seashells firmly into the dough, deep enough so that they won’t easily fall out, but not so deep that they poke through the back. Allow the pendants to air dry undisturbed for 24-48 hours, or until fully dried. Once they are fully dry, finish the pendants with a spray varnish like Modge Podge spray to seal and add shine.
FREE Seashell Coloring Page
Here’s another freebie for you to use – print out my free Seashell Coloring Page, gather any shells you have collected over the years and see if you can identify them! (You can also print this on cardstock or watercolor paper and have your kids paint the shells.)
For more resources about the intertidal, check out my brand new nature study now available in the shop: The Seashore Journal!
This 55-page hand-illustrated printable includes fact sheets, coloring pages, anatomy pages, hands-on activities, science experiments, art projects, poetry, journaling pages, fact cards, a booklist and more!
In this 5-unit nature study, your student will:
🐚 Learn about each intertidal zone and discover who lives there
🐚 Explore the types of seashores
🐚 Learn about sand and complete a beach erosion science project
🐚 Make a seashore art collage
🐚 Learn all about shells (with a science experiment!)
🐚 Sort seashell types
🐚 Make a seashell mosaic
🐚 Learn about bivalves
🐚 Make easy 3-D paper seashells
🐚 Discover crabs and crustaceans
🐚 Observe how gills work with a hands-on activity
🐚 Learn about jellyfish and make jellyfish art prints
🐚 Discover tide pools and who lives there
🐚 Learn about sea stars and other echinoderms
🐚 Explore water salinity and density with a science experiment
🐚 Go on a tide pool scavenger hunt
Our Favorite Picture Books about the Seashore
The Tide Pool Waits, by Candace Fleming
A Shell is Cozy, by Dianna Hutts Aston
Tide Pool Secrets, by Narelle Oliver
In One Tidepool by Anthony Fredericks
Is This a House for a Hermit Crab? by Megan McDonald
Discover more from Raising Up Wild Things
Subscribe to get the latest posts sent to your email.
