During the summer, we are all spending more time close to water point, and whether in a river, a lake or the sea, there are always pretty things to collect with the kids.
In this post, I'm going to detail several creations to make with children based on shells.
The crabs
Decorative or the basis of a game, the shell crab is a classic. It's quick and easy to make.
This activity lets children play with painting, gluing and cutting.
Here are the two DIY (materials and step-by-step tutorial) to make:
- a crab : here
- a crab race (special mention for this activity, which the kids really loved): here
The turtles
Here are two propositions to create a turtle shell using seashells collected by your children during your various peregrinations.
- Clay and shells : here
- Paper and shell: here
What's really cool here is that you can keep the same base (paper or clay) and replace the shells with rocks, pine cones, hazelnuts, etc. to create tortoises (a good solution if you're going on vacation in the mountains, forests, etc.).
Rather than collecting children's finds by putting them in a box, by using them to do a manual activity, their treasures are not forgotten: "I made this turtle with the shells I brought back from Nordkoster."
The portholes
This is one of the activities I loved doing with Minus and Minusculette. Creating porthole paintings to discuss marine animals, and reusing collected shells to make a beautiful piece of art.
- Twenty thousand leagues under the seas : here
Main aims of this activity:
- learn/recognize the different animals and plants of the marine world (with older children, discuss ecology and biology)
- use a variety of techniques: collage, cutting, painting, coloring, etc.
- learn about different textures: soft (felt), smooth (paint), rough (semolina).
The +: With young children (< 3 y), a simplified version is possible using stickers (I added a layer of varnish to well maintain them).
The frog
This DIY is a little more complicated, as it requires to find the right balance to allow the frog to stand, thus the gluing is a bit tricky.
But the result is so cool.
- The frog on its water lily : here
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