A Day at the Seaside

Identify beachcomber finds. Make a beach with pebbles, shells, driftwood sand and water.

FREE

Collaborative working.  Encourage children to distribute tasks fairly and through discussion.

Creativity. Make a beach out of natural materials.

The Environment. Identify creatures of the sea-shore.

A patch of bare ground soft enough to dig with plastic trowels. Beach buckets and spades. One metre square of blue tarpaulin per group. 2 x 25 kilo bag of beach sand. Quantity of beachcomber finds – shells, small driftwood, crab shells, seaweed.

  1. Explore the finds. Describe the colours, texture, smells and appearance of the shells, driftwood, seaweed. How do we identify a mollusc? How do we identify a crustacean?
  2. Make a mini-beach. Dig a shallow scoop in the ground to contain the water. Spread the one metre square of tarpaulin over the scoop and cover the edges with sand, using buckets and spades. Make a sandy beach around the edges, leaving the shallow scoop empty and clean. Encourage children to keep it clear of sand and debris. Decorate the beach with shells, seaweed, driftwood and cobbles. Fill the scoop carefully with water to finish your beach.
  3. Tidy up and save all materials used. Take of the shells, cobbles, seaweed and driftwood and put back in storage containers. Pick up the corners of the tarpaulin, drain off the water and put the sand back into buckets.

© Chris Trwoga 2024. All rights reserved. Permission is given to download, save and print this document for personal use only.