AREA SETUP
(Open thematic poster-Octopuses) Print, laminate, and display all kinds of posters.
Educa-decorate-Octopuses
(Open educa-decorate-Octopuses) Print, cut out, and laminate. Use the items to decorate the walls of your daycare and set the mood for the theme.
Garland-Octopuses
(Open models-Octopuses) Print. Let children decorate the garland. Cut it out and hang it within your daycare or near your daycare entrance.
Educa-theme-Octopuses
(Open educa-theme-Octopuses) Print and laminate the items that represent the theme. Use them to present the theme to your group (and parents) while decorating your daycare.
Stickers-Octopuses
(Open stickers-Octopuses) Print the illustrations on adhesive paper. Cut out the items and use the stickers to reward children.
SPECIAL TOOL
The following special tool was created in response to a special request received. (Open group identification-Octopuses) Print and use the items to identify children's belongings and decorate your daycare.
CIRCLE TIME
Animated discussion-Octopuses
(Open picture game-Octopuses) Print and laminate the pictures in the format you prefer. Use them to spark a conversation and ask children questions.
PICTURE GAME
(Open picture game-Octopuses) Use the pictures to decorate your daycare or to spark a conversation with your group. Print, laminate, and store the pictures in a Ziploc bag or in your thematic bin.
Memory game-Octopuses
(Open picture game-Octopuses) Print the pictures twice and use them for a traditional memory game.
ACTIVITY SHEETS
(Open activity sheets-Octopuses) Print and follow instructions.
Educa-spots-Octopuses
(Open educa-spots-Octopuses) Print for each child. Use bingo markers to color inside the spots. If you don't have bingo markers, you may simply invite children to deposit dry cereal (Cheerios) or stickers inside the spots.
WRITING ACTIVITIES
(Open writing activities-O like octopus) Print for each child or laminate for use with a dry-erase marker.
Stationery-Octopuses
(Open stationery-Octopuses) Print. Use the stationery to communicate with parents, in your writing corner, or to identify your thematic bins.
Educa-nuudles-Octopuses
(Open educa-nuudles-Octopuses) Print for each child. Have children color the sheet. Once they are done, they may use Magic Nuudles to turn the coloring pages into three- dimensional works of art. Variation: If you do not have Magic Nuudles, ask children to fill the spaces designed for Magic Nuudles with bingo markers or stickers. To order Magic Nuudles
VARIOUS WORKSHOPS-Octopuses
Construction/building blocks:
- Offer only blocks that are blue, brown, and green to represent water, the beach, and seaweed.
- Figurines that represent marine animals, octopuses in particular.
- Deposit a large piece of blue plastic (shower curtain) on the floor in your area. Children will enjoy building structures in the "water".
Arts & crafts:
- Add salt to your poster paint and observe the results once children's paintings are dry. You may use sea salt, fine salt, coarse salt, etc. Notice the differences.
- Collages using seashells.
- Add fine sand to your poster paint or white glue.
- Use chalk to draw on sandpaper.
- Add construction paper tentacles around the outside of a paper plate to create an octopus.
- Green, blue, and brown tissue paper, cardboard, and cellophane paper.
- Group project involving gluing, cutting, painting, etc. to create an ocean scene.
- Make marine animal puppets and stick Popsicle sticks behind them.
- Provide materials children can use to make their own fishing rods.
Drawing:
- Coloring pages related to the theme.
- Marine animal stencils.
- Ocean-themed creative coloring activity.
Role play:
- At the beach: sun hat, beach towels, sunglasses, sandals, sand toys, beach chairs, empty sunscreen bottles, magazines, etc.
- Deep sea fishing: rubber boots, fishing rods, bait, hats, fishing kit, nets, plastic fish, etc.
- Diving: diving gear, bathing suits, beach towels, oxygen bottles (2-litre soda bottles), anchor, etc.
- You may use blue and green electrical tape to delimit your area as well as represent water and the shore.
Manipulation:
- Memory game involving marine animal and octopus illustrations.
- Homemade or store-bought puzzles of beach or ocean scenes.
- Magical seashells. Use three seashells (or plastic cups). Hide a marble under one of the seashells. Move all three seashells around and have children guess which one the marble is hiding under.
- Laminate a picture of an octopus. Cut it into pieces to create an original puzzle.
- Provide tongue depressors (to represent crab claws) and pompoms (or pingpong balls) and encourage children to transfer them from one container to another.
- Play pin the tentacle on the octopus.
- Make your own ocean-themed manipulation bottles.
- Fill Ziploc bags with blue hair gel, blue salt, blue oil, etc. Seal the bags and use hot glue to prevent leaks. Children will love to manipulate the different substances without getting their hands dirty.
- Use modeling dough to sculpt octopuses in a variety of colors.
Pre-reading:
- Books related to the theme.
- CDs with wave or ocean sounds that children can listen to with headphones.
- Octopus and marine animal picture books.
- Encourage children to invent stories using the illustrations of the educatall picture game.
Pre-writing:
- Hunt and seek activities.
- Different activity sheets related to the theme.
- Games using educatall word flashcards.
- Tracing activities and mazes.
- A cookie sheet filled with sand and a stick that can be used to draw or write in the sand.
- Laminated octopus drawings that children can trace using a dry-erase marker.
Motor skills:
- An obstacle course that children must complete while moving like an octopus.
- Bowling: Glue pictures of octopuses on ten empty 2-litre soda bottles. Arrange them on the floor to represent bowling pins. Children attempt to make them fall down by rolling a ball towards them.
- Treasure hunt. Use ten pairs of brightly-coloured octopuses and invite children to find the matching ones.
- During transitions, encourage children to move about like different types of marine animals.
Sensory bins:
- Fill a large container with sand and provide sand toys children can use to build sand castles, dig tunnels, etc.
- Fill a container with pieces of blue ribbon, yarn, and string along with plastic fish and seashells. Add octopuses.
- Fill a container with sticky blue substances (Jell-O, baby oil, etc.). Let children manipulate its contents with tiny containers that can be filled and emptied, kitchen utensils, or plastic marine animals. This activity can be a little messy, but children love getting dirty!
Science:
- Make your own wave machines. Have each child bring one empty 2-litre soda bottle from home. Add ½ cup of vegetable oil to each bottle before filling them with water. Let children add a few drops of food coloring before sealing their bottle with the cap. Children will love to shake their bottle to create waves galore.
- Seashells in different sizes and shapes and magnifying glasses children can use to observe them up close.
- Manipulation of different types of sandpaper.
- If possible, bring a live crab or hermit crab to your daycare to give children the chance to observe it. Otherwise, use pictures to present this type of creature to your group.
- Pictures of octopuses that can be compared.
- Use blue cellophane paper to observe a variety of items "under water".
- What floats? What sinks?
- What does sea water taste like?
LANGUAGE ACTIVITIES
Word flashcards
Use the flashcards to spark a conversation with your group, in your reading and writing corner, or to identify your thematic bins. (Open word flashcards-Octopuses) (Open giant word flashcards-Octopuses) Print., octopus, tentacles, suction cups, ocean floor, ocean, eyes, eight arms, molluscs, squid, blue-ringed octopus, ink cloud, to propel
Let's chat
(Open word flashcards-Octopuses) Print and laminate the word flashcards. Have each child pick a flashcard. They can take turns presenting the word they picked to the group. With your group, talk about each item. Ask children questions to encourage them to share what they know about each one.
Poni discovers and presents-Octopuses
(Open Poni discovers and presents-Octopuses) Print and laminate. Present the pictures to your group with the help of your Poni puppet (or another puppet the children in your group are familiar with).
In the ocean, there are...
Invite children to form a circle. Give each child the name of a different marine animal (octopus, dolphin, starfish, etc.). Stand in the centre of the circle and toss a scarf up in the air as you say, "In the ocean, there are... (name a marine animal)." The child who was given this marine animal must catch the scarf and toss it back up in the air, calling out another marine animal.
TRANSITION ACTIVITIES
Game-This is my spot-Octopuses
(Open transition games-Octopuses) Print two copies of each illustration. Use adhesive paper to stick one copy of each illustration on the table. Place the second copy in a bag. Children take turns picking an illustration to determine where they must sit at the table. You may also use the illustrations to determine children's naptime spots or their place in the task train.
My octopus path
(Open transition games-Octopuses) Print, laminate, and secure the illustrations on the floor of your daycare to create a path leading to the areas frequently visited by children throughout the day. The path can lead to the bathroom, the cloakroom, etc. If you prefer, use the illustrations to delimit various areas.
ACTIVITIES FOR BABIES
Mobile-Octopuses
(Open educa-decorate-Octopuses) Print and laminate the pictures. Glue them back to back on either side of colourful ribbon or string to create a mobile. Hang your mobile from the ceiling or over your changing table.
I am discovering-Octopuses
(Open educa-decorate-Octopuses) Print and laminate the pictures. Arrange them on the floor of your daycare so little ones can explore them as they crawl around.
PHYSICAL ACTIVITY AND MOTOR SKILLS
Lacing-Octopuses
(Open lacing-Octopuses) Print, laminate, and punch holes around the contour of each shape. Give each child a shoelace or piece of yarn they can thread through the holes.
Color sorting-Octopuses
(Open color sorting games-Octopuses) Print and laminate the document in color. Give each child a copy and set several small illustrations in the centre of the table. Children must use their thumb and index to grasp them and associate each one to the correct color. This exercise is great for developing fine motor skills.
Game-Octopuses
(Open pin the tentacles on the octopus) Print and display on a wall. As in the pin the tail on the donkey, children must try to stick the missing tentacle as close to the right spot as possible, while blindfolded.
Where are the octopuses hiding?
(game-Octopuses) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Hide the illustrations throughout the yard. Children must search for them. Each time a child finds an octopus, he/she must run to a basket set on the ground and deposit the illustration inside before setting off to search for more.
The octopus
Select a child who will become the octopus. The octopus must search for the other children. When a child is touched by the octopus, he/she must hold on to the octopus' arm. Together, they continue to attempt to catch the other children. The game continues until all the children have been touched.
I am an octopus
Give children tentacles (pieces of fabric tucked into their pants). Children must try to steal each other's tentacles. The goal of the game is to be the first child to collect eight tentacles.
MUSICAL AND RHYTHMIC ACTIVITIES
Musical octopuses
(Open picture game-Octopuses) Print and laminate the pictures. Arrange them on the floor of your daycare, securing them with adhesive paper. To the rhythm of the music, children move around the daycare. When the music stops, they must quickly find a picture to stand on. Variation: If you wish, you may remove a picture at the end of each round. There will therefore be several children on the same picture and eventually, they will all have to find a way to stand on the same picture.
COGNITIVE ACTIVITIES
Felt board game
Create your own felt board. Glue four pieces of green felt on a large piece of cardboard and display it on a wall. (Open felt board game-Octopuses) Print. With help from the older children in your group, trace the shapes on colourful felt and cut them out. The shapes will easily stick to your green felt board. At the end of the theme, keep your felt board and simply use shapes related to your next theme to continue to use it.
Memory game-Octopuses
(Open word flashcards-Octopuses) Print two copies. Place them face down on a table or the floor. Children take turns turning two pictures. The goal of the game is to collect as many pairs as possible.
Educ-math-Octopuses
(Open educ-math-Octopuses) Print and laminate for durable, eco-friendly use. Children must count the objects in each rectangle and circle the corresponding number.
RELAXATION ACTIVITIES
Relaxation
Organize a relaxation period for your group. Play soft music with ocean sounds. Encourage them to gently sway their arms to represent waves and use their mouth to represent the sound of the wind. Rock from side to side, very slowly, as if you are being rocked by the waves.
CULINARY ACTIVITIES
Blue Jell-O bin
Let children play in a bin filled with blue Jell-O. Add items that can be found on the ocean floor to your bin. Children will like to plunge their hands in the Jell-O or use small nets to fish out the items.
Sausage octopuses
Make two perpendicular incisions at both ends of hotdog sausages and boil them in water (or in the microwave). They will open up and look a lot like octopuses with eight tentacles.
ARTS & CRAFTS
Octopuses
(Open models-Octopuses) Print several copies. Let children decorate their octopus with a variety of arts & crafts materials (pompoms, glitter, confetti, scraps of paper, etc.).
My moving octopus
(Open my moving octopus) Print for each child. Cut out the pieces and let them decorate the various parts with markers. Attach the parts together using fasteners where indicated and display the octopuses on a wall.
Finger puppets-Octopuses
(Open finger puppets-Octopuses) Print the puppets on cardboard. Ask children to cut them out and color them if you have chosen to use the black and white version. Children insert their fingers to move the puppets.
My miniature octopus
(Open my miniature octopus) Print for each child. Have children color the different parts and glue them on an empty toilet paper roll that they previously painted black.
COLORING PAGES
(Open coloring pages theme-Octopuses) Print for each child.
SONGS & RHYMES
(Open songs & rhymes-Octopuses)
Octopuses
1, 2, 3, 4
Oh, you'll have to count some more
5, 6, 7, 8
That's it...wait!
8 arms
Make my charm
Don't scare me
Or all you'll see
Is black, black, black
An ink cloud is how I attack
Have fun
The Educatal team