A guide for using our resources

Children will follow an octopus through a day in the ocean.

Vocabulary: coral, jets

Science Focus: ocean animals

Simple, spectacular ideas to boost your lessons.

• This fictional octopus adventure makes a great companion to the issue. Rhyming text adds to the story’s charm.

• Together, write a journal entry from the point of view of an octopus! Use the mini book for inspiration to describe events in the octopus’s day.
• Write the story on chart paper as children dictate. Invite kids to come up and write any letters or words they may know.

Skill: art, science

Materials: paper plates, paint, googly eyes, strips of colored construction paper, glue or tape, O-shaped cereal (optional)

• Give each child a paper plate and let children paint the plates any color they like
• As the plates dry, have each child cut eight strips of colored construction paper. Children can use the same color they used to paint their octopus.
• Have kids attach the strips to the back of their paper plate with glue or tape to make the octopus’s arms. They can also add googly eyes to the octopus’s head.
• As a finishing touch, you might have kids glue O-shaped cereal to the arms to make suckers!