Your kids will love this fun blow painting coral reef hands-on activity. Also, grab more ideas on my Coral Reef page.
Too, June 1st marks World Reef Day, a day that is a call for everyone to reflect on our beautiful coral reefs as well as come to action to protect and preserve them.
Even if you have never visited them in person, you have surely seen their beauty in pictures or videos.
I have a beautiful craft project to share with you which is coral reef blow painting.
It is a unique and fun activity for the kids to make and is a beautiful piece of artwork to hang up in your home as well.
This project is so fun you will probably want to make one yourself.
Coral reefs are important to us because:
- they hold an abundance of life,
- reefs protect coastlines from storms and erosion,
- provide jobs for the community around them,
- they are a source of food and medicine,
- and are a source of recreation for those who wish to appreciate them up close.
10 World Coral Reef Day Facts
Next, look at some facts to remember on world coral reef day.
- The NOAA estimates that over 75% of the world’s reefs are currently threatened, and within the next 10 years, 90% of reefs will be threatened by human activities.
- The biggest threat to coral is climate change.
- Corals are animals, not plants, and are the cousins of marine animals like jellyfish and sea anemones.
- Corals can move. Adult coral is attached to the ocean floor but larval or baby coral can swim to find a spot to set down anchor.
- Coral supports 25% of ocean life, it is much like an underwater forest.
- The Great Barrier Reef is the largest reef system on Earth.
- Like trees, coral has growth rings inside that can help determine the age of the coral.
- There are over 800 different types of hard coral around the world.
- Coral reefs only grow up to a certain water depth which is about 200 to 300 feet.
- Corals eat 2 different ways- either by capturing zooplankton that floats near their polyp tentacles or by their symbiotic relationship with zooxanthellae.
Then look at ways to protect coral reefs.
4 Ways Kids Can Preserve Coral Reefs
1. Choose Reef Friendly Sun Protection.
Many sunscreens hurt the coral reefs causing coral bleaching and stopping its development.
Instead of using sunscreen made with toxic chemicals, focus on practicing sun management cover-up, avoiding the sun during peak hours.
And opt for non-nano mineral-based sunscreen on exposed areas. These sunscreens are made with zinc oxide and/or titanium dioxide.
2. Recycle And Dispose Of Trash Properly.
You may think tossing just one water bottle from the boat isn’t a big deal, but imagine millions of people doing that, or carelessly leaving trash on the beach.
These actions have big impacts on marine life including corals.
3. Research When Purchasing Aquarium Fish.
Avoid buying living coral instead look for imitation corals, if you purchase a marine aquarium fish, make sure that it has been collected in a sustainable way.
4. Spread the Word.
Especially if you live anywhere near these precious coral reefs, you can work together with local groups to educate everyone on how important and precious they are.
You can find a lot of information online but here are a few books that I highly recommend you use for ocean studies; they both contain a good amount of information on coral reefs as well as the marine animals that make their home there.
More Coral Reef Ideas
- Free Coral Reef Printable Lapbook and Fun Hands-on Unit Study Ideas
- Make a Fun Edible Coral Reef
- Reef Grammar Farm
- STEAM Challenge: Create your own coral reef.
Also, look at these resources for studying coral reefs.
Coral Reef Unit Study Resources
Add some of these coral reef unit study resources to your unit study.
In this level 2 reader, young readers explore the amazing underwater world of coral reefs. Beautiful photos and carefully leveled text make this book perfect for reading aloud and for independent reading.
What is life like in a coral reef? What do corals eat? Why are corals more colorful at nighttime? Learn about some of the most beautiful locations in the natural worldMarine biologists believe coral reefs existed 400 million years ago, when dinosaurs roamed the earth. Today this active environment is home to about 20,000 kinds of brilliantly colored corals, plants, and animals--more sea creatures than are found anywhere else in the world. The Great Barrier Reef in Australia is so large that astronauts can see it from outer space! Children in early elementary grades will enjoy Gibbon's informative text and clear, detailed illustrations on this journey into the unique lives of coral reefs.
The world is keen to protect the coral reefs. Why? The coral reefs provide shelter to all kinds of sea creatures. If they die, life below the sea will become very difficult. It is important to educate the young about the whole new world under the sea. This beautiful nature encyclopedia will be just the right tool to use!
Sea animal toy, approximately 2 inch, creature including Octopus,hippocampus, seahorse, jellyfish, turtle,clown fish, crab,shark Otter and etc
Use for a diorama or for play fun.
MARINE BIOLOGY GAME - Learn about underwater creatures and their habitats in this nature card game! Players use aquatic animals such as sea turtles, sharks, and clownfish in a grid formation in this ecosystem building game. Earn points by aligning ocean life with the habitats and food sources where they most flourish.
Hardy adventurers ages 6 - 9 dive into a silent watery world where tiny coral animals grow together to form rock gardens of white, pink, and red-orange. In this action-packed undersea circus, jaws snap, tentacles sting, ink gets squirted, and fish suddenly glow while animals that look like plants sway gently and bashful clams hide the lively secrets inside their shells. Surprisingly dry and armed with a few pieces of equipment and their boundless imaginations, children explore this magical realm one small square at a time
Coral reefs are some of the largest natural structures in the world, and they are created by tiny coral polyps no bigger than a grain of rice. This Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science book introduces readers to the amazing world of the coral reefs and the many marine animals who lived there.
CREATE AN UNDERWATER WORLD -- Use chemical reactions to create colorful underwater scenes. Mix solutions, build an artificial coral reef and grow instant chemical coral with this coral reef kit.
Travel-Friendly Educational Toys: Coral Reef features 48 challenges, from easy to expert. Thanks to its compact size and new tin box portable travel case, you can put this puzzle at the top of your family's travel games list.
Finally, look how to make this blow painting coral reef hands-on activity.
Coral Reef Hands-On Activity
You will need:
- Straws
- Liquid watercolors
- Watercolor paper
- Pipettes or droppers
- Markers
- Baking sheet
- Fine point black pen
Cut straws in half to make it a little easier to blow through and direct your watercolors.
Place a sheet of watercolor paper onto a baking sheet, this can get a little messy.
Using a pipette or small paintbrush drop various sized dots of the liquid watercolor all over the bottom of the page, or you can fill the entire page for a closer up view of the coral reef.
Have your child blow through the straw spreading the watercolor droplets around.
You may wish to repeat and add more “limbs” or new coral once you see the white space.
I like to let some of it dry and do the dots again to create different shades and give it a little depth.
Allow it to dry.
Lightly add a watered-down wash of light blue onto all the white space if you like to create water.
Let your picture dry completely.
Younger children will probably want to stop here, and that is totally fine but challenge your older children to add more detail. To do this they can trace around each dried shape with a fine liner black pen to define them a bit more.
They can also use markers to add some fish in the painting. Use your books or Google for inspiration.
Once completely dry, lay your painted page under a couple heavy books for several hours to press the paper flat.
Create several paintings, each one will be completely unique just like the beautiful coral in the ocean.
