Ideas for Ocean Decorations for a Classroom

Students will be stimulated by the ocean decor in your classroom.

Bring the ocean to life for your students. Decorate your classroom from top to bottom, transforming it into an aquarium filled with sea creatures, water and sand. The children will be enticed to explore and encouraged to learn more about marine life through the decorations you use while studying the ocean.

The Classroom Door

Greet your students and visitors with a giant octopus. An oversized stuffed and smiling head hovers over the door as long arms with suction cup-laden tentacles wrap around it. These tentacles can even be used to hold name cards or pictures of each student in the class.

Wall Mosaic

Form a sea creature from small sea shells.

Create a supersized starfish on the wall using small sea shells. Sand dollars, periwinkles, angel wings and cockles are small enough to use for this project. Simply cover an area with one or two pieces of poster board and hot glue the shells within the outline of the starfish.

Ceiling Ideas

Hang stuffed fish from the ceiling of your classroom.

Hang fish from the ceiling. You can make several lightweight fish by cutting the ends off of two-liter soda bottles and stapling them closed to make the tail. Use brightly colored markers to draw eyes and fins. Add stuffed sharks, blowfish, whales and seahorses to complete your menagerie of hanging sea life.

Bulletin Board Idea

Turn your bulletin board into an oceanic treasure. Cover your bulletin board in fish net. Staple blue cellophane or plastic wrap over the netting. Cut brown butcher paper in a wavy pattern to represent the ocean bottom and staple it to the lower portion of the board. Partially hide small plastic fish behind plastic plants and green crepe paper. Painted pasta and packing peanuts come to life as ocean coral in your display.

Sea Life in a Jar

Fill several mason jars with a variety of shells, aquarium plants, coral, sponges and plastic sea creatures. Make a list of what is included in each of the jars and glue them to the appropriate lids. Place these along window sills and on book shelves for the children to observe during free time. Consult with your science department about purchasing marine specimens to display in jars as well.

References

• Teaching Heart: Ocean Boards