HT Games
Paper Games
Print under the sea word searches and word scrambles from online or make your own. Use words like coral reefs, sharks, sea star, eel, parrotfish and urchin. Give each student a word search puzzle or word scramble. The first student to finish the puzzle wins the game. Alternatively, set a timer for five minutes. The child who completes the most answers before time is up wins the game. Another idea is a drawing contest. See who can draw the best picture of a shark or puffer fish.
Online Games
The Monterey Bay Aquarium website offers a variety of online games for students to play. A game of "Crunch, Nibble, Gulp, Bite" teaches children what different types of sea creatures like to eat. A Sea Otter interactive game teaches students all about sea otters. Other online games on the website include a Deep Sea Memory Game, a Tic-Tac-Toe Game and a game of Ray Hide-and-Seek.
Educational Games
Cut several fish, shark and whale shapes out of construction paper. Write numbers on each one and hide the cutouts around the classroom. Call out an addition problem, such as ̶0;8 + 4.̶1; The first student to find the fish, shark or whale with the number 12 on it wins a small prize. Alternatively, do the same using subtraction and multiplication problems. Have two or three students play this game at a time to avoid collisions and/or fighting over the numbers.
Outdoor Games
Take your student outside for some outdoor ocean games. Fill two plastic swimming pools with play sand and seashells. Select two students to compete at one time. Each student kneels down beside and pool. When you say ̶0;Go,̶1; they have one minute to find as many seashells as they can. The player who finds the most wins the game. Another outdoor game is octopus tag. Select one student to be the octopus. He must try to tag the other students. When he tags another student, they must join hands and both try to catch other students. Each student caught by the octopus must join hands. The last student caught by the giant octopus wins the game.