Did you know that about 94% of life on earth is aquatic? That means that most of the life we interact with is a tiny fraction of all the creatures on earth! Today’s teatime will take us under the sea to explore all of the exciting and mysterious creatures living beyond our sight.

[This post contains Amazon affiliate links. When you click on those links to make purchases,
Poetry Teatime receives compensation at no extra cost to you. Thank you!]

Enjoy a couple of poems about the delights of the sea, from mermaids to jellyfish!

From “The Mermaid”

By Alfred, Lord Tennyson

Who would be
A mermaid fair,
Singing alone,
Combing her hair
Under the sea,
In a golden curl
With a comb of pearl,
On a throne?

A Jelly-Fish

By Marianne Moore

Visible, invisible,
A fluctuating charm,
An amber-colored amethyst
Inhabits it; your arm
Approaches, and
It opens and
It closes;
You have meant
To catch it,
And it shrivels;
You abandon
Your intent—
It opens, and it
Closes and you
Reach for it—
The blue
Surrounding it
Grows cloudy, and
It floats away
From you.

Undersea Food

• Sand Dollar Cinnamon Sugar Cookies: Check out this recipe from Mama Miss. Use slivered almonds to get the beautiful star shape on these sand dollar cookies!

• Ocean-Themed Food: Serve salt water taffy, starfish-shaped sandwiches, apples cut in the shape of crabs using this pin on Pinterest, or more obvious picks like goldfish, Swedish fish, shark gummies, or blue jelly beans.

• Blue Waves: Take an ordinary food item that you would serve for tea--maybe deviled eggs or a fruit like pineapple or watermelon. Use food coloring to transform the normal food into something ocean-inspired, like blue egg salad sandwiches.

• Monster Food: If you have some googly eyes, try out the ideas for ocean monster food here and here.  

Watery Decorations

• Ocean Streamers: Tape one end of a blue streamer to the ceiling and twist it to get a nice watery feel. Keep stringing up blue streamers until the ceiling feels like an ocean above you. You can also tape and twist green streamers to the walls for a seaweed-like effect. See the inspiration here and here.

• Other Underwater Touches: Use blue cellophane or tissue paper over lights or windows to cast a watery glow over the room. Even something simple like cutting fish shapes out of colored paper and taping the fish to walls makes for a fun touch! If you feel like some extra work, check out this paper lantern jellyfish idea from Party City.

• Use Seashells: If your family makes trips to the beach, you may have some shells, seaglass, or driftwood pieces that you can put to good use. They would look especially pretty in a glass bowl as a centerpiece on your table.

Seafloor Activities

• Make a Mermaid: Now that the weather is getting nice, go on a nature walk and collect some fun-looking leaves and flower petals. Then draw the head and torso of the mermaid and use the leaves to make a fun tail! Inspired by these beautiful mermaids on Mother Natured.

• Shell Art: Pick up some shells from a beach, your local Hobby Lobby, Walmart, or even the dollar store. You could also check out an antiques store for some shells. Then, use thin-point sharpies or paint to decorate your shells! Use the designs on this pin for inspiration.

• Ocean in a Jar: If you have some vegetable oil and blue food coloring, why not construct this simple experiment to learn more about the ocean. Use these directions on A Few Shortcuts.

• Other Bottled Ideas: Check out this fun and flowy tutorial on how to make this fun jellyfish in a bottle. Or try this beautiful and educational layers of the ocean in a bottle activity from Edventures.

Books

Ocean Soup: Tide Pool Poems, by Stephen Swinburne

At the Sea Floor Café: Odd Ocean Critter Poems, by Leslie Bulion

Water Sings Blue: Ocean Poems, by Kate Coombs

Sea Stars: Saltwater Poems, by Avis Harley

In the Swim, by Douglas Florian

Water Music, by Jane Yolen

Resources

• National Geographic Kids has an interview with Sylvia Earle, early ocean cartographer. Also check out the nonfiction book for kids, Life in the Ocean: The Story of Ocean Cartographer Sylvia Earle, by Claire A. Nivola
• Down, Down, Down: A Journey to the Bottom of the Sea, written and illustrated by Steve Jenkins
• Monterey Bay Aquarium’s resources include an animal guide to sea creatures, games and activities about the sea, and even some critter cards of cool deep sea fish and other creatures
• Tons of Fish FAQs from Woods Hole Science Aquarium
• National Marine Sanctuaries has lots of interactive resources to explore
• Miss Rumphius Effect has collected some of the best resources on oceans and water here and here. Be sure the check these out!