Help to promote recognition of the sound the letter "O" makes in preschool through lower elementary students with this ocean-themed language arts activity. On paper, write an upper- and a lowercase letter "O" and distribute the papers to students. Discuss the sound the letter makes and say the word "ocean" and ask students if they can hear the sound of the letter in the beginning of the word. Ask children to trace the letters and then encourage them to draw a picture of the ocean, making the letters the centerpiece of the picture.
There are a variety of ocean-themed picture books that you can incorporate into language arts instruction in the upper elementary and intermediate grades. Fill your classroom library with a variety of these ocean-themed texts; "In the Ocean" by A.J. Wood, "At the Beach" by Anne Rockwell, "Ocean" by Ron Hirschi and "What's Under the Ocean" by Janet Craig, for example. Read the books aloud as a class or encourage children to read the books in their free time. Create a Venn diagram to compare and contrast the differences between the books. Ask children questions that pertain to the books pre-, during and postreading to increase comprehension. Have students create artwork to illustrate their favorite parts in the books.
Poetry is often inspired by nature and the ocean can certainly be used as a source of inspiration for student-created poetry. In elementary and middle school, have children write acrostic poems and haikus that are based on the ocean. High school students can create more detailed and meaningful poems about the ocean, such as odes, sonnets and imagery poems. Invite students to share their work with the class to gain an appreciation of the different views of the ocean.
Students from elementary school through high school can construct short stories about the ocean. While constructing their stories, stress the importance of using the writing process -- prewriting, writing, revising, editing and publishing. Encourage students to draw from their own experiences with the ocean or have them write imaginative pieces. Once students have completed their stories, they can add them to the classroom library for others to enjoy reading.