Use an octopus-themed literacy activity to reinforce the sound the letter "O" makes. On paper, print an upper- and lowercase letter "O." Ask children to identify the letter and discuss the sound the letter makes. Have them trace both the upper- and the lowercase letters with their fingers and then trace them with crayons or pencils. Offer octopus-shaped stickers or stamps and talk about how the word "octopus" begins with the letter "O." Have children stamp or place the stickers on the upper- and lowercase letter "O's."
Have children make their own octopi and further reinforce the sound the letter "O" makes with this craft activity. On gray construction paper, draw a circle and eight oblong rectangles. Have children cut out the shapes and glue the rectangles to the bottom of the circle, creating the body and tentacles of an octopus. Offer children googly eyes, red yarn and circle-shaped cereal pieces. Instruct them to glue the googly eyes onto the body of their octopi and to glue the red yarn on as a smiley face. Have them glue the cereal pieces onto the tentacles of their crafts, creating suction cups. Name the craft "Ollie the Octopus" and discuss the letter that words begin with.
Through this octopus-themed math activity, children learn that the prefix "octo" means eight. Draw an octopus on a piece of paper for each child in your class; number each of the tentacles of the octopus, write the word "Octopus" on the head of the animal and highlight the word "octo." Together, count the number of tentacles the animal has and tell students that the word "octo" means eight. Provide students with circle-shaped cereal pieces and instruct them to glue an amount of cereal pieces onto each tentacle that corresponds to the numbers written on them; for example, they should glue one piece of cereal on the tentacle numbered one and two pieces of cereal on the tentacle marked two.
This activity combines color recognition with scientific discovery. Cut out octopus shapes from different colors of construction paper. Discuss with your students how an octopus changes color to blend in with his surroundings to protect himself from harm; explain that this is called camouflage. On a flat surface, lay pieces of construction paper that correspond to each of the octopi you have cut out. Present children with the creatures and instruct them to match the animals to the correct color construction paper.