Turtles at the Pond

crayola supplies

Paint Brushes
Markers
Washable Kid's Paint
Model Magic®
No-Run School Glue
Blunt-Tip Scissors

household supplies

recycled newspaper
white paper
paper towels
cardboard
recycled plastic lid (optional)
container(s) of water
craft sticks (optional)

Why

Observe turtles and other creatures at an aquarium, pond, or other natural area. Kids recreate their experience with a 3-D nature display.

Steps

1. With an adult, visit a natural area or aquarium with a pond. Sit quietly and watch. See how many living things you can find-plants, a turtle, snail, snake, butterfly, or dragon fly. Sketch the creatures and their surroundings with Crayola® Washable Markers. Collect fallen leaves or broken twigs if that is permitted.
2. When you return, wash your hands. With Crayola Model Magic, make replicas of the living things you saw. Use your fingers or craft sticks to etch in details and texture, such as the boxes on a turtle's back. Dry.
3. Look at your sketches of the animals' surroundings. Did you see water? Rocks? Plants? Fallen logs? Create them with Model Magic, too.
4. For a display stand, cover cardboard or a recycled plastic lid with construction paper. Cut the paper to fit with Crayola Scissors. Attach with Crayola School Glue.
5. Cover your work area with newspaper. Using Crayola Washable Kid's Paint and Paint Brushes, add more color and detail to your critters, their environment, and your display stand. Dry.
6. Glue any natural items you collected to complete your scene.

When & Where

"My sons sat SO quietly at the Nature Center! The hopping frogs and sunning turtles really captured their attention."
- Dhameer R., dad of 6-year-old twins.

"The girls' pond environment studies were really detailed and accurate. Several plan to expand their work into science projects."
- Hermione E., Girl Guide leader.

Interesting Info

As box turtles grow they change from being omnivorous (eating everything) to being herbivorous (eating only plants). A fossilized turtle skeleton was found along with dinosaurs who lived in the Jurassic Period, so turtles have lived on Earth a very long time.

Safety Guidelines

Adult Assistance is required for this arts & crafts project.

Crayola Modeling Materials including Crayola Model Magic®, and Model Magic Fusion™, Crayola Air-Dry Clay, and Crayola Dough—

Keep away from open flames. Do not use to make candleholders, hot plates, trivets, or other similar objects that will be used or placed near fire and other heat sources.
Do not put in an oven, microwave, or kiln.
Do not make into vessels/containers that will hold unpackaged food.
The use of modeling material to make items that look like food is discouraged for children younger than age 5 to avoid their confusion with real food.
Unless sealed with a water-resistant glaze, do not make projects exposed to or immersed in water, such as boats or outdoor bird feeders. They would disintegrate when exposed to moisture.
Crayola Dough—contains gluten (wheat flour) as an ingredient.
Crayola Air-Dry Clay, Crayola Model Magic and Model Magic Fusion are gluten-free. However, they are produced on the same machinery as Crayola Dough which does contain gluten. Although the machines are cleaned prior to the start of each production run, there is a slight possibility that trace amounts of gluten from Crayola Dough may be present in the other modeling compound products. For information regarding specific ingredients or allergic concerns, please call our Consumer Affairs department at 1-800-272-9652 weekdays between 9 AM and 4 PM Eastern Standard Time.

Crayola Washable Paints—Not for use as body/face paint.

Recycled Containers—Must be clean and safe. Do not use containers that contained bleach or other harmful chemicals (for example, household cleaners, dishwasher or laundry detergents). Do not use recycled metal cans that have sharp edges (for example, lids removed by household can openers).

Scissors—ATTENTION: The cutting edges of scissors are sharp and care should be taken whenever cutting or handling. Blunt-tip scissors should be used only by children 4 years and older. Pointed-tip scissors should be used only by children 6 years and older.

Wood—By its nature, wood is rough and may contain splinters or sharp points