Quick Color Wonder™ Turtle

1. How can one type of animal have so many different textures all over its body? Organize a variety of text and electronic resources for students to use when investigating turtles. If possible, have students observe turtles at a zoo. Encourage students to notice their leathery skin, scaly legs, sharp beaks, and smooth and at times even horny shells.
2. With a Crayola Color Wonder™ Marker, ask students to outline a turtle’s shape on Color Wonder Paper. From above you can see its head, tail, shell, and legs—all simple shapes! Using Color Wonder™ Paint and Markers, texturize the sketch to show the variety of elements. Blend colors. Add dots and spirals to legs and head.
3. Students finish turtle paintings with a decorative border around the edge of the paper. Air-dry the turtle before displaying it.

LA: Read and comprehend informational texts, including history/social studies, science, and technical texts, at the high end of the grade level text complexity band independently and proficiently.

LA: Conduct short research projects that build knowledge about a topic.

LA: Participate in collaborative conversations with diverse partners about grade level topics and texts with peers and adults in small and larger groups.

LA: Report on a topic or text, tell a story, or recount an experience with appropriate facts and relevant, descriptive details, speaking clearly at an understandable pace.

SCI: Construct a representation in which plants and animals depend on their environment and each other to meet their needs.

SS: Explore causes, consequences, and possible solutions to persistent, contemporary, and emerging global issues, such as pollution and endangered species.

VA: Use different media, techniques, and processes to communicate ideas, experiences, and stories.

VA: Use visual structures of art to communicate ideas.

Possible classroom resources include: The Incredible Life of the Sea Turtle by Mark Smith; Learn to Read Books for Children: Sea Turtles by Andrew Miller; Turtles! By Leah Ledos; Sea Turtles: Amazing Photos & Fun Facts on Animals in Nature by Kay DeSilva

Students work in small groups to research sea turtles and land turtles. Students identify similarities and differences between the two.

Students create a 3-D model of turtles using Crayola Model Magic. Use everyday household objects to add texture to the model.

In small groups, students research the turtle's carapace. This is the living part of the body, much like human nails or hair. Consider what the purposes are for the turtle's carapace, how it feels, etc.